You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 620

The night Go Yoon-soo was arrested, Woo-shin began to retaliate.

[My cousin, Kim Mi-ja, majored in the same field at Youngjin Women’s University around the same time and holds master’s and doctoral degrees. However, she says there was no such person.]

A single internet post ignited the situation.

The story surrounding Kim Mi-ja and Youngjin Women’s University escalated rapidly.

When a post surfaced claiming her graduation thesis didn’t exist, people began to accuse Kim Mi-ja of academic fraud.

[Youngjin Women’s University: No Record of Kim Mi-ja’s Admission]

[Kim Mi-ja, Organ Trafficking Informant, Exposed for Academic Fraud]

Several days later, Youngjin Women’s University officially confirmed that no graduate named Kim Mi-ja existed.

All of this was within expectations.

Woo-shin had attempted negotiation with me but failed. Unable to get the desired answer from Kim Mi-ja, this was the last resort he could employ.

If he couldn’t silence Kim Mi-ja, he would undermine her credibility.

Attacking the messenger when you can’t refute the message is a political tactic with a historically low success rate.

[Former Colleague of Kim Mi-ja: “Surprisingly Unknowledgeable About University Life”]

[Kim Mi-ja: Would Mumble or Give Strange Answers to Impromptu Questions Related to Her Major]

[Kim Mi-ja: Seriously Lacking in Major-Related Knowledge]

[Kim Mi-ja, Exposer of Organ Trafficking: An Entire Life of Lies?]

Above all, socially destroying someone through the media was Woo-shin’s specialty.

The media outlets, subtly defending Go Sang-jun and accustomed to the advertising revenue from Woo-shin’s numerous affiliates, eagerly began to criticize Kim Mi-ja.

The spread was rapid, and unverified anecdotes proliferated.

So many Koreans knew Kim Mi-ja, yet no one questioned why she wasn’t recognized when she first appeared on our broadcast.

[Title: Anecdote of Meeting ㄱㅁㅈ (initials obscured) While Working]

I work in the Japanese arts scene.

I had several meetings with ㄱㅁㅈ because of a project.

My first impression was, wow, is she an actress? She was so pretty, and her tone was elegant and kind.

So I was fond of her, but strangely, the more I talked to her, the more I wondered if this person was really a professor, lol. [lol is internet slang for ‘laugh out loud’]

She didn’t know much, lol, lol, lol. There were many things she couldn’t understand, even professional terms that weren’t that difficult, lol, lol, lol.

It felt like she only had a superficial understanding?

And she always seemed nervous during meetings, lol, lol. Back then, I just thought she was introverted, but I realized it was because she was afraid of being exposed for not knowing anything if the conversation went on too long… lol.

Posts with employee IDs written in Japanese or photos with locations in Japan as the background were uploaded as proof.

Perhaps because the first few posts seemed credible, even posts consisting only of text without authentication were accepted as truth thereafter.

All garnered explosive views, and as if worried someone might miss them, they were spread everywhere.

[Kim Mi-ja’s Ignorance Captured in Japanese News Interview.jpg]

[Kim Mi-ja Can’t Answer Questions at Official Event, lol, lol, lol]

Videos that had never been popular on Japanese websites were meticulously subtitled and circulated on Korean sites.

[Kim Mi-ja’s Legendary Lies, lol, lol, lol]

At first, she said she naturally became interested, thinking it was a family business because her parents were in the arts, but a few years later, she said she happened to go to a Japanese art museum and fell in love with a painting, starting art against her family’s opposition, lol, lol, lol.

└ If you’re going to lie, be consistent.

└ She also said she took art classes as a hobby when she was young, and the teacher told her she had to major in it, persuading her parents, lol, lol, lol.

└ Kim Mi-ja’s lies were famous in Japan too, lol, lol.

└ I recommend reading all the posts that come up when you search for Kim Mi-ja. ㅇㅇ [Korean internet slang for ‘okay’] If you add up all the revealed lies, there are more than 30.

Kim Mi-ja’s actual words were maliciously pieced together, or words she didn’t say were fabricated or distorted.

The statements created in that way were edited with photos of Kim Mi-ja appearing on the broadcast and circulated under the title ‘Kim Mi-ja’s Statements Compilation.’

The readability was so good; it was obvious they were very careful to ensure the reader wouldn’t miss a single sentence.

People accepted these overwhelming posts as facts, which is perhaps natural.

For most netizens [internet users], these stories are simply entertainment.

People seeking quick pleasure are unlikely to check sources or verify the truth.

If this method hadn’t worked, the tragedies in human history caused by the incitement of vicious politicians would never have occurred.

