February 13, 2026 – South Korea Headlines

Story gist: People Power Party member Jang Dong-hyuk notified one hour before a scheduled presidential lunch that he would not attend, disrupting a planned dialogue. The action drew criticism from within his own party.

Bias summary: Left-leaning Hankyoreh emphasizes PPP internal criticism of Jang using emotional quotes like ‘self-loathing’ for disrupting president’s dialogue. Center Daum reports factually on Jang’s last-minute unilateral non-attendance notice. Right-leaning Chosun editorial frames it as broader bipartisan failure, criticizing unilateral processing of major bills after inviting cross-party meetings, implying opposition fault.

Story gist: South Korea’s Democratic Party launched a parliamentary group titled ‘Lee President Indictment Cancellation Meeting’ with 87 lawmakers participating, over half of its members. The group started a ‘반정청래’ campaign.

Bias summary: Left-leaning Hankyoreh uses the group’s self-chosen name, emphasizes over half participation and full-scale campaign launch positively. Center KBS neutrally reports 87 lawmakers and plans for ‘fabricated indictment’ national probe, naming Lee Jae-myung explicitly. Right-leaning Dong-A Ilbo frames it as ‘anti-prosecution’ faction launch with 87 participants, using mocking ‘Lee President’ label.

Story gist: The Democratic Party’s ethics committee issued a warning to lawmaker Choi Min-hee for receiving congratulatory money for her daughter’s wedding during the parliamentary audit period, citing violation of duty to maintain dignity. It ordered further investigation into lawmaker Jang Kyung-tae.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like Hankyoreh emphasize the mild ‘warning’ as light discipline during audit period. Center sources like KBS neutrally report the warning and additional probe for both. Right-leaning International Newspaper uses stronger ‘reprimand’ term, quotes violation, and labels Democratic Party’s committee as ‘ruling party’ (與), heightening criticism of opposition misconduct.

Story gist: A South Korean court sentenced Lee Sang-min to seven years in prison. The ruling deemed power and water cuts as acts of participating in an insurrection.

Bias summary: Left-leaning MBC emphasizes the court’s dismissal of a former judge’s excuses, highlighting that even average legal sense recognized martial law’s illegality, with a tone of vindication. Center Yonhap questions sentencing disparities—23 years for Han Duck-soo versus 7 for Lee Sang-min despite similar prosecution requests—focusing on inconsistency. Right-leaning Chosun reports factually with the court’s strong insurrection language, stressing conviction severity without omissions.

Story gist: Coupang denied claims mentioning disclosure of a list of 3,000 adult product buyers. A joint public-private investigation refuted Coupang’s assertion of 2,609 omitted cases as untrue, amid reports of a leaker threatening Coupang for money with the list.

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets absent, omitting progressive perspectives. Center coverage via government Policy Briefing framed as official refutation of Coupang’s omission claims in neutral, explanatory tone. Right-leaning Chosun Ilbo emphasized scandal, highlighting blackmailer demanding money with the adult buyers list to stress corporate vulnerability and threat.