[Reporter’s Notebook] The 'Two Faces' of Jeju Development Corporation Criticized for 'Power Abuse Mannerism'

Changwon Park, Director of the Honam Reporting Headquarters

While showcasing polished communication by kneeling in front of individuals with disabilities, Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Development Corporation (JPDC) demonstrated a stark contrast in attitude toward the press. For four consecutive days, the corporation refused to engage with reporters who remained on-site to fact-check, not answering a single phone call and instead replying solely with admonishing text messages. This double standard, attributed to its position as a major advertiser, has led to criticism that the corporation has developed a "power abuse mannerism" for the second consecutive year. There is an urgent need for a thorough external audit by supervisory bodies such as Jeju Provincial Government and the Jeju Provincial Council.

JPDC employees were extremely polite when interacting with individuals with disabilities.

After completing the field demonstration, corporation representatives knelt beside the wheelchair-using head of a disability organization, making eye contact and conducting the conversation at their level.

They clearly had a sophisticated understanding of the principles and techniques required for communicating respectfully with people with disabilities and with petitioners.

What was shocking, however, was their dramatically different approach to the press.

The same communication skills that the corporation so adeptly displayed were nowhere to be found when it came to confirming the facts of the situation with reporters—instead, there was complete silence and barriers to communication.

Throughout the four-day event, our reporters were present at the golf course, consistently asking about the facts regarding wheelchair spectator areas and facility improvements, while also reporting on the achievements of regional players who made the "Top 10" via local qualifying rounds and other contributions to the community.

Nevertheless, JPDC’s media response team did not respond to a single phone call or meet with reporters in person.

Last year, they delegated communication to an agency and avoided showing up. This year, all that was provided was a condescending text message stating, "Please send your questions in a single email rather than by separate texts."

The corporation bowed their heads to the head of the disability organization, promising to seek advice in the future, yet provided no explanation whatsoever to the reporters who first pointed out these issues.

The promise that the organizers gave us in writing a year ago—that such mishandling would not be repeated—now rings hollow.

Ignoring reporters who stayed on-site for four days is seen as more than just a lack of communication skills; it has drawn criticism as an example of an organization-wide disregard for the media.

Given the challenging local media environment in Jeju, there are growing concerns that the influence JPDC wields as a major advertiser has led to an unhealthy "power abuse mannerism." The persistent communication barriers from their PR team in recent years reflect a distorted sense of privilege—one that places capital above the public responsibilities of a government-owned company.

For the second consecutive year, instead of sincerely acknowledging and addressing even minor criticism, the corporation has opted for stopgap measures. As the saying goes, "Once is a mistake, twice is a skill." The repeated mishandling of the press and deceptive media relations over two years is seen as evidence that JPDC has reached the limits of its self-correcting abilities.

There is a prevailing view that it is no longer realistic to expect meaningful reform or assurances to prevent recurrence from within the corporation itself.

When a public corporation uses its capital to diminish the media’s watchdog role and limit residents’ right to know, it poses a genuine threat to a healthy public discourse in the local community.

The Jeju Provincial Government and the Jeju Provincial Council, as oversight authorities, must now step in to conduct a thorough, high-level external audit of this incident. They should also review JPDC’s entire media response system and organizational culture from the ground up. For local public enterprises criticized for losing self-regulatory capabilities, what is needed is not another perfunctory "self-inspection," but a rigorous external overhaul.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.