Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson has officially apologized for his previous accusation against The Korea Daily regarding releasing a false report.
On June 8, the city council president met with The Korea Daily, where he admitted that his accusation against the media was not true.
“I’ve been maintaining good relationships with local Korean community media,” Wesson said. “The accusation made by one of the members of my office, which said that The Korea Daily made a false report, was an incorrect claim. I regret it and apologize for it.”
“I will put more effort to keep a genial relationship with Korean-American media,” he added.
At the press conference on May 24, Vanessa Rodriguez, a spokeswoman for Council President Wesson, stated, “Korean community media is responsible for raising a protest by releasing fake news.”
Rodriguez claimed that some of the local Korean community media outlets falsely reported about the city’s plan for the homeless shelter, saying, “Koreatown will be the only part of the city to house the shelter,” “the city will bring homeless people in Orange County to LA once the shelter is built,” or “the council members who attended May 22 deliberation were replacements.”
When The Korea Daily asked for the grounds for the accusation, the spokeswoman sent links to news articles to SBS International. Regarding this, the media outlet asked for an official statement, to which Council President Wesson admitted that Spokeswoman Rodriguez made a claim not based on truth.
Meanwhile, The Korea Daily also requested for an official letter of apology regarding KANA and Journalists Association.
Original article by Michael Won
