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FistFace
Joined: 24 Mar 2007
Location: Peekaboo! I can see you! And I know what you do!
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 Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 3:52 am Post subject: Nude photos of disgraced Korea prof. surface |
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http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/archives/result_contents.asp?id=200709140034&query=Shin%20Jeong-ah
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The scandal surrounding disgraced former art professor Shin Jeong-ah took a new turn yesterday as a newspaper published naked pictures of her, raising the eyebrows, and drawing strong criticism, of many Koreans.
The vernacular daily Munhwa Ilbo yesterday printed two nude photographs of Shin with her torso covered with a colored square.
It alleged that she may have sexually lobbied high-profile figures to make her way up the social ladder.
Byeon Yang-kyoon, a married senior aide to President Roh Moo-hyun, resigned Monday after his "indecent relationship" with her came to light.
The paper claimed that it had obtained several nude photographs of Shin from the home of a renowned artist. It refused to reveal further details.
"Shin formed a strong network with high-ranking government officials and arts figures using her fake Yale graduate status and manners," the paper quoted a local artist as saying. "Although it is hard to believe, I guess she could have had deeper relationships with some of them."
The two pictures show Shin's naked front and back with her smiling shyly.
Munhwa Ilbo's website went offline for several hours from 1 p.m. after it was flooded with protest messages from readers.
Citizen's Coalition for Democratic Media, a civic media watchdog, fiercely criticized the newspaper, demanding it cease publication.
"The paper has turned itself into porno. We cannot help but feel ashamed and enraged at the standard of the nation's press," the group said in a statement. "Can Munhwa Ilbo still name itself as the press after ruining one's life and stamping over human rights?"
Many citizens, who had been angry about her, said that they now come to sympathize with her.
"This is disgraceful yellow journalism. The paper deserves a legal punishment," said 28-year-old office worker Kim Sung-jae. "I don't know what the paper had intended, but this is definitely going to turn public opinion in favor of Shin."
"What kind of a third-rate movie is Munhwa Ilbo trying to make? Is it now a crime to take nude pictures?" asked an angry internet user with an ID of kiki1009.
"The paper definitely went too far. It can't even stand on the grounds of the freedom of the press or the public rights to know," said college student Yang Min-a. "Would they have done this if Shin was their mother and daughter?"
But some were purely shocked and enraged by the alleged "sexual lobbying."
"I knew that this would turn into a 'sex gate' soon," said internet user uncletom119. "I am angered and ashamed as a Korean. Investigators must dig up this case until no more secret remains."
Shin, 35, flew to the United States in July after reports began to surface about her forged degrees, and is believed to be staying there now.
If Shin decides to sue Munhwa Ilbo for defamation and illegal possession of personal items, it is probable that she will win, legal experts say.
The paper quoted a photographic expert saying that the pictures were not fabricated.
The paper said that someone very intimate with Shin may have taken the photographs, citing her "natural" expression and lack of underwear marks.
It also claimed that Shin lied about her past. Shin had told her friends that she had been miraculously rescued from the collapse of Sampung Department Store in Seoul in 1995, and her body was full of scars. But her photos did not show any signs of injury, the paper said.
Shin lost her positions as professor of Dongguk University and co-director of the 2008 Gwangju Biennale after she was found to have forged her degrees, including a Yale doctorate.
Prosecutors have found hundreds of e-mails between Shin and President Roh Moo-hyun's former secretary Byeon, which indicate a "romantic relationship." Byeon allegedly helped Shin gloss over suspicions about her degrees and backed her financially.
The ongoing investigations have been pointing at a high possibility that some more of Roh's officials and high-profile figures might have backed Shin. Shin had bragged about her "men" to friends, showing off expensive gifts they had given her.
By Shin Hae-in
([email protected])
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FistFace
Joined: 24 Mar 2007
Location: Peekaboo! I can see you! And I know what you do!
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 3:58 am Post subject: |
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http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/09/117_10186.html
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By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
The media's eagerness to dig up anything related to Shin Jeong-ah and Byeon Yang-kyoon's ``inappropriate relationship'' has infuriated people, who have described their work as that of tabloid journalists.
Media frenzy over Byeon, 58, former top presidential aide, and Shin, 35, a bogus degree holder, is becoming a fierce competition at risk of infringing upon individual privacy, they said.
Civic groups, netizens, and media experts called for the media to exercise editorial ethics. They said privacy and the public interest should be distinguished in reporting.
The Munhwa Ilbo newspaper published nude photographs of Shin, the woman at the center of an expanding scandal triggered by her bogus degree claims, Thursday. The paper claimed that the publication was to show Shin could be a serial dater, being supported by ``sugar daddies.''
Civic groups for women's rights called the paper's expositions a sexual assault. ``Had Shin been a male, would they still have printed it?'' said an official at the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center.
Eleven civic groups, including women's rights and media watch groups, Friday called for the shutdown of the newspaper or the resignation of its executives in a protest rally at the head office of the evening daily.
Blogger ``Hangulro'' raised the criticism that no one has any right to treat someone this way, even if she were a serial killer or a dictator. ``I have never seen the naked photo of any dictator or tycoon who was legally proved to have abused their position,'' he said.
Many netizens said uncovering the absurdities over the patronage scandal and looking deeper into the society's obsession with achieving a good academic career is good, but these days the focus seemed to have become too personal and tabloid-orientated.
