Controversy Over Prime Minister Kim Min-seok’s Visit to HYBE
1. Sense of Betrayal and Insult to the Fandom That Contributed to the Restoration of Democracy
Prime Minister Kim’s remarks that “the root of the Korean Wave is liberal democracy” and that “OOO’s comeback at Gwanghwamun Square, which was protected with light sticks, is highly meaningful” became the center of controversy. In response, public opinion largely criticized, stating, “Reducing the political meaning of the ‘candles’ that citizens held to restore democracy into a promotional tool for a company that fans have pointed out as the ‘main culprit of disturbing the ecosystem’ is an insult and deception to supporters.”
2. Contradiction with the State Policy of ‘Strict Punishment for Stock Manipulation’
The government’s statement that it would “support HYBE so it can become a global cultural company” also faced criticism for contradicting the current administration’s state policy. The fact that the second-in-command of state affairs promised full support while key HYBE executives are under investigation for violating the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act (market manipulation, etc.) goes against the ‘zero tolerance for unfair trading’ principle emphasized by President Lee Jae-myung. Criticism was also raised that this is effectively an act of giving indulgence to a company facing criminal charges.
3. The Gap Between the Reality of the K-pop Industry and the ‘Creator-Centric’ Remarks
The Prime Minister’s remarks that “people are the core of the K-pop ecosystem” and that he would “create an environment where creators can focus on their creations with peace of mind” were also evaluated as being out of touch with reality. The critical public opinion cited the fact that HYBE is embroiled in controversies over ‘mistreatment of internal personnel,’ such as the legal dispute with former ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin and the wrongful termination lawsuit of a former executive (former Director Chae Eun). Criticism followed that discussing a ‘creator-centric’ approach in front of such a company is a showy administration lacking an understanding of the industry site.
In addition, there were opinions withdrawing support, stating that the current government’s actions resemble the collusion allegations of figures from the previous administration, as well as opinions expressing disappointment at the double standard of strictly sanctioning other companies while showing a lenient attitude toward a company where a personal information leak incident occurred.
Prime Minister Kim Min-seok visited the entertainment company HYBE on the 21st and emphasized the leap forward of K-pop. Although explained as part of the will to foster the cultural content industry, some point out that the visit was inappropriate. This is because HYBE’s ‘judicial risks’ have not yet been resolved, with key executives under investigation. Criticism is also raised that the government is relying solely on the halo of OOOOO without concrete cultural industry promotion policies.
The problem is the timing and location. Currently, some HYBE executives, including Chairman Bang Si-hyuk, are under investigation for violating the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act (fraudulent unfair trading). They are suspected of pocketing unfair profits through a private shareholders’ agreement at the time of HYBE’s listing. Recently, a personal information leak incident also occurred on ‘Weverse,’ a 50-million fandom platform that is a subsidiary of HYBE.
In effect, it created an appearance of the Prime Minister, the second-in-command of state affairs, officially visiting and empowering a company whose judicial risks remain unresolved. On this day, Prime Minister Kim Min-seok also remarked, “We will support HYBE so it can become a global cultural company.”
This also contradicts the government’s stance thus far. President Lee Jae-myung emphasized the advancement of the capital market for the KOSPI 5,000 era. In June of last year, he visited the Korea Exchange and stressed, “I will make this the first day to clearly show that playing around in the stock market leads to ruin.” He even mentioned the possibility of a ‘business suspension’ for Coupang, where a personal information leak incident occurred.
Questions are also raised about the content of the press release distributed by the Office for Government Policy Coordination. This is because it focused more on HYBE’s influence than on promoting government policies. It listed HYBE-affiliated artists one by one and emphasized ‘state-of-the-art production facilities’ and ‘the global star training system exclusively held by HYBE.’
An official from the Office for Government Policy Coordination stated, “We visited to check the current status of the K-pop industry because OOO is scheduled to return with a commemorative event at Gwanghwamun, and it is a central company of the Korean Wave. Although we were concerned about the judicial risks, it was a visit to a representative company of the Korean Wave. There was no interaction with Chairman Bang Si-hyuk.”
In response to a reporter’s question about whether a meeting with an executive currently under investigation is appropriate, they stated, “The executive in question merely attended the event, and there was no separate interaction with the Prime Minister.” Regarding what ‘the global star training system exclusively held by HYBE’ means, they explained, “It was expressed this way because we visited HYBE, and it did not mean that HYBE is differentiated.”
