'100,000 Errors Corrected Over 10 Years'... Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Launches 16th Korea Fact-Checking Squad

Active Until July, 34 Selected from 9 Countries

"I want to serve as a bridge connecting Spain and Korea. For those who still do not know much about Korea, I will work to promote Korea more widely and make information about Korea easily accessible." Beatrice Flores (16th Korea Correct Information Supporters)

15th Korea Correct Information Group.
[Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism]

The 16th group of the 'Korea Correct Information Supporters,' who correct misinformation about Korea, is launching. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 26th that it will hold the inauguration ceremony for the '16th Correct Information Supporters' at the COSIS Center on the 10th floor of the Seoul Press Center.

The 'Correct Information Supporters' are youth supporters who identify and correct errors in information about Korea distributed overseas through foreign media and websites, promoting accurate knowledge about Korea. They consist of young people both domestic and abroad who have a deep understanding of Korea and high-level foreign language skills.

Since its first group, the Correct Information Supporters have operated with 600 members to date. They have discovered and reported 11,323 errors, including correcting a Spanish media outlet that mistakenly described Hanbok as a type of kimono, and have carried out various cultural promotion activities both online and offline. Starting this year, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will increase the number of recruitments to twice a year and expand the number of selected members from 50 to 70.

The 16th group consists of 34 members who will be active until the end of July. They reside in nine countries worldwide, including China, Japan, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Indonesia. They possess diverse foreign language skills, including major languages such as English, Chinese, and Japanese, as well as German, Indonesian, and Arabic, raising expectations for broad activities across various regions.

After the simultaneous online and offline inauguration ceremony, the members will begin their full-scale activities. They will promote the 'Korea Correct Information Service,' a reporting center for errors related to Korea, and discover and report errors about Korea. They will also conduct promotional activities about Korea using various online social networks.

Bunga Shafa Aziza, who lived in Indonesia and was a member of the 15th group, said, "Through the activities of the Correct Information Supporters, I encountered a lot of news and content related to Korea, and by discovering and trying to correct various errors, I feel proud to be able to promote Korean culture correctly and provide good information to those around me."

Si Ji-won, selected as a member of the 16th group, said, "I want to work hard to turn misunderstandings about Korea into understanding and correct misinformation with accurate information. Using French, my major language, as a stepping stone, I want to contribute to ensuring there are no errors at the gateway connecting Korea and the world, and take pride as a global citizen and a citizen of the Republic of Korea."

Yong Ho-sung, head of the International Cultural Promotion Policy Office at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and leader of the Correct Information Supporters, said, "The number of people who love Korea and Korean culture and seek information related to Korea has greatly increased. Going forward, we will actively promote 'who we are' and, furthermore, 'the values we pursue' to the international community through more diverse channels, networks, and content."

He added, "In the process of raising the status of the Republic of Korea as a global partner, the activities of each member of the Correct Information Supporters will be a great foundation."

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