Hong Jang-won, a comedian and broadcaster from SBS’s 9th public recruitment, has confessed to drunk driving and announced that he will suspend all broadcasting activities to reflect on his actions.
On the 18th, Hong Jang-won posted a handwritten apology on the YouTube channel ‘M’s Long Plan’ community, admitting, “I committed a serious crime. Moreover, I deeply regret revealing this fact at this late stage.” He bowed his head in apology.
He stated, “On June 28, while on my way home, I was caught in a sobriety checkpoint near my house with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.065. There was no accident or harm to individuals; I was caught while driving alone, and the legal procedures are underway.”
He continued, “Drunk driving is an undeniable crime with no excuses or justification, yet I committed it. As a broadcaster who lives on the trust and support of viewers, it was an even more unacceptable action.”
Hong Jang-won also revealed that this was not his first instance of drunk driving. He said, “In 2006, 19 years ago, I also received a license suspension and a fine. At that time, I was more foolish and did not fully recognize the depth of my wrongdoing and failed to reflect. As a result, I ended up committing the same crime again.”
He confessed, “The greater sin is that after being caught for drunk driving, I continued broadcasting as if nothing had happened for more than 50 days without being honest with you.”
Hong Jang-won expressed regret, saying, “During the day, I pretended nothing was wrong while broadcasting, deceiving both viewers and colleagues, and at night, I couldn’t sleep due to fear and guilt. Each passing day, my sins snowballed. It was a cowardly and foolish action, and a mistake that cannot be undone.”
He sincerely apologized, saying, “I apologize to everyone who was disappointed and shocked by my drunk driving and cowardly deceit. I will find a way to responsibly return the profits generated from YouTube and broadcasting activities over the past 50 days.”
Lastly, he promised, “I will cease my channel and all broadcasting activities, and take an indefinite period to reflect and self-restrain. Once again, I sincerely apologize to everyone who was disappointed and hurt by my actions.”
Hong Jang-won debuted as an SBS 9th class comedian and has been active in creating content with various broadcasters through the YouTube channel ‘M’s Long Plan’ since 2020. Currently, he has made all videos on the channel private, and the channel has about 700,000 subscribers.