‘Hot Mic’ Broadcaster Barred From South Korean President’s Plane

Jon Herskovitz
·2 min read
2

(Bloomberg) -- South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol banned reporters from a broadcaster his office said misrepresented comments caught on a hot mic from flying with him on an overseas trip, prompting criticism he was trying to suppress media freedom.

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Yoon’s office told South Korean broadcaster MBC that its reporters wouldn’t be able to join him on the country’s Air Force One, when it departs Friday for international gatherings in Southeast Asia.

“The boarding of the presidential jet has been a service provided to help with coverage of foreign policy and security issues, and in consideration of MBC’s repeated distorted and biased coverage of foreign policy issues recently, we have decided not to provide the service,” Yoon’s office said in a notice to the company, Yonhap News Agency reported Thursday.

The presidential office did not specify which reports had been distorted, Yonhap added.

“The reason why the president goes on overseas trips spending taxpayers’ money is because important national interests are at stake,” Yoon told reporters Thursday morning.

The dust-up with the broadcaster is likely to cloud a trip Yoon said would include a trilateral summit with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the sidelines of regional events. Yoon is visiting Cambodia and Indonesia to attend an Association of Southeast Asian Nations meeting and a Group of 20 summit.

A joint statement from the Journalists Association of Korea and other groups, of which MBC is a member, called the decision an “unprecedented suppression of the press.” The group demanded Yoon allow MBC reporters to board and apologize.

“If the Yoon Suk Yeol administration does not take reasonable measures, we will define the latest situation as a grave threat to freedom of the press and democracy, and are willing to go on a full-scale war with the government,” said the joint statement that included groups such as the National Union of Media Workers.

Yoon, who won the presidential race by the slimmest margin in the country’s history, has seen his support slip since taking office in May. He has added to his difficulties through a series of gaffes, including a hot microphone incident during a trip to New York in September.

The president was heard making disparaging remarks about lawmakers, which MBC broadcast and said indicated Yoon was making harsh comments about US Congress under President Joe Biden. The presidential office disputed the MBC depiction, saying the comments were taken out of context, parts were inaudible and Yoon was in no way making insults about Washington.

Biden has been seeking Yoon’s support in the face of security threats posed by the likes of North Korea and as part of Washington’s initiative to forge alliances in global supply chains of crucial components, such as semiconductors, to reduce its reliance on China.

--With assistance from Sangmi Cha.

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