There are many opinions as to why the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism was included among the three ministries subject to President Yoon Seok-yeol’s second cabinet reshuffle.
While it is clear that Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop, who was suspected of external pressure in the death of Chae Sang-byeong, and Minister of Gender Equality and Family Kim Hyun-sook, who was involved in the Saemangeum Jamboree failure, were factors in the personnel changes, in the case of Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-gyun, questions are raised about why they were changed as there was no particular negligence.
Regarding this, the media mentioned Minister Park Bo-gyun’s response to fake news, his inability to pursue national affairs, his lack of presence, and the limitations of a former journalist in future media campaigns. The Digital Times published an article on the 13th titled, “Actually, a cabinet reshuffle… In the article “Speed of national affairs with a ‘projection-type minister’ at the forefront,” it was analyzed that “Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-kyun, who was a journalist, is also known to have received criticism from President Yoon that his response to fake news is insufficient,” and the Yeongnam Ilbo reported in an article on the same date, “Second round of de facto reprimand.” Cabinet reshuffle… In “Interest in ‘3rd cabinet reshuffle at the end of the year’ for the general election,” he wrote, “Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-kyun has also been consistently mentioned as a candidate for replacement since the beginning of the year due to insufficient progress in national affairs.”
News 1 also published on the 13th, <President Yoon resolves controversy by replacing ministers… In Preventing Security Vacuums and Securing Government Power, he said, “Many analyzes say that the reason behind the replacement of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism is to increase the presence of the ministry and to strengthen the spread of ‘K- culture’ (Korean Wave) overseas by hiring experts in the culture and arts industry.” “There was a lot of criticism, especially in the political circles, about the presence of Minister Park Bo-gyun, who was a journalist,” he interpreted.Appearing on ‘Will MB Man Come Back?’, he interpreted, “Minister Park Bo-kyun is a former journalist, so he may be a little distant from K-culture, which is in the spotlight.”
Lee Choong-jae, former editor-in-chief of the Hankook Ilbo, analyzed that the replacement of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism was related to the aspect of controlling the media. In the 14th edition of OhmyNews, <[Lee Choong-jae’s Insight] Why Yoo In-chon and Lee Dong-kwan are the ‘worst combination’>, former editor-in-chief Lee said, “The background for President Yoon Seok-yeol’s appointment of Special Advisor Yoo as Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism cannot be explained without ‘control of the media’. “It is difficult to do,” he wrote, adding, “There are various theories about the replacement of Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-kyun, but it is known that the ruling party has raised the point that there are limits to media control as he is from a newspaper company.” Former Chief Editor Lee said, “Some say that Special Advisor Yoo judged that the fact that he and Chairman Lee Dong-gwan worked hand in hand with the MB government would also help respond to the media,” and added, “Special Advisor Yoo said that since President Yoon is emphasizing responses to fake news, the government- wide “There is a high possibility that he will be responsible for establishing and directing the response system,” he predicted.
Kwon Chil-seung, chief spokesperson of the Democratic Party of Korea, was asked in a backbriefing after the Cabinet reshuffle announcement on the afternoon of the 13th, “Why do you think the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism was subject to replacement?” He responded, “The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism was not mentioned like the Minister of Gender Equality and Family and the Minister of National Defense, but this is based on a slightly personal opinion. The Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, “It is expected that issues were raised within the government,” and added, “I think it was a judgment within the government.”
‘Due to the limitations of being a journalist, I was unable to actively respond to ‘fake news”, ‘Along with the People Power Party, which opposed the previous government’s Press Arbitration Act as a media gag law, Minister Park also had the same position as a former JoongAng메이저사이트 Ilbo, so he was unable to actively respond to fake news. When asked if there was any resistance, Rep. Lee responded, “No,” and refuted, “On the contrary, among all previous ministers, Minister Park was the best at responding to news and was very good at promoting fake news.” In response to the interpretation that ‘In terms of media response and control over the media, Minister Yoo In-chon, who worked closely with Korea Communications Commission Chairman Lee Dong-gwan in the past, was seen as a better person,’ Rep. Lee Yong said, “If he was a journalist, wouldn’t it be better to keep Minister Park Bo-gyun in that aspect?” He replied, “I am also a former athlete, and I know more about sports.”
When asked if the replacement was due to the ‘limitations’ of a former journalist, Representative Lee Yong said, “On the contrary,” he said, “If a person you do not know only has the driving force, the policy will fail, and if a person you know has a strong driving force, it will be better. Minister Park.” “He has fulfilled his role in a stable manner, and I believe he has been replaced by someone suitable to carry out the plan forward.”
On the other hand, the background for the replacement is even more questionable in that it is difficult to say that the current government has not been faithful to the national tasks or direction when looking at △last year’s Yoon Seok Train controversy △conflict due to the publishing cartel’s remarks △controversy over countering fake news △controversy over the Fukushima contaminated water promotional video, etc. When asked, “Mrs. Kim Kun-hee has a lot of interest in culture and arts, and there is talk that such interests are distant from Minister Park’s direction, and that it may have been used as a personnel factor, how do you view it?” Representative Lee Yong said, “That is not the case at all.” There is an age gap between him and Minister Yoo In-chon, so I think he matches up with Minister Park. Shouldn’t we regard such speculation as speculation and recognize rumors as rumors?” When asked whether there was any significant connection with Mrs. Kim, Rep. Lee said, “No.”
On the afternoon of the 19th, Media Today inquired about the background of the replacement of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism to Chief of Staff Kim Dae-gi of the President’s Office, Senior Secretary for Public Relations, and Spokesperson via text message and SNS messenger, but did not receive a response.
Inside the ruling party, the media and the opposition party did not agree with this analysis. Lee Yong, a close associate of President Yoon Seok-yeol who served as his secretary during his candidacy and currently a member of the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, met with a reporter from Media Today on the 19th and said, “There has been continuous talk since this year” regarding the reasons for replacing the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and “the first Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism. “I think we should replace him with someone who will more revitalize and strongly promote culture, arts, science, and sports after the coronavirus,” he said. In response to the question, ‘Was Minister Park lacking in that regard?’, Rep. Lee said, “We have been operating very stably since being appointed in May of last year, but there will be a general election next year, and after the general election, half of the term will have passed.” “The appointment was made in light of the need for the right person to drive the plan forward,” he said.