A goverment politician in South Korea has accused shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) of plying a newspaper editor with a luxurious overseas tour in exchange for favorable news coverage, reports say.
Song Hee-young, the chief editor at Korea’s Chosun Ilbo daily newspaper, allegedly went on a tour in 2011 that included a private jet flight, yacht cruise and golf trips in Italy, the UK and Greece, Rep. Kim Jin-tae, a member of Korea’s ruling Saenuri Party, told press in the country.
Rep. Kim estimated the total cost of Song’s trip at some KRW 200m ($177,714). Chosun Ilbo has claimed that Song was on a business trip to cover the Greek financial crisis, which only cost about KRW 2m ($17,700).
“Song also turned out to have played golf in London, free of charge, which seems to be quite unrelated to the sovereign default of Greece,” Rep. Kim told press, as quoted by the The Investor.
Song has reportedly offered his resignation to the newspaper.
