[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] On the 16th, the People Power Party criticized the broadcast by MBC of the 7-hour phone conversation between Kim Geon-hee and a reporter from Seoul Voice, calling it "highly inappropriate as it undermined political neutrality."
Lee Yang-su, chief spokesperson for the People Power Party's election campaign headquarters, pointed out, "Although the broadcast content was an extremely private conversation, MBC claimed it served the public interest and aired the illegally recorded file."
He added, "Considering that they induced the conversation by sending text messages and making calls under the pretense of guaranteeing the right to reply, and did not inform about the broadcast content, it cannot be said that the right to reply was effectively guaranteed. From the perspective of fairness in reporting, the abusive language used by candidate Lee Jae-myung's brother-in-law should be aired at the same level."
However, the spokesperson said, "Although it was a private conversation conducted without awareness of the phone recording, we sincerely apologize for causing concern to the public."
Kim also expressed in a written response to MBC, "I sincerely apologize to the people."
Meanwhile, the spokesperson stated, "MBC is reportedly planning additional broadcasts next week," and "We will review the content and present a comprehensive stance."
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