[articles][From Stephe’s desk] A question of PR soldiers’ paperwork, and more blatant Media inconsistences.

Oh, let’s get right to it.

» [article] Rain Submitted No Paperwork To Become Army PR Agent: Director Of Defunct Program Didn’t ‘Dare’ To Interview Star.

1) Let me get this straight. Rain didn’t apply to DEMA or get interviewed? *as I glance around in confusion* Hooo-kay. LOL! Here he is, listing all of his requirements for the job, in an INTERVIEW in February 2012. If this isn’t it, then what the heck are they looking for?

» [Rain update][Eng trans] Must Read: A second translation of PFC JiHoon Jung’s DEMA interview (3/16/2012).

» [ETA Eng/Chn trans][Rain update][interview] PFC JiHoon Jung on DEMA blog site 어울림 (Oullim) (3/14/2012).

(Source credit: DEMAclub @tistory / courtesy of scorpiolabibi)

Funnily enough, the source page on DEMA’s blog where they posted all of the above in March 2012 has been taken down. But that’s okay, seeing as in November 2012, they posted on their official Facebook and reminded us of Rain’s March interview. You can see the translation of the Facebook post below by clicking HERE.

2) Has anyone stopped to think that Rain may not have submitted the necessary paperwork to DEMA within three months of his enlistment because he might not have intended to go there? Jung JiHoon made his intentions quite clear from the get-go, that he wanted to serve quietly in the Army as a regular soldier, be out of the limelight for duration of his service, do well, and come home renewed. He tried to make good on that, serving eight weeks of boot camp rather than the usual four to six (and rather than bypassing boot altogether as some have done), and happily settling himself into the 5th Infantry as an ATO near the DMZ.

PFC Rain: Not a happy camper.

Then, with no warning after five months, DEMA suddenly breaks the news like a giddy schoolgirl that “Rain” was coming to serve in PR and how it was a “new day” and they would proudly show off their “world star” and that oh, by the way, let us stress (a bit too much) that Private First Class Rain completed an application and is coming of his own volition). R-i-g-h-t. As if the man would suddenly volunteer to earn Netizen Hatred when he’d already earned Netizen Approval. Seriously? Anyone with half a brain knows that unless you want life to get extremely difficult for you in the military, you do what you’re told to do. With or without “paperwork.” (They didn’t even call him Jung JiHoon. It was always “Ambassador 비” and World Star Rain, and he didn’t look all that happy about it.)

I remember our first thoughts when the news broke. OMG, they went and got him anyway. Couldn’t they have just left him alone? » ( [past article][from Stephe’s desk] Of an Ultra Soldier, an interview, and a firm request. )

Remember this past statement from DEMA in a Yonhap News article?

And in related news, the Defense Ministry’s PR department has plans itself for a large-scale movie, which Rain and other enlisted K-celebs will all take part in.  The PR department’s manager is quoted as saying, “We plan to schedule the movie production at that point [when] Rain enters the army, but our movie is still in its conceptual stage and the details of the scenario have not yet [been] completed.”

They said this in September of 2010, a whole year before Rain was even close to enlisting. They were chomping at the bit and making their plans that early. When he chose the Infantry, well that simply would not do, I suppose.

During that time in March 2012, Rain talked about the PR Unit being short-staffed because of all the soldiers who were being discharged, and how everyone should be where they are most needed. In my mind, that’s how he resigned himself to it and got through it—serving the country by serving the troops.

3) Did we not squawk for months about the DEMA higher-ups using celebrity soldiers for free labor for a slew of their own personal stuff unreported, for the longest time, heck, for years? Haven’t other reporters in the past done so as well, even Star News? (I thought everyone listened to Star News as The Gospel!) Celebrity soldiers have not only been responsible for their everyday basic soldier duties and training and all of the ambassador-ing, entertaining, and PR work, they’ve also been on call like cattle for whatever non-military events came down the pike, no matter when, no matter who, with no compensation, and had no choice in the matter (the brig isn’t a very nice place to be when you refuse the guys with the brass on their uniforms). Why hasn’t anyone listened? Yet there it is. Now THAT is what you call “abuse of power”, dear journalists. (I’ll be talking more about this matter and Rain’s killer schedule coming up in a future post. Surely you didn’t think I was finished, did you? Not even close.)

4) Why is Mr. PR Director possibly not interviewing Rain or letting some things slide because he was “intimidated” (LMAO!) seen as “a convenience for the celebrity soldier” rather than a convenience for Mr. PR Director? It’s so easy to keep trying to blame the soldiers for any corruption within the Defense Ministry’s infrastructure rather than the MoD itself, isn’t it? In a statement to eNews back in March 2012, a DEMA official said that Rain did submit an application and did go through an interview. (Note: All of a sudden, a slew of other celebs’ duty assignments were being changed at the same time. Pretty quickly.) And now the MoD has provided evidence that says oh, we were lying back then, despite all of our statements and Tweets? Which brings us full circle, right back to #1… who is that being interviewed for a PR job in that DEMA video? Mahatma Gandhi?

What a never-ending circle of lies and crap on top of crap and lies, DEMA. Unless… someone has been monkeying around with the inspection reports in order to give the public more fodder to feed on? People have said that when these celebrity scandals break out all willy-nilly, there’s usually unrelated government corruption that’s being covered up while folks aren’t looking. While they’ve got your attention over here with their left hand, they’re doing something over there with their right hand.

Ugh. If anyone is as confused as I am, raise your hand.

It would behoove the South Korean media to get on the same train the government is riding and put the blame where it belongs, instead of being bitches to the soldiers who have no power. And negligent K-Pop/K-Drama portals should get current and look for better sources. The ones they’re clinging to ain’t cutting it. — Stephe ^@@^

°

eNews World 7/24/2013 — by Grace Danbi Hong

Rain Revealed to Have Become a PR Agent without Required Documents

Just when all seemed okay again for Rain, another issue has turned up for the recently discharged soldier.

On July 24, congressman Kim Kwang Jin of the National Assembly Defense Committee, stated that a PR Agent management inspection report received from the Ministry of National Defense revealed that Rain and ten other PR agents were accepted as PR agents despite not sending in any required documents.

To become a PR agent, an actor, comedian, or singer must submit documents and recommendations that prove of their experience in each area. The documents must be handed in within three months of the enlistment date.

It has recently been discovered that Rain and other PR agents have not turned in these required documents.

Kim Kwang Jin also raised up suspicions that the full-time PR director, who was in charge of interviewing Rain, provided unnecessary convenience to the celebrity soldier. It’s said that the PR director remarked, “How can a deputy director dare to interview world star Jung Ji Hoon?” during the interview process.

In addition to these issues, it′s been previously noted that PR Agents were mobilized to sing at the weddings of PR agency officials in November of 2012 and March of 2013.

“The Defense Media Agency and the Ministry of National Defense must be held responsible for these issues,” said the congressman, as he added that there are bigger problems than the ones revealed during the official briefing of the Ministry of National Defense that took place on July 18.

Photo Credit: Kim Byung Kwan

~ by Cloud USA on July 25, 2013.