South Korean broadcasters busted for US beef report

The five employees of South Korean broadcaster MBC were told to publicly apologise for biased reports about the dangers of US beef consumption, and step down from their jobs, according to Korean news agency Yonhap.

The Korean channel aired the reports last summer during a period of street protests over the government's decision to lift its ban on US beef imports.

The reports allegedly contained ''seemingly deliberate mistranslations'' that led viewers to believe they faced a major threat from bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease, Yonhap said.

Quoting a statement released by the President's office, Yonhap said the office learnt that producers had intentionally altered facts with ill intention.

Prosecutors also called the reports ''biased'' and ''distorted'', and the South Korean government was criticised for publicly supporting the prosecutors before the court proceedings were completed.