Han Dong-hoon loses first-round defamation suit against KBS over 'prosecutor-media collusion' report

Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon has lost a 500 million won ($331,000) defamation lawsuit he filed against current and former KBS staff over a report he said falsely alleged collusion between prosecutors and the media.

The 15th Civil Division of the Seoul Southern District Court dismissed Han's damages claim against eight people, including KBS's news director and reporters, on Thursday. The court also ordered Han, as the plaintiff, to bear litigation costs. The ruling came roughly six years after the lawsuit was filed in 2020.

The case stems from a KBS report published July 18, 2020, which cited a transcript of a conversation Han allegedly had on Feb. 13 of that year with Lee Dong-jae, a former Channel A reporter, while Han was serving as deputy chief prosecutor at the Busan High Prosecutors Office. The report claimed the transcript showed evidence that Han had conspired to raise allegations of stock-price manipulation against Yoo Si-min, then chairman of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation, involving biopharmaceutical company Shinrajen.

After the full transcript was made public, however, the report's claims were found to differ from the facts. KBS acknowledged the error and apologized the following day. Han then filed a criminal complaint against the KBS reporter on charges of defamation through publication and filed the 500 million won damages suit against eight KBS staff members, including the news director.

During the trial, KBS argued the report was not based on false information and that it had fulfilled its duty of care by thoroughly verifying the facts before publishing. Han's side countered that it was hard to accept KBS's position — having already broadcast an on-air apology — that the report had not been erroneous after all.