President Lee: "Intentional Distortion and False Information Must Be Corrected Quickly and Held Accountable"

President Lee Stresses at Cabinet Meeting:
"Each Ministry Must Review and Report on Promotional Activities"
"Even as Media Trends Evolve, False and Manipulated News Must Be Addressed"

President Lee Jaemyung emphasized the importance of the media's role, but stated that in cases where information is deliberately distorted or false information is disseminated, prompt corrections should be made and accountability should be enforced.

Yonhap News Agency

Kang Yujeong, spokesperson for the presidential office, briefed at the Yongsan presidential office on the 18th, reporting that when participants in the Cabinet meeting expressed the view that any inaccurate information reported by the media must be addressed, President Lee made these remarks.

In particular, after hearing a report that false and manipulated news is strictly regulated in other countries, President Lee said, "That seems like a good approach," and added, "Even as we follow the trend of changes in the media, false and manipulated news is an issue that must be resolved."

At the meeting, following President Lee's instructions, the government discussed ways to make policy promotion more efficient. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism proposed shifting publicity efforts by encouraging ministers and vice ministers of each ministry to be more active on social networking services (SNS). Kang also reported that some Cabinet members commented that the government's advertising practices do not reflect the changing media landscape, noting that countries such as Canada and the United Kingdom are placing more advertisements on online platforms as digitalization progresses.

In response, President Lee called for a reassessment of the criteria used to evaluate the publicity performance of government ministries, and requested a report on the current status of each ministry's promotional activities. Kang explained, "(President Lee) said it is important to explain government policies accurately to the public and ensure that people can feel the effects of these policies," adding, "He said that rather than relying on paid publicity, it is better to communicate directly with the public, face-to-face." Kang further added, "He urged officials to constantly consider the perspective of the public as recipients, rather than focusing on the convenience of the providers, and to come up with better alternatives."

Meanwhile, President Lee also stressed the need to go through a process of public discussion when dealing with sensitive and key issues, stating that even if the process is expedited, it should not be rushed. Kang explained, "(President Lee) also told Minister of Justice Jeong Seongho that if there are any sensitive and key issues, they should be heard out, and he used the expression that these issues should be sufficiently discussed and debated among the public," adding, "He said he believes it is better to go through these processes so that more debate can take place."

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