‘PD Notebook Distorted Facts About Mad Cow Disease’

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors` Office, which is investigating the alleged inaccurate coverage of MBC TV program “PD Notebook,” plans to release a progress report Tuesday afternoon and send a written inquiry to the network.

Prosecutors plan to reveal a re-edited version of the investigative program based on the full Korean and overseas video clips and quotations, which were partially used for the program. Prosecutors will also publicly point out parts that have been distorted from the original content, according to their tentative conclusion.

The prosecution’s statement will include such points as intentional mistranslation, which has already been widely known; a material based on the reconstructed version of the Humane Society’s downer cow video clip; U.S. media reports on the death of Aretha Vinson; and the reason for Aretha Vinson’s autopsy.

As the production crew of PD Notebook has constantly refused to submit any requested materials or appear at the prosecutors’ office, the prosecution plans to send a 140-page inquiry to MBC largely on the possible offences revealed through its investigation.

dnsp@donga.com