Naver's response to the Vandom letter?

On Wednesday, the Korea Times reported on Andrea Vandom's letter to NHN regarding Anti-English Spectrum:

Korea's No.1 Web portal Naver has started to look into a letter of complaint from a foreign English lecturer over a blog that many Western English teachers called "xenophobic." NHN, the operator of Naver.com told The Korea Times Wednesday they were examining whether the blog "Anti-English Spectrum" posted material that violated the company's user agreement. [...]

While looking into the case, the Naver operator made it clear that the company is free from any kind of valuation. "For example, if somebody posts that you are a molester and you want to delete the posting. Then, we can remove it, even if you really are a molester," said Won Yoo-sik, a spokesman for the company. "Also, if the poster writer is unhappy with this and requests us to restore the posting, we could do so."

He noted that group complaints would carry more weight, adding in this case an individual complained about posts regarding native English teachers, and said he was unsure whether the company would do something in response.

So the spokesman "noted that group complaints would carry more weight," which seems like a suggestion to me.

Suddenly, a day later, the Korea Times, in a classic Kang Shin-who article, tells us that "Naver has rejected a request by native English teachers to remove what they call derogatory and racial postings on a blog known as the “Anti-English Spectrum.”

The money quote:

“Our monitoring team examined cases stipulated in the request and concluded that Andrea Vandom’s claim doesn’t merit any corrective action,” said Kim Hyun-chang, Naver’s PR official.

The article features crowing by Anti-English Spectrum, testiness from ATEK, a smiling picture of NHN's CEO which is hard to interpret as anything but a taunt from the KT, and this bizarre ending:

Meanwhile, immigration authorities tried to summon Vandom, who refused to undergo an HIV test but still got her E-2 visa extended through a mistake made by a Suwon visa official. Kim Kwang-tae, an official in charge of the case at the Suwon Immigration Office, said Vandom was still being sought, adding that her visa status was no longer valid. Last January, Vandom filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court against E-2 visa regulations that require English teacher applicants to undergo AIDS/HIV and drug tests.

Benjamin Wagner was contacted for his opinion, but refused to give a quote for the article unless he was given a concrete statement from Naver to comment on - which he wasn't.

Keep in mind the article was written by a reporter who has persisted in writing articles pushing a certain angle even after being corrected, and most recently was said to have misquoted the president of Seoul National University of Education.

Benjamin Wagner commented on another post and what he said is worth repeating. In response to a comment saying, "Naver just told all of us to screw off," he replies:

I don't think that is the case. I think that's the reaction that the KT and Kang Shin Who is trying to provoke.

In fact Naver has acknowledged that content is racially discriminatory. And has said directly that group complaints would help to motivate Naver to do more (hardly surprising).

Foreigners should avoid being baited and provoked by the KT. They should be the ones who decide the proper outcome of this issue, not Kang who spends 15 minutes on a fake article.

Foreign English teachers aren't the only ones the KT and Kang Shin Who are trying to provoke.

Notice that the article marks Vandom as a fugitive who is "still being sought" with a "visa status...no longer valid." (Even though the letter says she is a UC Ph.D student currently living in California.) Notice also that KT and Kang Shin Who posted Vandom's photo (stolen from another article without permission) on the first Naver article that was printed in the papers. Keep in mind that this is all about a group that stalks foreigners.

What you have is encouragement for Vandom (who is "still being sought" by Immigration) to be tracked and found since immigration can't do it - this is where AES has their expertise.

He continued:

You have to remember where that quote was filtered through. This is a paper that starts out with the goal of writing a story that says "foreigners bring another meritless claim."

The same thing was said when Vandom refused to take the AIDS & drugs tests. First, MOJ said "she did indeed submit them, and that's why she got a visa." Then it was proved she didn't and they changed their story to "these tests are completely legitimate and there is absolutely no basis for challenging them." Then a public interest law firm took the case (obviously some merit). Then the Constitutional Court took the case - and they certainly could have refused it. So merit clearly established. Next, the MOJ says we are repealing the AIDS ban for foreigners, but we will wait to see if the Court says E-2 visa are discriminatory.

The whole time the KT was on the side of whoever said the claims were meritless. That's the fixed story: "foreigners make trouble for no damn good reason." That's what you will continue to see.

And now this article. As for that exact quote: "Our monitoring team examined cases stipulated in the request and concluded that Andrea Vandom’s claim doesn’t merit any corrective action."

Are we sure that's what was even said? Goodness knows the KT has had scores of other completely false quotes. Besides we have another extremely well researched article (as opposed to the KT spot piece) where a Naver official says "in this case 'black pig' is definitely a racist comment."

Now that's a quote with some specificity. Contrast that with the KT quote from Naver - assuming that it's even accurate (which is strongly in doubt) what does "cases stipulated in the request" really mean?

Does that mean Naver thinks its alright to say foreigners have AIDS and are actively targeting Korean children to infect them? Of course it doesn't. Those posts will be pulled, in fact are being pulled right now. Same as the "black pig[s]" comment.

But the KT doesn't want to report that and naturally NHN would like to avoid a controversy. So what you get is the manufactured quote we have.

As I said before:

Foreigners should avoid being baited and provoked by the KT. They should be the ones who decide the proper outcome of this issue, not Kang who spends 15 minutes on a fake article.

I suppose contacting Naver - for clarification or to lodge a further complaint against AES (as a group?) - would be helpful, as would checking to see if the problematic posts are still up. Would it really be surprising if the recommendations are quietly being carried out while the KT paints a picture of uppity foreigners being put in their place by Naver and a victorious Anti-English Spectrum?

On a related note, the photo of the building below in the Mok-dong area was recently posted on Anti-English Spectrum as the location of a teacher being 'pursued'.