Choo Mi-ae: "Everything in Newstapa is true so far... Prosecution is fake news"

"Lee Jae-myung's Hunger Strike is Understood by the Public"

Regarding the 'Daejang-dong false interview suspicion' involving Kim Man-bae, the major shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu, and Shin Hak-rim, former chairman of the Korean Federation of Journalists' Unions, former Minister of Justice Chu Mi-ae defended the NewsTapa report containing this interview, stating that it was "reported from the perspective of truth and public interest."

Former Minister Chu said on the 6th on KBS's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strongest Current Affairs,' "Everything reported by NewsTapa has so far turned out to be accurate."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Five days after the interview with Kim, former chairman Shin received 162 million won from Kim. Shin claims it was 'payment for a book,' but the prosecution views it as a bribe. This interview was broadcast three days before the presidential election and is evaluated to have influenced the final outcome.

NewsTapa explained that it could not confirm any exchange of money and reported it in the public's right to know.

Former Minister Chu also said, "NewsTapa's method is not to simply broadcast what someone says, but to verify, directly investigate, and confirm everything over a long period." "Moreover, the recordings of former chairman Shin and Kim Man-bae were made much earlier, and after a lengthy verification process, the decision to report was made through a committee judgment based on truth and public interest. I do not believe that former chairman Shin or others were coerced, induced, or pressured into this."

She added, "The prosecutorial fascism has been spreading fake news all along," raising her voice, saying, "(The most representative figure of fake news is the president, isn't it? They still insist that it was Biden and deny it even now."

Regarding criticism that the rationale behind Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung's hunger strike is unclear, she said, "Those who say the rationale is unclear are either the People Power Party or the Yoon Seok-youl administration itself. They are forces afraid that some citizens might rally around this, or factions within the Democratic Party that are jealous of or trying to check Lee Jae-myung." "As a leader, what else could there be but to throw oneself into it? The public understands this."