Hong Joon-pyo, former mayor of Daegu, took aim at the Chosun Ilbo after it urged Jang Dong-hyuk, the leader of the People Power Party, to resign, saying the times have changed.
In a Facebook post Tuesday, Hong said he had read a column by what he called a conservative news outlet calling for Jang to step down, adding that it contained “correct points throughout.”
Chosun Ilbo on Tuesday ran a column titled “Chairman Jang Dong-hyuk, Now Is the Right Time to Step Down.” Responding, Hong asked who was responsible for the collapse of South Korea’s conservative camp and who had helped elevate and create the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
He also asked who, under the Yoon administration, had encouraged Han Dong-hoon to differentiate himself from Yoon as a path to becoming the next leader, and said the Yoon administration was not ruined by conflict with Han.
Hong accused conservative media of manipulating the conservative camp with what he called arrogance — believing it could both install and bring down an administration — and said it was now trying to remove Jang without offering an alternative while bringing back a “immature narcissist” it had supported, which he said would again damage the conservative camp.
He also suggested the media might be trying to elevate Oh Se-hoon again, as it did during the June 2006 local elections, if Oh were to lose the Seoul mayoral race. Hong said conservative media may once have dominated society as a so-called “president at night,” but that the era and media environment have changed.
He said he hoped it would contribute to the country’s future, adding, “This is no longer your era; it has become an era for all citizens.”
Hong has previously declared a break with Chosun Ilbo.
During his 2020 run in Daegu’s Suseong-gu-eul district, Hong criticized Chosun Ilbo coverage of him, saying he was angered by what he called false and fabricated reporting. He questioned whether the paper’s editorial policy was to demand that the public accept what he described as political purges and backroom dealing by a small group holding power in the opposition.
He said at the time that he would stop reading Chosun Ilbo, which he had read for 40 years.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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