1. Less than two months after an influence-peddling and corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye's confidante, Choi Soon-sil, gained nationwide attention due to cable channel JTBC's exclusive report revealing the contents of a tablet PC purportedly used by Choi, the National Assembly wasted no time in ratifying a bill seeking to impeach the president and submitted the proposal for review by the Constitutional Court. As a result, Park's powers as president have been suspended. The entire process transpired at a dizzying speed and Park must feel completely dumbfounded by how quickly everything happened. The impeachment bill not only shakes the very foundations of Park's five-year, single-term presidency, but also forced all state affairs to grind to a screeching halt.

2. Prosecutors, who were unable to interview the president, announced the results of their investigation into the scandal and named Park as an accomplice to the alleged improprieties committed by Choi. A criminal trial involving Choi, a separate investigation into the scandal by an independent counsel, National Assembly hearing on the scandal and a ruling by the Constitutional Court are all taking place at the same time. If the Constitutional Court's ruling comes out first, it could differ from the results of the criminal trial. Such inconsistencies in a trial determining the sacking of the president could lead to a Constitutional crisis of disastrous proportions. Even the ruling and opposition political parties are in disarray since the nation may have to elect a new president much sooner than expected.

3. Confronted by intense pressure from the media onslaught and massive candle-light protests, the National Assembly rushed to ratify an impeachment bill and we are now suffering the side effects of this decision. And Moon Jae-in, the ex-leader of the Minjoo Party who fancies his chances as the next president, continues to make incendiary comments that foment insurrection only to worsen the chaos. The National Assembly’s impeachment bill is virtually a photocopy of media reports and the results of an investigation by prosecutors. There was no original investigation done by lawmakers ahead of the impeachment vote. A ruling by the Constitutional Court will probably take time due to the need to hear the testimonies of many witnesses and pore over a huge amount of evidence. During the impeachment proceeding of former president Roh Moon-hyun in 2004, there was no disagreement over the facts that led to the situation, which only necessitated the application of the law. And even that process took two months before the Constitutional Court rejected the impeachment bill.

4. The barrage of media reports that resembled a kangaroo court targeting the president led to the rushed impeachment bill resulting in political and judicial chaos. Many of the social commentators who referred to the latest incident as "journalistic warfare" were former reporters. Mainstream media, including the Chosun Ilbo, Joongang Ilbo and Dong A Ilbo newspapers, raced to publish speculative reports on Choi Soon-sil, put the president in front of a kangaroo court of public opinion and deified the candle-light protesters. Newspapers and cable TV broadcasters published or broadcast graphic images and speculative reports that were highly subjective and hostile to the president. Such reports were one-sided, incendiary and devoid of the basic principles of journalism. Reports that were later proven to contain errors were not retracted. The type of news reporting we have seen has left a major stain on Korea's journalism track record.

5. The following rumors were reported by the news media and are still perceived as fact even though they were proven to be completely false: Park referred to Choi as "Madam Choi" and her son worked at Cheong Wa Dae on the day when the Sewol ferry sank killing more than 300 people on board, the president was immersed in a shamanistic ritual at Cheong Wa Dae honoring Choi's late father, Choi Tae-min, the leader of a crackpot cult who became Park's mentor in the 1970s Choi is part of a powerful and secretive group of women close to the president who use their influence for personal gain Choi accompanied Park on state visits aboard the presidential airplane Choi met one of her key aides, Koh Young-tae, at a bar employing male prostitutes and that Cha Eun-taek, a pop music video director and another key figure in the influence-peddling scandal, visited Cheong Wa Dae late at night to meet the president.

6. Both liberal and conservative media outlets joined the Park bashing initiated by the Chosun Ilbo, Joongang Ilbo and Dong A Ilbo dailies and angry protesters poured into downtown Seoul after a unified anti-Park front was created. The news media actively supported the candle-light protesters and relied entirely on estimates of participants provided by rally organizers that ended with figures that were anywhere from five to 10 times higher than the actual turnout. Any news report critical of the candle-light protests were quickly labeled as derogatory and faced public condemnation. The president lost any ability to resist. Her senior secretaries were quickly immobilized and as her key supporters at the ruling Saenuri Party trembled in fear, the view spread that it is okay to slander Park no matter how offensive the comments may be. Most media outlets in the nation pummeled Park causing her approval rating to plummet to the five-percent level.

7. The Chosun Ilbo, Joongang Ilbo and Dong A Ilbo dailies should be credited for breaking the Choi Soon-sil influence-peddling and corruption scandal. Park's 40-year relationship with a shady character like Choi Tae-min and the fact that the president kept all of this a secret from the public simply made everything become mouth-watering subject matter for the tabloid weeklies. Prosecutors confirmed what was reported by the media, while candle-light protests only intensified. And with the National Assembly backing impeachment, everything progressed quickly.

