Assembly cautions JYP founder over personal activities during U.S. trip
Lawmakers urged clearer separation of official and private schedules after Park Jin-young extended a state-funded U.S. visit for personal business.
JYP Entertainment founder Park Jin-young, right, and Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young, co-chairs of the Presidential Committee on Popular Culture Exchange, attend a press conference on the Fanomenon project’s progress at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, in central Seoul on July 27.
YONHAP
The National Assembly reprimanded JYP Entertainment founder Park Jin-young for pursuing personal business while in the United States on an official state-funded visit last year, according to the Presidential Committee on Popular Culture Exchange on Wednesday.
Park serves as a co-chair of the presidential popular culture exchange committee, a public-private platform that facilitates the growth of Korean popular culture, ranging from K-pop to films and esports.
“Please clearly distinguish official schedules from personal or company-related activities when private-sector committee members travel overseas on official business,” the parliamentary Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee said during its meeting on Tuesday.
Park traveled to New York and Los Angeles for eight nights and 11 days from Nov. 13 to 23 last year. His official schedule included meetings related to “Fanomenon,” a large-scale K-pop festival envisioned as Korea’s version of Coachella.
The government-funded portion of the trip ran for five nights and six days from Nov. 13 to 18. Park reportedly remained in the United States for personal activities after his official schedule ended.
“All travel expenses and scheduling arrangements related to Park’s trip were handled lawfully and in accordance with relevant laws and regulations,” the popular culture exchange committee’s support team said. “Park personally covered all expenses for the latter part of the trip, which was for personal activities, including his return flight.”
Park’s personal schedule changes and delayed return after the official trip did not require separate prior approval under the relevant rules, given his status as a non-standing member, according to the support team.
“Although no laws or regulations were violated, we understand that the ‘caution’ reflects the need for greater rigor and transparency in handling similar matters, given the strong public interest in the committee’s activities and their economic impact,” the support team said.
“We will enforce stricter and more transparent oversight of all administrative and budgetary matters, including official overseas travel,” it added.
BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
