Broadcaster Ryu Dam has apologized for slapping his junior Hwang Hyun-hee in the past.
On the 21st, a video titled 'We have Ryu Dam, who has a lot to say about the B-Class Military Discipline, B-Class Hearing Season 2 EP.91' was uploaded on YouTube's 'B-Class Hearing'.
In the released video, Ryu Dam stated, "After my twins were born, I continued parenting for about four years and didn't really come across many rumors and such," and added, "I thought it was not a big deal, but as I had personal time and started browsing the internet, I felt that 'this is not like before'." He shared his recent situation.
Choi Sung-min directly mentioned the KBS comedian military discipline issue, saying, "When deciding on Ryu Dam's appearance, I called many comedians to confirm the facts. We are not a washing machine broadcast. Today, we will ask questions based on facts."
Choi Sung-min then asked Ryu Dam, "Did you slap him or not?" To which Ryu Dam replied, "I did slap him."
Ryu Dam continued, "I saw the video that became the starting point of the controversy, featuring Hwang Hyun-hee and Kim Dae-beom, for the first time this time. It was originally Mr. L, but it became solidified as me because it was Mr. R. Even when I briefly saw it back then, I just understood. Comedians talk harshly. However, as time passed, fake news started to emerge, adding flesh to the bones, and everything from my wedding to where it was said that 'juniors were hit by someone' all pointed to me."
Choi Sung-min mentioned, "There are allegations that 'Hwang Hyun-hee was slapped' and 'he was taken to a construction site and beaten with a wooden stick'."
In response, Ryu Dam said, "The gathering I held was my first and last time personally. A senior, perhaps not pleased with Yoo Sang-moo, ordered me to gather that batch. Since I was the military discipline leader, when a gathering happens, seniors generally know. A senior would come and say, 'You guys are gathering, right?' and I would say, 'Yes.' Then another senior would say, 'Since someone opened a big pub, go there after it's over and promote it.' Back then, gatherings were still in their early stages, and there was a culture of buying drinks after the gathering."
He continued, "Usually, gatherings are held in the comedian's room or on the rooftop of the KBS research building. But that day, we were looking for a place to go to a pub in Ilsan. I thought we should use an empty space in the pub building as the gathering place and called the kids over. Our batch, the 18th, had the most gatherings and got hit the most. We did it just like we had done before. The male juniors would lie down and say, 'How many hits do you want? Two hits,' but Hyun-hee said he couldn't take it because of his back, so he got slapped instead."
Ryu Dam added, "But the kids only talked about getting hit. After that, we all drank together. At that time, Hwang Hyun-hee came to my house and drank a bottle of whiskey. Then we parted ways."
He also mentioned, "Before coming out here, I spoke with my peers, and everyone had a lot to say. It was 20 years ago, but it’s a bad memory for us. Our batch got hit a lot, and we had many gatherings, so we decided not to bully the juniors when they came. So we really didn't. The reason I held the gathering alone was that while there were peers, my house was far, so I ended up doing it alone."
Ryu Dam concluded, "I came here wanting to hear about Hwang Hyun-hee, but I heard he didn't want to come out. If the reason he is still talking about me slapping him twice during the gathering is because of that emotion, then I want to say I'm sorry because I did hit him. It was absolutely not my personal feelings or will. If that’s why he is talking about it, then I apologize."
