[Lee Jaemyung's Power Player] Spokesperson Kang Yujeong, "Triple Crown Winner of the New Year's Literary Contest" [AK Radio]

Resigned from the National Assembly to Join the Presidential Office
Served as Spokesperson for Both Primary and Presidential Campaigns
Determined to "Burn Like a Flame" Despite Alopecia Areata

The moderator for President Lee Jaemyung's press conference on the 3rd, titled "The Media Asks, the President Answers to the People," was Kang Yujeong, spokesperson for the Presidential Office. Currently, there are three people working at the Presidential Office who have given up their seats as incumbent members of the National Assembly: Chief of Staff Kang Hunsik, National Security Advisor Wi Sunglak, and Spokesperson Kang Yujeong.

Spokesperson Kang was a proportional representative member of the Democratic Party before being appointed as spokesperson for the Presidential Office on June 5. The spokesperson is considered "the face of the Presidential Office." They are on the front lines of delivering the president's messages, events, and various decisions to the public. It is also very important to communicate smoothly with the reporters covering the Presidential Office.

Spokesperson Kang was born in 1975 and is originally from Seoul. She graduated from Hankyoung Foreign Language High School and earned her master's and doctoral degrees in Korean Language Education and Korean Literature at Korea University. She served as a research professor at Korea University and is currently a professor in the Department of Korean-English Cultural Content at the Global Talent College of Kangnam University. She has appeared on broadcasts as a cultural critic and has written numerous columns for newspapers. She has one daughter with her spouse.

Kang Yujeong began to gain public attention in 2005 when she won three awards in the New Year's Literary Contest. She was selected for film criticism by the Dong-A Ilbo and for literary criticism by both the Chosun Ilbo and Kyunghyang Shinmun. This was a record achieved for the first time in 44 years, drawing attention from the media and cultural circles. In a 2021 interview with the Korea University Newspaper, she stated, "I was torn between creating and critiquing, but I decided to become a critic so I could write pieces that reveal my own story without embellishment." It is said that Kang Yujeong has enjoyed thinking and daydreaming alone since childhood.

For ten years, starting in 2014, she wrote a column for the Kyunghyang Shinmun titled "Reading the World Through Film with Kang Yujeong." She has also published several books, including "Film Writing Class," "Cinetopia," "Death Becomes Art," and "Oedipus's Forest."

Kang Yujeong, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, is giving a briefing on current issues including the Cabinet meeting at the Presidential Office building in Yongsan, Seoul, on the 1st. Photo by Yonhap News

Although Kang Yujeong once said, "I'm interested in politics, but I have no intention of becoming a politician," she entered the National Assembly in 2024 as a proportional representative for the Democratic Party in the 22nd general election. She served as a spokesperson for the party, handling external communications from that point on. She also served as spokesperson for Lee Jaemyung's primary campaign and for the Democratic Party's presidential election campaign headquarters ("The Real Republic of Korea Campaign Headquarters"). During her time as a member of the National Assembly, she was active in legislation, proposing around 34 bills, including the "Five Laws to Support the Spread of Standard Contracts," the "Artists' Rights Protection Act," and the "Digital Sex Crime Emergency Response Act." According to her public asset disclosure in August last year, she reported assets of approximately 2.98 billion won. Notably, she reported owning a 2023 model Porsche Cayenne Coupe.

Spokesperson Kang revealed that she developed alopecia areata after taking on the spokesperson role. Despite the heavy workload, she publicly expressed her determination to devote herself passionately for the success of the Lee Jaemyung administration.
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