BTS Suga e-scooter DUI: Korean broadcaster issues apology after showing CCTV footage of wrong man

South Korean broadcaster JTBC has apologised after showing the wrong CCTV footage in their coverage of BTS member Suga riding his e-scooter while under the influence of alcohol.

Their report, which was broadcast on Aug 7, was called into question by media outlet, DongA Ilbo.

The latter released separate footage on Aug 14 and wrote that the video showing Suga purportedly riding on a road as "reported by some broadcasters" was wrong, without naming JTBC.

DongA Ilbo's footage showed Suga, 31, riding his e-scooter on the pavement and turning to park but falling off the vehicle instead.

They reported that the idol consumed alcohol while eating with acquaintances at a restaurant in Hannam around 9pm, before going to a private studio to continue drinking. At 11pm, he rode his scooter home to the Nine One Hannam condominium complex situated 500 metres away from the studio.

The video also shows police coming to Suga's aid after his fall, upon which he was reportedly administered a breathalyser test. He had a blood alcohol content of 0.227, which is above the 0.08 limit for licence revocation in South Korea.

JTBC deleted their previous broadcast and posted another video on YouTube showing the new footage by DongA Ilbo. The new video has also since been deleted after backlash from netizens, who demanded the broadcaster address the wrong footage and apologise.

JTBC issued their apology on an Aug 16 broadcast, with a news anchor saying: "Our newsroom reported BTS member Suga's DUI (driving under the influence) on August 7. In the first part of our report, we aired CCTV footage of an e-scooter passing by on a main road.

"It was later confirmed through police investigations that the man in the video was not Suga. We're sorry for causing any confusion."

JTBC APOLOGIZES FOR SPREADING MISINFORMATION ABOUT SUGA:

👤 … a CCTV footage of him riding an electric scooter was aired, and a police investigation confirmed that the man in the video was not BTS' Suga. We apologize for the confusion. pic.twitter.com/j6k8VIdnpC

— moni⁷ 𖠌 (@sevenrchive) August 16, 2024

KBS comments on whether they will ban Suga from broadcasts

One of South Korea's three major broadcasters, KBS, told media outlet Ilgan Sports on Aug 16 that they are "undecided" on whether they would hold a meeting discussing banning Suga from future broadcasts.

They also told Star News: "Suga is currently serving his national service, so there are no KBS programmes on which he appears. [Whether Suga will be banned by KBS] is not an issue that needs to be discussed or dealt with right away. Furthermore, the police investigation is ongoing, so the results are unknown."

KBS has a history of restricting broadcasts of celebrities caught in scandals, including actress Kim Sae-ron and Shinhwa's Shin Hye-sung, who were both caught drink-driving.

They also banned former iKon member B.I. who was convicted for cannabis and LSD usage.

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