"'Kim Man-bae and Shin Hak-rim Interview Manipulation' the Biggest Political Conspiracy... Conspirators Must Be Revealed"

Who Raised the 'Yoon Seok-yeol Main Culprit Theory'?
Thorough Investigation Needed to Identify Those Involved and Accomplices
"Permanent Expulsion of Fake News Cartel"

The People Power Party defined the 'Kim Man-bae - Shin Hak-rim Interview Manipulation Incident' as the largest political conspiracy case that occurred during last year's presidential election and urged the investigative authorities to conduct a strict investigation on the 5th. This appears to be a countermeasure against the opposition party's public opinion battle over the Fukushima nuclear power plant contaminated water discharge issue and the death of Marine Corps Corporal Chae.

Yoon Jae-ok, the floor leader of the People Power Party, said at the floor strategy meeting held that day, "Who planned the false interview in September 2021 in which Kim Man-bae claimed that Yoon Seok-yeol, then a presidential candidate, covered up the 2011 Busan Savings Bank case by serving coffee to broker Jo during the investigation?" He added, "To support this false interview, Kim Man-bae even fabricated an alibi by telling Jo Woo-young to pretend not to know."

Yoon Jae-ok, floor leader of the People Power Party, is attending the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 5th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Earlier, on September 15, 2021, Kim Man-bae met with Shin Hak-rim, former chairman of the National Union of Mediaworkers of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, and gave a false interview claiming that "Yoon Seok-yeol met Jo during the investigation of the 2011 Busan Savings Bank case and covered up the incident." Newstapa, where Shin served as an advisory committee member, released the edited recording file and its content on March 6 last year, three days before the presidential election.

Floor leader Yoon said, "Even before this false interview surfaced, Representative Lee Jae-myung was trying to raise the issue by mentioning the Busan Savings Bank case and asserting that Yoon Seok-yeol was the mastermind," emphasizing, "A thorough investigation must reveal the political conspiracy behind this and identify those who conspired and sympathized."

He also pointed out, "The media that amplified the fake news interview through large speakers also bear responsibility," and added, "Newstapa, which committed a serious crime by spreading fake news and disrupting the national order, was followed by intensive coverage from MBC, JTBC, and others. The media outlets must explain why they engaged in such unethical reporting."

Lee Dong-gwan, nominee for Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission, is talking with officials at the confirmation hearing held at the National Assembly on the 18th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The ruling party indicated that it plans to respond strongly, viewing this incident as an act of disrupting the national order.

Park Dae-chul, chairman of the People Power Party's Policy Committee, said, "What is required in this era is a thorough investigation and strict judgment," adding, "Trying to influence election results with fake news in an 'if not, then so' manner is a heinous crime that destroys liberal democracy and undermines the constitutional order." Park added, "If not dealt with severely, political conspiracies will run rampant every election. The fake news cartel must be permanently expelled."

Secretary-General Lee Cheol-gyu also said, "Who benefited from the fake manipulated interview incident involving Kim Man-bae and Shin Hak-rim?" He continued, "Fortunately, this unprecedented presidential election manipulation ended in failure, but we cannot just cover it up because it failed. Spreading fake news and attempting to overturn election results shakes the foundation of democracy. We must root out not only the mastermind but also the source," demanding a swift investigation by the prosecution.

Lee Dong-gwan, chairman of the Korea Communications Commission, also said at the full meeting of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee the day before, "This is not just fake news but a serious criminal act, that is, an act disrupting the national order," adding, "The vicious cycle of fake news involves receiving money to fabricate it. When internet media spreads fake news, so-called public broadcasters amplify it, and media biased toward certain camps broadcast and feed back into it." Lee emphasized, "(Newstapa's report) will be subject to strict measures by the Korea Communications Standards Commission and others, regardless of the investigative authorities' investigation," and stressed, "I believe a one-strike-out system should be introduced to prevent such incidents from happening again."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.