Some legal experts said the paper could get a stiff punishment for its actions. Choi Ki-young, a judge at the Seoul Central District Court, said publishing the nude photo of a woman without her permission is committing ``murder on her social life.'' ``If her face is recognizable, then the paper should be liable for a phenomenal amount of compensation.''
Some said the public curiosity toward the trashy issues triggered the frenzy.
Shin has become the most talked about person over the last few weeks for her fake diplomas and alleged close relationship with the former presidential aide, and in fact the pictures forced the shutdown of the newspaper's Web server due to too many visitors.
``Their publication of pictures of a naked woman is no different to perverts' sneaking cameras into women's toilets. They think the `Peeping Toms' will make them a fortune, but the money they are making is dirty,'' Ha Jae-keun, a culture critic, said.
Prof. Kim Min-hwan of Korea University in Seoul said the papers will think they have revealed Shin's misbehavior, but through the incident, the Korean media showed dubious morality.
The media also showed signs of self-repentance in some parts. The Journalists Association of Korea said that the coverage was a witch-hunt and the media should refrain from this.
[email protected]
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FistFace
Joined: 24 Mar 2007
Location: Peekaboo! I can see you! And I know what you do!
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 4:02 am Post subject: |
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I was looking for her photo link, and this one made me laugh:
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FistFace
Joined: 24 Mar 2007
Location: Peekaboo! I can see you! And I know what you do!
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 4:07 am Post subject: |
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http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/236260.html
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After running nude pictures of Shin Jeong-ah on August 13, the daily afternoon newspaper Munhwa Ilbo has met with considerable controversy.
Shin has been in the news for allegedly forging her academic credentials, as well as accusations that she had ties to a then-aide of President Roh Moo-hyun.
The discovery "in the home of a leading member of the cultural community" of the "multiple photographs" of Shin standing nude was the Munhwa Ilbo's front page story, although the photos themselves were on page 3 in a related article. The first article quotes an expert in photography, who said that "given there are no marks on her body, the photographs were likely taken long after she had removed her underwear" and that they "give you the feeling they are more like indicators of a 'close relationship' than that they were intended as works" of photographic art.
Two of the pictures were printed with the page 3 article. In one she faces forward, while in the other she has her back turned to the camera. Though most of her body is edited out, her face, arms, and legs are clearly visible, and the article's title is a question, "Can you be prosecuted for lobbying with sex?" The suggestion is that the discovery of pictures of Shin naked establishes that she used sex to get ahead in the art world.
In yet another article titled, "Shin Jeong-ah scandal spreading rapidly," the Munhwa Ilbo alleges "Shin is reported to have had multiple men as lovers, such as a novelist in his thirties and a sculptor."
Women's groups are reacting with anger. Six major women's organizations met hours after the Munhwa Ilbo, which is published in the afternoon, hit newsstands, calling for the newspaper to close its doors.
"The Munhwa Ilbo's coverage comes from a lack of awareness of human rights, is a serious infringement on the rights of women, and is a direct threat to the rights of women," said the organizations in a joint statement. "It should delete the article immediately and issue an official apology. The reporters and editors involved in the story should resign en masse and the newspaper should shut down operations."
"Activists have been unable to calm down since the paper began circulating," said Kim Keum-ok of Korea Women's Associations United. "I feel like I've been raped. This isn't even worth the term 'yellow journalism.' "
Media critics are also criticizing the move, saying it had nothing to do with the original role of the press.
"The article made too big a leap in linking pictures of Shin naked to suspicions she used her body as a bribe," said Inje University professor Kim Chang-ryong. "It was coverage that confused the essence of the issue, since it brought up a nonessential issue tinged with sensationalism."
"The media needs to engage in criticism that makes sense to those involved," said Jeonbuk University professor Kim Seung-su. "When it's like this, you are forced to consider it as a form of human rights abuse by the media."
For most of the day, "Munhwa Ilbo" was the most popular search on Korea's major portal sites, and the paper's decision to run the pictures sparked intense debate in Korean-language cyberspace. Most commenters appeared to take a critical view, saying that whatever Shin's crime, she still has rights that must be respected. Others still claimed the photographs are proof that Shin was active "lobbying" the whole of the art community. At one point, the Munhwa Ilbo's Web site was overwhelmed with hits and had to be restored by the paper's technicians. One government ministry official joked that if daily newspapers cover stories like this one more often, weekly papers -- usually more racy in terms of content -- will not be able to survive.
Even before the Munhwa Ilbo story, the Citizens Coalition for a Democratic Media issued a statement, on August 12, saying that coverage of the scandal surrounding Shin "could be tantamount to a sensationalist infringement on privacy," noting that on August 10 and 11 the country's three major broadcasters were "excessively focused on uncovering any private aspects of the relationship between Shin and [former presidential aide] Byeong Yang-kyoon for entertainment value."
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I-am-me
Joined: 21 Feb 2006
Location: Hermit Kingdom
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 4:13 am Post subject: |
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....Was she shaved?  |
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Julius
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 5:38 am Post subject: |
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Great! The era of trashy korean tabloid journalism has begun!!
I wonder what they would make of " The News of the World"? |
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mindmetoo
Joined: 02 Feb 2004
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| Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2007 6:00 am Post subject: |
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| Julius wrote: |
Great! The era of trashy korean tabloid journalism has begun!!
I wonder what they would make of " The News of the World"? |
It's been here for a long time. The government cracked down on those sports papers. I guess when there is no sports they turn to lurid stories. Housewives sleeping with ESL teachers, etc. |
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