'Former Chungju Man' Kim Seon-tae Says, "I’ve Been Labeled a 'Left-Wing Guy'... I Want to Clean Up My Image"

[Sportschosun reporter Jo Yoon-sun] Kim Seon-tae, the former "Chungju Man," addressed the image of being called a "left-wing guy."

On the 21st, the official YouTube channel of KBS released a video titled "From Chungju to Korea, Terrestrial TV Solo MC 'Kim Seon-tae' Hot Debut | #Don Seon-tae: Success Era Teaser 1."

That day, Kim explained why he had turned down MC offers for six months, saying, "I was too busy at first. And I wondered whether I could handle the pressure. But now I’ve had a taste of it." He then added with a laugh, "To be honest, I turned them all down. I also turned down OTT offers, and while I received proposals from producer Kim Tae-ho and Na PD, I rejected them all."

The production team asked where the highest appearance fee offer had come from, and Kim asked back, "Are you not going to air this?" before quietly revealing the amount. The staff were left speechless, and the screen displayed the caption, "An amount beyond imagination," heightening curiosity.

Kim explained why he had declined appearances at the time, saying, "At first, I had no choice because I needed to focus on YouTube." He added, "I’ve always been cautious. I don’t take on challenges easily. I don’t even like trying new food, and I hate traveling. I’m the type who just sticks to what I’ve been doing." He continued, "It wasn’t easy to start something new, but now I think things have stabilized to some extent, so I decided to give it a try."

He also revealed why he chose KBS. Kim said, "I had wanted to work with KBS," and admitted, "I appeared on an MBC election broadcast once, and rumors spread that I was a 'left-wing guy.'" He explained, "It wasn’t a vote-counting broadcast. They were talking about balanced regional development, and since it was a local election, I had already agreed to appear while I was still a civil servant, before I became known as Chungju Man."

He added, "What’s frustrating about being called a 'left-wing guy' is that my name isn’t even mentioned anywhere," and said, "My image has gotten a lot worse, so I want to clean it up."

Meanwhile, Kim Seon-tae will take on his first solo MC role through JKBS’s new variety program "Don Seon-tae Success Era." The show follows Kim, who moved to Seoul in pursuit of greater success, as he invites the figures behind Korea’s success stories to his rented room in Seoul and asks them about the secrets to their achievements. Kim will question his guests, asking, "How did you get here?" and dig into the process and defining moments behind their success.

Rather than simply introducing the results of success, the program will also look at the failures, doubts, unexpected choices, and human moments that came before it. In particular, Kim’s signature slightly offbeat perspective and his sharp, unexpected questions are expected to be key points of interest.

"Don Seon-tae Success Era" will premiere on Wednesday, July 29, through KBS’s official YouTube channel, KBS Entertain. New episodes will then be uploaded every Wednesday.

This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.