8. When the president and the Saenuri Party lost their will to fight back, the news media went into overdrive, while objectivity, fairness and the interest of the public all went out the window. Rumors that were later proven wrong ended up on the front pages of newspapers, while rebuttals were ignored. The news media became simply reluctant to issue corrections even after their speculative reports alleging that the president spent hours getting her hair done or was under the influence of sedatives while the Sewol sank were proven to be entirely false.

9. The news media amplified information that was disadvantageous to Park and intentionally downplayed facts that were detrimental to the candle-light protesters. No media outlet reported the fact that the group that organized the candle-light protests was left-leaning, was affiliated with the same groups that sparked the mad cow disease panic and massive demonstrations back in 2008 and that the theme song that came to represent the candle-light protests was created by the same person who composed a musical ode to North Korea's nation founder Kim Il-sung. The fact that the Chosun Ilbo, Joongang Ilbo and Dong A Ilbo newspapers took part in glorifying the candle-light protesters is simply ridiculous.

10. Chogabje.com has firmly maintained a fact-based journalistic approach during this period of extreme social and political turmoil. This is possible due to our belief that decisions and response measures come naturally once the facts are verified. Chogabje.com has come under fire from other media outlets for its reporting of the Choi Soon-sil scandal, because it played such a crucial role and deviated from the practices shown by other news organizations. The acute analyses of our contributing writers also served us well. In his article, "21st Century is Age of Korean-Style Peasant/Gentry, New Age of the Four Scholarly Classes has Arrived," freelance contributor Lee Kang-ho touched on the historic backdrop to the impeachment bill spearheaded by journalists and politicians. He wrote, "It wasn't the people, but the Sarim (Confucian scholars) who seized power after the king was overthrown during the Joseon dynasty. This is what is happening in Korea in the 21st century. We have seen the dawn of the new age of the four scholarly classes where the so-called pen-wielding scholars and left-leaning '386 generation' [former student activists who went to university during the 1980s and were born in the 1960s] control the fate of the nation. This is now the Age of the Korean-Style Peasant/Gentry." Lee was offended by the abuse the heads of Korea's multinational conglomerates had to endure from coarse lawmakers during the recent National Assembly hearings probing the Choi Soon-sil influence-peddling scandal. "The merchant class no longer has the right to form associations, while the “red guard,” represented by pen-wielding scholars, can summon these merchants at their whim to listen humbly to their criticism. This is the age in which we live. Pseudo journalists are free to publish whatever they wish and blame anyone they see fit for punishment. And the public, which has grown intoxicated by protests, may be reveling in what they believe is a victory of the masses. But in reality, the public has been defeated, while the new Sarim gentry are the ones strutting down the main boulevard these days with their noses in the air. The people of this country have lost the attributes that exist in a law-abiding country and have become overpowered by public opinion. The new Sarim class who have achieved victory will continue to appeal to public opinion, but these selfish scholars have never respected public opinion and never will. To them, the public is merely their subjects and similar to livestock or swine."

11. Ever since the Joseon dynasty, the ethical justification of the news media always provided impetus for political changes. During the Joseon dynasty, the three bureaucratic classes (law enforcement, censor general and office of the promotion of the Yi dynasty), Ijo Jeonrang (the interior ministry's official in charge of personnel affairs) and Sarim controlled the news media and public opinion, thereby wielding considerable political clout. This structure of politics and news media is similar to what we see in our society today. The Sarim, the Confucian school of scholars that adhered to the the Zhu Xi school of Neo-Confucianism which produced elite bureaucrats following the rule of King Sunjo, were the disciples of Confucian scholars who refused to accept the legitimacy of the Joseon dynasty and are similar to those today who refuse to accept the legitimacy of the Republic of Korea. The Sarim were innately anti-establishment and possessed a strong sense of justice and duty to one's country, while being highly resistant to other political ideologies. The Sarim, who lived in the Joseon dynasty yet refused to accept the legitimacy of the kingdom, and those who live in Korea today yet refuse to recognize the legitimacy of the Republic of Korea, possess the same mentality. This type of thinking is self-destructive and leads to a hypocritical sense of morality. The elite scholars during the Joseon dynasty accepted the rule of heaven as dogma. Politicians and journalists in the Republic of Korea accept democracy as dogma. The key weapon of the Joseon dynasty factions was the justification of orthodox Neo-Confucianism and this group sided with the three bureaucratic classes and Ijo Jeonrang to dominate the news establishment and fueled impeachment. One of the characteristics of the Korean scholarly class is to pretend to dominate morality and attack the government, military, businesses, legal establishment and the U.S. by using their ethnocentric beliefs and democracy as weapons. The Korean media today have abandoned the principles of practicality, military self-sufficiency and national self-reliance.

