In an appearance on YouTube channel 'Lee Seong-mi's Mot Ganda,'

Lee revealed her struggles with illness and money after her broadcast career dried up

Broadcaster Lee Ji-hee. [YouTube channel 'Lee Seong-mi's Mot Ganda']
Broadcaster Lee Ji-hee. [YouTube channel 'Lee Seong-mi's Mot Ganda']

Lee Ji-hee, 54, a broadcaster who was a fixture on radio and television in the 2000s, has drawn wide attention after opening up about her battle with rheumatoid arthritis and financial hardship following the end of her broadcast career.

A video featuring Lee was uploaded Monday to the YouTube channel "Lee Seong-mi's Mot Ganda" under the title "My broadcasting career just stopped one day out of nowhere."

In the video, Lee said she had been in the industry for nearly 30 years, having made her debut in 1997, and that she is no longer doing broadcast work, instead running her own company.

She said her broadcast appearances began tapering off gradually about eight or nine years ago and came to a complete stop three or four years ago.

"Toward the end, even the home shopping channels closed off, and all I had left was one Christian broadcasting slot," she said. "That was barely enough to scrape by — that was the state of my household finances."

Lee said the lean years lasted about seven years. "In the old days I always picked up the tab," she said. "But when friends asked to meet up, I couldn't afford to treat them, so I stopped going out."

She said the hardest period came when her child was in the final year of high school, preparing for university entrance exams, at the height of her financial difficulties.

"I was barely making it month to month, like walking a tightrope, and my child was in the 12th grade wanting to study — but I couldn't afford tutoring or anything like that," she said. She went on to say that her child matured early and decided to study independently, but at some point began watching her reactions carefully. "My child had put some workbooks in a cart — 300,000 won ($224) worth — and hesitated to check out, waiting to see how I'd react. When my child asked me, 'Is it OK to buy these?' it just broke my heart," she said, her eyes welling up.

At the time, Lee was also fighting rheumatoid arthritis. "In the mornings my fingers would be so stiff I wasn't sure I could even fry an egg," she said. "My child would wake up 30 minutes early and cook — spaghetti, fried rice — to relieve stress before heading out. It was the hardest year of my life, but gratitude and hardship existed side by side."

On her illness, she said the pain was severe. "I was in so much pain — for about a year it was truly unbearable. I gained 15 kilograms in a month and was shocked when I looked in the mirror. When it first hit, my thumb and index finger swelled to twice their normal size. I couldn't bend my fingers, couldn't brush my teeth, couldn't use chopsticks and had to eat with a fork. The pain was intense for six months," she said, leaving viewers stunned.

Lee entered broadcasting after winning the grand prize at MBC's Radio Miss DJ Contest in 1997. She went on to work as a reporter and panelist on MBC programs including "Section TV Entertainment News" and "Good Day," and hosted the KBS Radio program "Lee Ji-hee's Night Owl." She also showed her range as a performer, appearing in the drama series "Beautiful Days" and "Phoenix."


jshan@heraldcorp.com