SBS "Lee Soon-jae, More Evidence of Power Abuse... Family Errands Were a Daily Routine"

On the 30th of last month, SBS '8 News,' which reported allegations of power abuse raised by veteran actor Lee Soon-jae's former manager, stated in a follow-up report that "we have more evidence." Photo by SBS '8 News'

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Yeon-ju] SBS '8 News,' which reported on the 'power abuse allegations' raised by actor Lee Soon-jae's (85) former manager, stated in a follow-up report on the 30th of last month that "we have more evidence but did not report it."

In the report on that day, SBS '8 News' said, "The reason for the report was to revisit the poor working conditions of those in the entertainment industry in light of the case of Lee Soon-jae's former manager Kim, and to identify and improve structural problems that cause such incidents to recur. We did not reveal the name of the veteran actor, but on this day, Lee Soon-jae and his agency voluntarily issued a statement."

It added, "Lee Soon-jae's side claimed in a media interview that Kim only did three menial tasks over two months. SBS has more evidence that running errands for the family was a daily routine but did not report it. We believed that listing more cases to point out structural problems would not be very meaningful."

Earlier, SBS '8 News' reported an interview on the 29th of last month with Lee Soon-jae's former manager, who revealed that he was unfairly dismissed after working as a servant for two months. According to the interview, Kim claimed that Lee Soon-jae's wife made him do menial tasks such as sorting garbage, carrying delivered water bottles, and repairing shoes, and that he was unfairly dismissed after raising concerns.

Photo by SBS '8 News'

On the same day (29th), Lee Soon-jae's agency stated, "Many parts of the SBS report are distorted and differ from the facts," and announced plans for legal action.

In response to the controversy, manager Kim said in an interview with a media outlet that day, "I have another recording," and added, "Wouldn't it be easy to end this if Lee Soon-jae's side apologized for the power abuse? I am telling the truth, so why involve others and make me out to be a liar?"

Kim claimed, "The SBS report was much toned down compared to my original tip-off. I worked for about two months, but I reported because Lee Soon-jae's wife committed power abuse beyond common sense to the extent that it could be described as 'servant life.' Even after Lee Soon-jae's schedule ended, his wife insisted that I must go grocery shopping at 7:30 p.m."

Lee Soon-jae had planned to hold a press conference to clarify his position but suddenly canceled it.

Through multiple media outlets, Lee Soon-jae conveyed, "Although there are regrettable parts regarding the report, I have never dealt with legal matters in my life, so I have no intention of pursuing legal action."

He also said, "Since this is the first time I have experienced such a thing after my debut, I was shocked and said I would hold a press conference, but I decided not to because I am not feeling well."

Regarding the controversy, he explained, "When I met Kim at the time, I admitted and acknowledged my wife's mistakes. I apologized sincerely. Although I admitted and acknowledged my wife's mistakes then, I want to apologize again if there are parts to apologize for. However, I have never ordered people around or dismissed them arbitrarily. I want to apologize for my wife's mistakes."

On that day, Lee Soon-jae expressed to SBS, "I feel a moral responsibility toward manager Kim," and stated, "I hope that this incident will lead to the resolution of unfair tasks imposed on managers that have been regarded as customary."