Actor's Union to Boycott All SBS Programs

The Korean Actor's Union held a press conference at a Chinese restaurant in Youido in response to the airing of a show on SBS called 'News Chase - Secret Deals Between Celebrities and Brokers.' The program alleged that a number of actresses double as high-priced call girls who arrange sexual liasons through brokers. At the press conference, the Korean Actor's Union requested that the president of SBS "officially apologize and dismiss the person in charge." The Actor's Union went on to state that "if these requests are not accepted, the Actor's Union plans to initiate a celebrity boycott of SBS starting June 1, and to bring a suit against the network."

Attending the press conference were a number of well-known actresses including Sa Mi-ja, Chung Hye-sun, Kim Hae-sook, Lee Bo-hee, and Shin Choong-sik, chairman of the Talent Association.

The union started a campaign to collect signatures of the members of the Actor's Union. The union announced that "currently, 100 actors and actresses among the 2,080 members of the Actor's Union regularly participate in programs on SBS."

However, the top female stars including Lee Seung-yon, Choi Jin-shil, Chae Si-ra, Kim Hyun-joo, Kim Won-hee, Song Yoon-ah and Kim Nam-joo, whom the Celebrity Union previously announced would be at the press conference, did not attend.

by Lee Hoo-nam