Cheong Wa Dae: "Joo Jinwoo's claim is unsubstantiated... Those who report it as fact will be held strictly accountable"

Cheong Wa Dae warned on Oct. 26 that it would "hold people strictly accountable for reporting unverified claims as if they were facts or spreading false information" regarding the "emperor-style golf" allegations about First Lady Kim Hye-kyung raised by Rep. Joo Jin-woo of the People Power Party.

In a media notice issued that day, Cheong Wa Dae's Senior Secretary for Public Relations and Communications said, "Reporting a politician's one-sided, unsubstantiated claims in quotation marks without even conducting the most basic fact-checking is a failure to fulfill the media's duty to verify information."

The phoenix flag flies at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Dec. 29, 2025, the day the Cheong Wa Dae era officially resumed after 3 years and 7 months, as President Lee Jaemyung arrived for work. Photo by Cho Yongjun.

Cheong Wa Dae said, "Reporting something in quotation marks does not grant immunity for reporting false information," adding, "Not only the politicians who raise suspicions but also the media that spread them without verification bear corresponding responsibility." It also called on the media to "exercise caution in their reporting."

Rep. Joo had earlier claimed in a Facebook post that Kim played a round of golf on Oct. 20 accompanied by a world-renowned professional golfer. He released some photos and said he would show a video during a National Assembly audit. The Democratic Party of Korea countered that the claim was "an absurd work of fiction."

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