No. 151 / Apr 19, 2021
The controversy surrounding Jung Min-seok, a professor of anatomy at School of Medicine at the Ajou University, began with a post he had written himself. He made a tweet about his son becoming an assistant professor at the age of 31 after receiving a doctorate in medicine. In particular, he boasted that his son received a doctorate in medicine with his support. He also said his son was listed as a co-author of his neuroanatomy textbook, adding that he had already made his name known in the world even before becoming an assistant professor. However, this excessive bragging eventually caused the opposite effect. Controversy over whether his son became an assistant professor through “Daddy Chance” spread across various online communities. In fact, 19 out of 34 articles in his son’s academic journals were co-written by Professor Jung, according to the Academic Research Information Service.
Professor Jung later deleted the post related to his son. However, the dispute over the father and son is unlikely to end soon. Additionally, it was confirmed that government research funds were provided to his two sons. The total amount of money paid over the course of 10 years exceeded KRW 100 million. Soon after, another controversy emerged over a number of his cartoons. Professor Jung is also known as the “Cartoonist doctor” who draws medical cartoons to make anatomy easier to understand. The main problematic cartoons, Mr. Harang’s Diary, have been periodically published over 200 times in medical clinics, web magazines, and media companies for more than 6 years. In his cartoons, he referred to a curvaceous woman as feast for the eyes, and did not hesitate to criticize women for their physical appearance. The Ajou University Medical Center has accordingly set up a committee to conduct an investigation. There has already been a signature campaign among Ajou University students in their online community. Needless to say, an in-depth investigation is required to reveal the truth.
By Kim Si-eun, AG Reporter
monica1522@ajou.ac.kr
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