[Kim Mi-ja, Who Never Enrolled in Youngjin Women’s University. What Kind of Life Did She Live? We Visited the Japanese University Where She Worked as a Professor.]

Encouraged by public response, the broadcasting station quickly organized a current affairs program on the subject of Kim Mi-ja.

There was nothing particularly insightful.

They checked Kim Mi-ja’s academic records at Youngjin Women’s University, interviewed a graduate about Kim Mi-ja, traveled to Japan to visit the university where she was a professor, and met people in the industry who had worked with her.

After filming the closed gallery due to Kim Mi-ja’s absence, they also broadcast a scene where they were stopped by a security guard.

Having faithfully gone through all the stages of creating public opinion in Korea, Kim Mi-ja had become a notorious liar in 10 days.

It goes without saying that this news spread to Japan.

Of course, Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon, who first introduced her to the public, were also targets of criticism.

[Is that real wiretapping?

└ There’s a story that Kim Mi-ja wiretapped to betray her husband because she was in danger of being caught for forging her academic record, lol, lol, lol.

└ Kim Mi-ja did a great job.

└ I heard it wasn’t wiretapping but fabrication.

└ Huh? Fabrication?

└ I heard Kim Mi-ja threatened Oda Satoshi with it because she thought she was going to be abandoned.

└ If it’s fabrication, how did they raid the organ trafficking site, lol, lol? Don’t defend Woo-shin because you think this is a good time, lol, lol, lol.]

There were also subtle attempts to portray the audio file as a fabrication rather than wiretapping in several places.

But the lie was too far-fetched.

Not many people believed in fabrication, let alone wiretapping.

Of course, those who blindly believed that Woo-shin alone had brought prosperity to Korea readily accepted those claims.

“Finally, Kim Mi-ja’s article has dropped below the top 5 in the ranking of the most viewed articles.”

About two weeks later, the intense criticism subsided.

For the first ten days, a new article related to her was released daily, but now there was nothing more to dig up, no matter how hard they tried.

Kim Mi-ja’s time spent in social isolation and her miserable life were extensive, but there had to be a limit to fabricating anecdotes about her.

Isn’t it natural to stop when the momentum is lost?

“I’ve seen Woo-shin push like this before, but it’s still scary how much capital he has. When I see the part-timers messing around in the broadcast chat and then see this kind of all-out attack, I think Woo-shin is truly something else.”

Kang Min-jae seemed genuinely impressed.

We all were.

The huge wave of public opinion that had been fiercely attacking Go Sang-jun and Go Yoon-soo suddenly turned on Kim Mi-ja following the instigation.

It seemed that even if we revealed the shocking card of prostitution, the attacks wouldn’t stop.

Originally, we had been using the method of suppressing rumors before they became uncontrollable, but this time, I couldn’t help but think we should wait for the storm to pass.

“Looks like now is the timing, right?”

Kang Min-jae asked.

I nodded.

When the temperature of the potato isn’t hot enough to cause burns but is still considered hot.

This is also the point when reason returns to people who have only been absorbing sensational content.

[Kim Mi-ja’s post now looks really malicious.

The Japanese subtitles in the broadcast capture and the content that the writer translated into Korean are different.

And the panelists wrote that they laughed at Kim Mi-ja as soon as she made that statement, but watch the original video.

The MC agrees with Kim Mi-ja and adds an explanation.

It’s true that Kim Mi-ja forged her academic record, but it seems necessary to correct some of the nonsense stories that keep spreading ㅇㅇ [Korean internet slang for ‘okay’]]

People gradually realize.

That the flow of events was a bit strange, or that the dozens of rumors about her didn’t make sense together.

Now is the timing.

The fact that the public opinion criticizing Kim Mi-ja has subsided to some extent means that the wave of ‘Kim Mi-ja’s Lies’ has peaked and is now receding.

People still want content related to Kim Mi-ja.

However, something new, not lies.

“It’s a bit heartbreaking that the number of subscribers has dropped.”

Choi Jong-hyun chewed on jerky and went to the broadcast management screen.

Quite a few people canceled their subscriptions, saying they couldn’t trust the two people who had reported on someone like Kim Mi-ja.

“Even if the number of subscribers has dropped, the number of viewers will increase. We still have a huge aggro [short for ‘aggravation,’ meaning attention-grabbing] distance left.”

During that chaos, Kim Mi-ja did not grant any media interviews or release any statements.

To be exact, no media outlet could find a way to reach Kim Mi-ja.

Usually, the investigative agency steps in and the matter escalates, but the place where she forged and used the private documents is Japan.

