Broadcaster Hong Seok Cheon, known as South Korea’s first public coming-out figure, opened up about the pain he experienced after coming out.
On the 18th, the YouTube channel Kim Sook TV released a video titled “Is it true that we’re meeting after 32 years..? KBS 12th Batch Reunion.”
That day, Kim Sook met with her KBS University Comedy Festival 12th batch colleagues Hong Seok Cheon, Lee Ri An (formerly Lee Jang Sook), and Gong Ki Tak (formerly Gong Sung Soo) for a long-awaited reunion and conversation.
The four, reunited after a long time, reminisced about past memories and brought up various issues surrounding each other. They mentioned Gong Ki Tak’s 2013 illegal sports betting scandal, which caused a major stir, and Hong Seok Cheon’s coming out, which was one of the biggest news stories over a whole decade after 2000.
Hong Seok Cheon said, “Ki Tak’s news was big, but honestly, my news ranked in the top 10 biggest issues for nearly 10 years after the new millennium began.” Kim Sook added, “No one came out after you, so it was a huge issue.”
Hong Seok Cheon revealed, “Everyone around me saw how hard my life was. After coming out, all my broadcast programs were canceled, and it took three and a half years before I could return.” He spoke candidly about being forced into a hiatus following South Korea’s first broadcaster’s public coming out.
He also recalled, “My comeback was through a role in writer Kim Soo Hyun’s drama Perfect Love, but there were protests in front of SBS headquarters with banners saying, ‘We don’t want to see Hong Seok Cheon in dramas. SBS, wake up!’” evoking sympathy.