12. The mechanism that has driven the Korean news media in the 21st century is similar to the dynamics that were at play during the Joseon dynasty. The Office of the Censor-General, whose task was to ensure that the king did not commit any improprieties, can be compared to the modern-day news media, while the Office of the Inspector General, which was tasked with investigating court officials during the Joseon dynasty, can be compared to the state prosecutor's office and judicial system today. Also, the Office of Study Promotion, whose task was also to advise the king, can be compared to student organizations and the Sarim Confucian school to left-wing civic groups today. And these forces are at the center of the maelstrom rocking Korea today. The news media today may appear to exist in a free and democratic society powered by a free-market economy. But the news media today would fit right into the Joseon dynasty in terms of the values and practices it espouses. These modern-day establishments are similar to their Joseon dynasty counterparts due to their traditionalist views or sense of justification, hypocrisy, anti-establishment mentality, military/economic/scientific ignorance, deference to power and dogmatism that puts them at ease with traditional left-wing ideologies. Birds of a feather flock together. The North Korean regime is a succession of the dynastic traditions of the Joseon dynasty. After 600 years of left-wing Joseon dynasty rule, the Republic of Korea was established finally allowing right-wing values, such as freedom and competition, to gain strength. However, 70 years of right-wing ideology pales in comparison to 600 years of left-wing beliefs. The roots of conservatism are weak, while those of left-wing ideologies run deep.

13. The biggest flaw in the belief system that dominated the minds of Joseon dynasty leaders and modern-day academics in Korea is a lack of willingness to defend their own country. "Protests will not cease as long as U.S. troops remain stationed on the Korean peninsula." Those are the words spoken repeatedly by former president Park Chung-hee during the 1970s. How many Koreans who head to Gwanghwamun plaza to hold candle-light protests worry about the impact their actions may have on national security? How many Koreans think that North Korea's nuclear weapons threat poses a graver risk to our country than the Choi Soon-sil corruption scandal? There are no limits to what people can do once they have given up on the need to defend their own country. If people are no longer interested in protecting the lives of their community, property and freedom, they end up immersing themselves in narrow-minded power struggles. The will to defend one's own country starts from the distinction between self and others. It starts from the ability to distinguish between friend and foe. Hwang Jang-yop, the highest-ranking North Korean official to defect to South Korea, defined ideology as the "awareness of the advantages and disadvantages of a community." Flunkeys who have given up on their will to defend their own country can only grow insensitive to identifying and responding to enemies within our society. When this mentality become generally accepted, we end up letting others take away our freedom.

14. The following are excerpts from contributed writings by a Chogabje.com reader named Lee Hee-do.
"Why did the Republic of Korea lose all of its conservatives? I cannot but wonder how conservatives in Korea, who accomplished so much, ended up losing everything. I think that conservatives in Korea fell into the trap of fairness and equality and cheap generosity. Conservatives in Korea ended up applying the gauge of fairness and equality too idealistically and ended up condoning the far left. Let's look at the legal system. The judicial system in particular must be dominated by conservative thinkers. That is why judges espousing far left-leaning beliefs should be weeded out. Candidates who pass the notoriously difficult bar exam should be subject to a set of interviews in order to determine their ideological leanings. But thanks to our reckless application of fairness and equality, even candidates with left-leaning ideologies were allowed to become prosecutors and justices as long as they passed the bar exam. And as a result, it has become virtually impossible to expect a fair and just ruling from our courts of law. We should have fought alongside Yi Mun-yol when he was under attack. After watching the treatment he received, who would want to stand at the front of the conservative movement? Saenuri Party lawmaker Kim Jin-tae came under fire for criticizing left-wing protesters, but we had no means to protect him. What tools do we have at our disposal to protect him? This is all the result of applying the gauge of fairness and equality too idealistically and condoning the far left. We need to bolster the ranks of conservatives now.

15. The unprecedented upheaval of the news media is also an upheaval of letters. The key characteristics seen in writings this year were inaccuracy, subjectivity, ambiguity and idealism. This is a revolt against the Korean language, which ended up being used to destroy reality and common sense. The exclusivity of the Korean language that evolved over a single generation resulted in the language becoming cryptic and led to a downgrading of the thinking ability of journalists resulting in low quality articles, which ended up causing far-reaching changes to our nation. A slave mentality fettered by deference to power amid an absence of any willingness to defend our nation, combined with a degradation of our language, resulted in an unprecedented upheaval of the news media. This is probably the biggest enemy our news media faces today.

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[原기사] 최순실 마녀사냥, 박근혜 인민재판, 촛불 우상화, 졸속 탄핵 (2016년 12월19일자) → 하단의 <관련 기사> 참조