PD Diary to be Discontinued

MBC’s PD Diary, the TV program that caused controversy by using intimidating methods during the process of interviewing researchers at the research lab of Seoul National University chair-professor Hwang Woo-suk, will be discontinued.

MBC held a board meeting yesterday morning under the supervision of MBC president Choi Mun-sun and agreed to discontinue the airing of PD Diary.

PD Diary, which first aired on May 8, 1990, aired its 660th and last episode on November 29.

Meanwhile, controversy has risen over the fact that lawyer Kim Hyung-tae, the director of the Foundation of Broadcast Culture (FBC), which holds 70 percent of MBC shares, had been involved with the PD Diary staff in the process of investigating stem-cell procurement from Professor Hwang’s team.

According to a report prepared by the Committee for the Practice of Democratic Broadcasting (an affiliate of the MBC labor union) based on the testimonies of the PD Diary team and written in order to grasp the truth of the matter, Kim had prepared a written agreement on the handing over of stem cells from Professor Hwang’s team to the PD Diary team, and also witnessed the process.

Jung-Bo Suh suhchoi@donga.com