It was not something for the Korean police to intervene in.

Therefore, Kim Mi-ja’s position was even more uncertain.

In other words, Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon are the only ones who can get an interview with Kim Mi-ja right now.

* * *

[polloan: When does it start?

Cop: It’s gone too far. Defending a fraud with a forged academic record, lol, lol, lol.

Nurungji Rice Cake: It’s true that she forged her academic record, but what position is she going to take?]

“Hello. Long time no see. Ahahaha, you’re welcoming me very warmly.”

The broadcast announcement that they would interview Kim Mi-ja caused a huge stir.

The number of subscribers decreased, but the number of viewers increased instead.

They must have been very curious.

In fact, various media outlets had been asking Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon to connect them with Kim Mi-ja, and they even cursed at them.

They said they turned off their cell phones and went into hiding because the requests were relentless.

There was a reason why the reporters cursed and harassed them day and night, unable to sleep.

[Egg Bread: When is Kim Mi-ja coming out?

Na Seungyoon: Is she actually coming out here?

Stand: No, she said she’s overseas, so it’ll be a phone interview.

SingSing: If she came to Korea, there would already be sightings.]

Choi Jong-hyun and Jo Bong-joon, who were checking the chat, looked a little nervous.

Unlike the previous broadcasts where they were the only targets of attack, the viewers’ target was Kim Mi-ja.

During the meeting, they emphasized to Kim Jung-woo more than ten times to freeze the chat if necessary so that Kim Mi-ja couldn’t see it.

“Well, there’s no need to drag it out, so shall we get started quickly? As we announced today, we will be interviewing Kim Mi-ja, who is currently at the center of controversy due to academic forgery and various other issues.”

“Please understand that we will be conducting the interview via video call because Kim Mi-ja is currently staying overseas. However, I would like to inform you in advance that if the chat becomes too heated, we may freeze the chat to proceed with the broadcast.”

[ReporterOut: Mouth-covering notice, lol, lol, lol, lol.

Trash Broadcast: The level of a broadcast defending a liar with lies.

Sigh, lol: I’m already curious about what nonsense she’s going to say.]

As many viewers came in wanting to attack Kim Mi-ja, the atmosphere in the chat window was not very good.

Several viewers who had been watching the broadcast were also there, but it seems they also had doubts about Kim Mi-ja.

They didn’t chat and just watched quietly.

“Is it connected now?”

When Jo Bong-joon asked Kim Jung-woo, he immediately brought up the messenger window waiting to be connected on the screen.

“It connects as soon as you press the button? Yes, I understand. Then I’ll connect.”

When Jo Bong-joon clicked the handset-shaped button, a loading screen appeared, and soon Kim Mi-ja’s appearance was revealed in clear quality.

[Humidifier: Wow, it’s real.

DieHard: Same as the picture.

Bouncy: Where is that?

kimdongpil: She’s so pretty. Did she seduce Oda Satoshi with her face, lol, lol, lol.]

“Hello, Kim Mi-ja.”

─ Yes, hello.

“There are many viewers right now. Currently, various suspicions surrounding Kim Mi-ja have been raised in both Korea and Japan, and since Kim Mi-ja has not made a separate statement, there seems to be even more interest. So, I’ll skip the greetings and go straight to the main point. Is that okay?”

─ Yes.

“First of all, the most problematic point is the academic forgery. Although it has been taken down from the site now, the Japanese university site where Kim Mi-ja was appointed as a professor stated that Kim Mi-ja received her bachelor’s to doctoral degrees from Youngjin Women’s University. Is that correct?”

─ Yes, it was.

“Then, did Kim Mi-ja really graduate from Youngjin Women’s University?”

─ No, I didn’t graduate.

Kim Mi-ja said firmly with a calm expression.

Perhaps because she didn’t show any signs of excuse and wasn’t humble, the viewers’ reactions were quite harsh.

[Yankee: Look at how brazen she is?

MyMom: She doesn’t even look remorseful, lol, lol, lol, lol.

LiarPatientNoBuy: What a thick face, lol, lol, lol.]

─ To be exact, I can’t graduate from university.

“What do you mean?”

─ Because I didn’t even graduate from elementary school.

[Stand: No, what the hell is this?

Vinyl: Is she not even a high school graduate but a preschool graduate? lol lol lol lol lol

KimJungHyun: Wow, she’s so brazen lol

FuckingCar: She’s out of her mind]

─ To be more precise, I couldn’t graduate. How could I, who was kidnapped by Woo-shin at the age of 13 and sold to Japan, have been able to go to school?