The "Post APEC Media Wall" billboard installed by the North Gyeongsang Province Culture and Tourism Corporation near the water performance stage at the Bomun Tourist Complex in Gyeongju. A screen introducing China showed a figure in Chinese-style dress labeled "hanbok," drawing public criticism. [Yonhap]
The "Post APEC Media Wall" billboard installed by the North Gyeongsang Province Culture and Tourism Corporation near the water performance stage at the Bomun Tourist Complex in Gyeongju. A screen introducing China showed a figure in Chinese-style dress labeled "hanbok," drawing public criticism. [Yonhap]

A large billboard at the Bomun Tourist Complex in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, has drawn criticism after a screen introducing China displayed a figure in Chinese-style dress labeled "hanbok" — Korea's traditional clothing.

The North Gyeongsang Province Culture and Tourism Corporation recently installed a "Post APEC Media Wall" billboard in a plaza near the water performance stage at the complex and began a trial run.

The billboard was relocated from Hoban Plaza at the Bomun Tourist Complex, where it had originally been installed during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit held in Gyeongju last year.

Ahead of its official launch on Oct. 1, the corporation was test-broadcasting content introducing the traditional dress of the 21 APEC member countries.

The problem arose during the segment on China. While the country identified on screen was China and the figure shown wore Chinese-style clothing, the caption describing the outfit read "hanbok," creating the false impression that hanbok is a Chinese traditional garment.

A local resident who saw the display raised the issue, saying it "could cause misunderstanding at a time when China is already attempting to claim hanbok as part of its own traditional dress."

The corporation said it had been conducting a trial run for several days when the transmission error occurred, adding that it had suspended the broadcast and would resume after making corrections.

Corporation President Kim Nam-il said the error occurred during a pre-launch trial run ahead of the Oct. 1 official opening and that a full correction was completed as soon as the mistake was discovered.

"We are deeply aware of the sensitivity of national cultural content and the gravity of this matter," Kim said. "We will strengthen expert pre-screening and conduct thorough final checks to ensure there are no disruptions to the event or official operations."

North Gyeongsang Province, which looked into the matter with the corporation, determined that a substitution error occurred while linking photos, backgrounds and captions for each panel during the trial run, causing the wrong caption to be matched to the wrong image.

The province issued a stern warning to the corporation for neglecting to pre-screen the content — even though the error was technical in nature — given the importance of accurately labeling traditional dress. It also demanded a written account of the incident and said it would step up oversight to ensure the official launch proceeds without issue.

Lee Dong-jin, head of the province's tourism policy division, said the corporation had been instructed to strengthen expert pre-screening and establish a thorough inspection system to prevent a recurrence.


betterj@heraldcorp.com