[Sportschosun reporter Jo Min-jeong] As webtoon creator Taejun Pak has come under fire over alleged "Ilbe" references in his past work, Cho Kuk, former leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party (RKP), said that "unfair misunderstandings must be corrected," while also raising questions about another scene.
In a post on his social media account on the 6th, Cho said, "The Ilbe culture of adding 'no' to the end of questions must be eradicated, but unfair Ilbe misunderstandings must be corrected."
His remarks appear to address recent claims circulating online that Pak, the creator of the SBS drama "Manager Kim," inserted expressions in his earlier webtoon "Lookism" that evoke Ilbe. Earlier, some YouTube channels and online communities alleged that a sign in the work read "Rock Owling," suggesting a reference to Owl Rock, where former President Roh Moo-hyun died.
However, comic critic Park In-ha, chairman of the Seoul Webtoon Academy, reviewed the scene and explained that the actual text reads "hanwon rock bowling," saying the allegation does not match the facts.
Cho also shared that post and stressed, "Unfair Ilbe misunderstandings must be corrected." He added, however, that he had questions about another scene, saying, "The reason for using '5.23' is questionable." Online users have also raised suspicions that a scene in which the protagonist looks at a stopwatch and says "5 minutes and 23 seconds" is meant to evoke May 23, the date of Roh Moo-hyun's death.
The day before, Cho had also drawn criticism after mentioning a controversy over RESCENE member Woni's use of the expression "scary no," posting that expressions using "no" are inappropriate forms of hate speech.
As the backlash continued, he posted again on the same day, saying, "I cannot agree with the claim that criticizing the use of 'no' at the end of questions is just old-fashioned behavior, even though many people in their teens and 20s use it despite not being Ilbe users." He went on to say, "Adding 'no' to questions is not a matter of whether it is a Gyeongsang dialect. It is a wrong act that mocks and demeans former President Roh Moo-hyun," adding that it should "no longer be used."
Jo Min-jeong, mj.cho@sportschosun.com
