Over 200,000 petition to abolish entertainment media outlet Dispatch

The Korean online entertainment media outlet Dispatch is under fire after it revealed the personal information of a celebrity’s husband who is not a public figure. As of Monday, more than 200,000 people in an online petition on the presidential office’s website have called for its abolishment.

The petition was first filed on June 26, but after an exclusive report from Dispatch was released on July 10 revealing detailed personal information about Korean actress Choi Ji-woo’s husband, the number of supporters quickly rocketed to reach 201,739 as of Monday afternoon.

If an online petition posted on the Cheong Wa Dae website garners more than 200,000 signatories within 30 days, the presidential office is required to issue a formal response.

The petitioner says that celebrities have private lives and that they have a right to privacy as with anyone else. The media outlet Dispatch, however, infringes on the personal lives of celebrities by secretly following them and taking pictures without permission and with intent to create rumors, the petitioner argues.

“Many times, the stories they cover turn out to be mere rumors. Not only does this hurt the targeted celebrity, but it also hurts his or her fans and the people related to them,” the petition reads. “If it is hard to abolish the news media outlet, then at least provide strong punishment against spreading false information.”

Dispatch on July 10 released an exclusive report on Choi’s husband, revealing personal details such as his last name, age and employer. It also explained how the person has changed his name due to his relationship with Choi.

Choi’s agency YG Entertainment requested an end to “precarious assumptions.”

“The reason why we did not reveal the husband’s personal details is because we thought it can create needless prejudices regarding the husband’s business and other work,” the agency said the day after the report was released.

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)