CJ ENM Apologizes For Rehiring PD Ahn Joon Young Of "Produce 101" Series

CJ ENM has officially apologized for the rehiring of Producing Director (PD) Ahn Joon Young, who served a prison term for voting manipulation in Mnet’s “Produce 101” series.

On April 5, CJ ENM apologized for PD Ahn Joon Young’s re-employment via an official press release.

Read the full statement below:

We sincerely apologize to all those who were disappointed with Mnet’s hiring for an experienced employee position.

The decision to hire PD Ahn Joon Young was an inexcusable wrong decision. The decision to give him a second chance to make up for his past wrongs did not meet society’s expectations regarding fairness.

We would like to express our apologies to the many people who love Mnet and to the executives and staff members who have been silently working hard with the pride of being [part of] the best company in the creative content industry.

Over the past four years, our company established a voting management system that is separate from production in order to improve the fairness of audition programs. In addition, we have increased the transparency of the production process by strengthening the monitoring system and operating the Viewer Committee.

Nevertheless, we humbly accept what we were lacking in relation to the recruitment standards and will promptly supplement the problems revealed this time to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

We ask for your continued encouragement and reprimand for our efforts to achieve fairness and restore trust. We deeply reflect on the fact that we have disappointed many people through this incident and once again bow our heads in apology.

Previously, PD Ahn Joon Young and Chief Producer Kim Yong Bum were suspected of manipulating viewers’ votes for all four seasons of the “Produce 101” series. Ahn Joon Young was also under suspicion of receiving money from entertainment agency representatives at an adult entertainment bar.

In late May 2020, Ahn Joon Young received a prison sentence of two years as well as a fine of 36 million won (approximately $27,346) in his first trial over the case. In June 2020, Ahn Joon Young appealed against the ruling but was found guilty at both the first and second trials, and the case went to the Supreme Court. In the end, the Supreme Court upheld the original sentence. Ahn Joon Young was released from prison in late November 2021.

While the press release does not mention PD Ahn Joon Young’s future whereabouts, a source from Mnet reportedly shared that his return is still being discussed.

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