A former PD from MBC has raised allegations of power abuse against Baek Jong-won, the CEO of The Born Korea, predicting a significant backlash.
Director Kim Jae-hwan, a former PD at MBC, released a video titled “Can Baek Jong-won recover? How Baek Jong-won and the media use each other” on the YouTube channel ‘45 Plus’ on the 21st.
Director Kim mentioned the MBC entertainment program ‘My Little Television’ (hereafter ‘Mari-Tel’), which helped Baek Jong-won build his public recognition, stating, “In 2015, we found a program that would give wings to the ‘broadcast-led’ growth strategy.” He continued, “After this broadcast, sales skyrocketed to 51 billion won the following year. Even as franchise stores continued to fail, Baek Jong-won frequently appeared on broadcasts, leading to an increase in new franchise stores, and The Born Korea grew.”
Director Kim pointed out that Baek Jong-won made unreasonable demands to broadcasting companies after ‘Mari-Tel’, such as “Put in the writer team I designate” and “Put in the filming team I designate,” stating, “The atmosphere on set is crucial for the synergy between the PD and the filming team. If the filming team brought by Baek Jong-won only caters to his feelings, the power on set will be concentrated on Baek Jong-won. Can the responsible PD make cold and objective comments about the participants?”
He added, “Moreover, anyone Baek Jong-won disliked was removed from the broadcast. Most top stars are very cautious about mentioning staff composition or issues with other participants, but Baek Jong-won was completely different. Complaints about Baek Jong-won in the broadcasting industry gradually piled up, but they were all buried.”
Despite the production team's complaints, Baek Jong-won thrived due to his ‘connections’. Director Kim stated, “If the production team knows that he is an influential person who is on a ‘brotherly’ basis with the broadcasting company president, everything went according to (Baek Jong-won’s) wishes,” adding, “The broadcasting company president also boasted about superstar Baek Jong-won’s connections, declaring, ‘I will serve him well in the future.’ The responsible PD is driven crazy by unreasonable demands.” He then remarked, “If this manifests negatively, it is ‘power abuse.’”
Director Kim also criticized The Born Korea's recent statement. He said, “There is no mention of owner Baek Jong-won in the statement. The reason people cannot accept the sincerity of the apology is precisely this,” and added, “It is too cowardly to post a statement on the company website, which ordinary people hardly visit, saying ‘I will change everything except for me’ and wait for the situation to calm down.”
He emphasized, “The franchise owners are suffering while dealing with the aftermath of the incident caused by Baek Jong-won. Baek Jong-won should no longer hide and should sincerely apologize in front of the camera. Only then will the situation change.”
Finally, he stated, “Baek Jong-won is the CEO of a listed company. The size and influence of the company have grown. The broadcast-led growth strategy should be abandoned, and he should be evaluated coldly as a businessman Baek Jong-won, not as a broadcaster.”
Recently, Baek Jong-won has been embroiled in controversies, including the high-priced ‘Baek Ham gift set’, pesticide juice controversy, violations of liquefied petroleum gas safety management and business laws, violations of building laws, and violations of origin labeling laws for stir-fried octopus at Hanshin Pocha. Additionally, controversies continue regarding microwave use of plastic containers and allegations of a ‘blacklist’ of employees at Saemaul Restaurant.
[Kim So-yeon, Star Today reporter]
