S. Korea’s leader suspends Q&A with reporters amid media row

By HYUNG-JIN KIM
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s president has suspended his routine morning Q&A sessions with journalists after squabbling with a broadcaster over its coverage of his remarks caught on a hot mic in the United States. President Yoon Suk Yeol’s so-called “door-stepping” session was in line with his campaign promise to better communicate with the public. But his office said Monday that “a recent unsavory incident” led it to scrap the Q&A session. It referred to an altercation between one of the presidential aides and a reporter from the MBC television network. Some journalists’ organizations and Yoon’s liberal rivals have criticized the president for threatening press freedoms. Yoon’s supporters say MBC brought it upon itself because of its unfairness in reporting.