Lee Jong-won Files Complaint Against Kim Min-seok… "Mentioned Party Membership 20 Times"

Lee Jong-won has continuously targeted Newtamsa and reporter Kang Jin-gu through his broadcast. He disparaged Newtamsa as an inconsequential YouTuber and relentlessly criticized them, framing their broadcast as manipulative.

Lee Jong-won criticized Newtamsa and reporter Kang Jin-gu, saying, "Newtamsa's Kang Jin-gu and his one-person group are spouting such nonsense." He tried to portray Newtamsa as a politically motivated organization, attempting to instill distrust in Newtamsa's broadcast content among viewers.

A thumbnail produced by Sisatapa, which labeled Newtamsa as 'manipulative broadcasting,' became controversial. Lee Jong-won denied any connection to Sisatapa, dismissing the claims.

He referred to the phrase 'Kim Min-seok holding hands' on Sisatapa's thumbnail, countering, "They call Sisatapa's broadcast manipulative, but everything I say is a lie. No. Kim Min-seok holding hands. Yes. I haven't even held hands with him yet." This statement is interpreted as his denial of any cooperative relationship with Sisatapa or direct contact with CEO Kim Min-seok, aiming to emphasize that the attacks on Newtamsa are unrelated to him.

Lee Jong-won caused a stir after reports alleged he induced false responses to manipulate the public opinion poll for the party convention. The reports stated that Lee Jong-won instructed voters to give false responses to favor a specific candidate.

In response, CEO Kim Min-seok ordered confirmation of whether Lee Jong-won was a Democratic Party member and an audit. Lee Jong-won filed a complaint, alleging that Kim Min-seok's directive violated the Personal Information Protection Act, which is being interpreted as an attempt to divert attention from his own poll manipulation allegations.

In his complaint, Lee Jong-won stated that he applied charges of violating the Personal Information Protection Act, specifically 'leaking sensitive information,' against CEO Kim Min-seok. He argued that his party membership information is sensitive, and Kim Min-seok, by publicly mentioning it, violated the law.

Furthermore, Lee Jong-won raised an issue with definitive statements made before and after the police investigation related to obstruction of business charges. He emphasized that his live broadcast statements were already public facts, thereby presenting a rebuttal.

It was confirmed that Lee Jong-won mentioned his Democratic Party membership 20 times this year alone. Newtamsa investigated Lee Jong-won's statements from January 1, 2026, to August 30, up to the point Kim Min-seok posted his statement, and uncovered this fact.

This raises controversy over whether information that Lee Jong-won himself has already publicly disclosed can indeed be classified as sensitive information under the Personal Information Protection Act. A rebuttal can be made regarding whether mentioning self-disclosed information can constitute a legal violation.

Videos of Lee Jong-won's statements, in which he revealed himself to be a full member of the Democratic Party 20 times this year alone, have been released. In the videos, Lee Jong-won clearly states, "We are not a specific political force, but full members of the Democratic Party."

He repeatedly emphasized his status as a full member of the Democratic Party, even apologizing to supporters of the Rebuilding Korea Party as a party member. As numerous instances of him publicly declaring his membership have been confirmed, the legitimacy of his complaint against CEO Kim Min-seok is being questioned.

Lee Jong-won reconfirmed his status as a full member of the Democratic Party and refuted allegations of dual party membership. He stated, "I am registered as a full member of the Democratic Party. But if you want to investigate whether I have dual party membership, you shouldn't just investigate the Rebuilding Korea Party; you should investigate if my name is in every political party in South Korea."

He mentioned that he organized candlelight vigils for prosecutorial reform and has been active as a Democratic Party member, arguing that if dual party membership is alleged against him, a full investigation of all political parties in South Korea, not just a specific one, should be conducted.

The sentence structure "만약에 제가 이중당적이냐 아니냐를 조사를 하려면요 (If I were to be investigated for dual party membership)" from Lee Jong-won's statement was analyzed. Although it appears to use a conditional clause, a linguistic analysis suggests it implies a definitive meaning.

This can be interpreted to mean that Lee Jong-won is not speaking conditionally about his party membership, but rather is assuming he is already a member. The importance of context and sentence structure in understanding his true intentions was emphasized.

Lee Jong-won reaffirmed his identity as a Democratic Party member, defining himself as "Not anti-Lee Jae-myung. I am a pro-Democratic Party member." This statement is interpreted as expressing his will to suppress rebellious factions within the party.

He emphasized that he is not merely affiliated with the Democratic Party but is a 'pro-Democratic Party member' who supports the party's mainstream, clearly stating his political stance.

Lee Jong-won stated, "Today, we, in the name of full party members, officially declare a warning against the factional political practices that have caused internal strife within the Democratic Party," revealing a critical view of internal factional politics within the Democratic Party.

He hinted at his ability to raise issues such as budget execution as a party member, emphasizing his active involvement in internal Democratic Party matters.

Lee Jong-won himself revealed through a broadcast that he pays party dues, by disclosing his party dues payment account and payment dates. This is interpreted as his intention to prove that he is diligently fulfilling his duties as a full member of the Democratic Party.

He also mentioned an example of voting authentication as a full member in Jeonbuk, emphasizing his actual participation in party activities as a member. The fact that he has consistently proven his membership in this manner will likely make it difficult for him to avoid criticism that it contradicts his current complaint.

Despite Lee Jong-won himself having stated 20 times that he is a full member of the Democratic Party, he filed a complaint against CEO Kim Min-seok for violating the Personal Information Protection Act by mentioning his party membership information. The Newtamsa host pointed out the contradiction in this claim, stating, "He partially authenticated himself, and it's not just once; our reporter Park Dae-hoon's investigation alone found it 20 times, didn't it?"

Criticism is being raised that claiming 'sensitive information exposure' for information voluntarily disclosed by the individual lacks legal validity. This is likely to be used as key evidence showing that the complaint against CEO Kim Min-seok has weak legal grounds.

The panelists advised Lee Jong-won that the only way to receive a non-custodial investigation is to confess the crime and voluntarily submit his phone. This emphasizes the importance of revealing the truth and being cooperative during the investigation process.

Conversely, they analyzed that denying the crime and adopting an aggressive stance is a direct path to custodial investigation, sending a warning message about Lee Jong-won's current attitude.

Citizen action groups, including the Citizens' Action for Judicial Justice, held a press conference to file a complaint against Sisatapa's Lee Jong-won for habitual false accusation and defamation by false statement. A participant in the press conference stated, "Today, our organization held a press conference to file a complaint against Sisatapa's Lee Jong-won for habitual false accusation and defamation by false statement."

This suggests that Lee Jong-won's complaint against CEO Kim Min-seok could lead to his own charge of false accusation, and that citizen groups have begun to legally challenge his actions.

The panelists explained that the crime of false accusation is established the moment Lee Jong-won submits a false complaint. That is, as stated, "The moment this false complaint is submitted, the crime of false accusation is completed," meaning the criminal act is considered finalized upon submission of the complaint.

They added that even if the complaint is withdrawn, the crime of false accusation itself does not disappear; while withdrawal may be considered for leniency, the criminal act itself does not vanish. This implies that Lee Jong-won may find it difficult to avoid legal responsibility regarding the ongoing complaint.