Broadcaster Lee Hwi-jae succeeded in drawing attention with his return after four years, but the situation since then has not been favorable. Public opinion remained chilly, and KBS, which opened the possibility of his return, has been taking heavy criticism.
Lee Hwi-jae appeared and performed on KBS2's Immortal Songs special "2026 entertainment industry king of singers" that aired on the 28th of last month and the 4th.
Lee Hwi-jae's return to broadcasting comes about four years after MBN's Battle in the Box ended in January 2022. Living in Canada with his wife and twins and having been caught up in immigration and retirement rumors, the mere news of his return after four years sent the entertainment industry into a stir.
Speculation arose that his return after four years was due to his twin sons' enrollment in international schools, and while colleagues in the entertainment industry such as Yoon Hyung-bin and Sayuri defended Lee Hwi-jae amid debate, the two-week '2026 entertainment industry king of singers' special concluded after Lee Hwi-jae's stage and dressing room talk were shown.
But the reaction was not good. Subtitles and the MCs' actions that seemed to pave the way for Lee Hwi-jae's return drew scowls. Immortal Songs appeared to try to fabricate forced emotion by giving Lee Hwi-jae's return a narrative, and when the dressing room atmosphere became chaotic, opinions said Kim Joon-hyun asking Lee Hwi-jae for help and tidying up seemed contrived.
Episodes 749 (4.8%) and 750 (4.7%) of Immortal Songs, which Lee Hwi-jae appeared on, remained in the 4% range. This contrasts with the upward trend it showed with 6.4% and 6.1% (Nielsen Korea nationwide) on the broadcasts of Feb. 21 and Feb. 28, respectively. KBS, which booked Lee Hwi-jae and attracted attention with his appearance and recording, ended up losing both justification and practical gain with the contrary report card.
The backlash did not end there and is ongoing. Ratings that fell to the 4% range after Lee Hwi-jae's appearance plunged further to 3.8% on episode 751, which aired on the 11th. Especially on Immortal Songs' website, fierce protests from viewers angered over Lee Hwi-jae's booking and broadcast content have continued. Protest posts such as Why must you make Lee Hwi-jae appear?, I don't want to watch because of Lee Hwi-jae, and Was there really no one else to book? have been posted almost daily.
Public opinion toward Lee Hwi-jae has gone from chilly to cold. Recently, a post about Lee Hwi-jae was published on a Canadian expatriate bulletin board, and an expatriate surnamed A who said they spotted Lee Hwi-jae in Vancouver said, Aren't you Mr. Lee Hwi-jae? but reported feeling ignored and receiving a look that was unpleasant enough to cause discomfort. Another expatriate made a similar claim, saying I didn't hear good things about him locally, and additional sighting reports followed in the comment section, saying he was spotted at specific local shopping malls.
Negative public opinion about Lee Hwi-jae is not the only view. Because he did not commit a crime, responses urging people to wait rather than condemn him simply for attempting a return are not hard to find. Regarding the Canada sightings, some said that sudden approaches, even by citizens and fans, could have been startling and that judging based on fragmentary information would be inappropriate.
Through Immortal Songs, Lee Hwi-jae said he used the past four years to reflect on his mistakes. Having looked back on his actions and mistakes, he must have painfully realized that only a changed self can turn public opinion. Attention is focused on whether Lee Hwi-jae can overcome the cold public sentiment and once again connect with viewers as a broadcaster.
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