Actress Kim thrives on plagiarism crisis

Kim Hye-soo Actress

By Oh Young-jin

Three celebrities were recently caught for plagiarizing their Master’s theses.

Two were yanked from their television program but one not only survived but received extra kudos for the way she handled herself.

The survivor is Kim Hye-soo, a heartthrob that is awed by half of the male audience for her beauty and goddess-like physique and respected by the other for her smartness, if said with a degree of hyperbole.

The two dropouts are Kim Mi-hwa, a comedian-turned-socially conscious shock jock, and Kim Mi-kung, who has turned into one of the hottest stocks on the cable TV circuit for her pep talk shows.

Under the snobbish rule to evaluate one by one’s physical beauty, the two can’t hold a candle to the goddess-like actress.

Because of this striking difference between Kim and the two other Kims, one would simply believe that the actress got away unscathed from the same “crimes” she committed as those by the two because she is pretty.

The mundane saying goes, “One can get away with murder, if she (or he, to be politically correct) is pretty.”

With the least intention of advocating or condoning plagiarism, it is worth looking at the whole brouhaha from a risk-managing perspective.

One experienced risk manager objected to the simplistic verdict.

“Actress Kim trumped the other Kims in handling herself after it was made public that she plagiarized her thesis, which has made the difference,” he said.

As a matter of fact, the actress immediately issued a statement admitting to plagiarism. Then, on the next available occasion to meet the media, which came with the introduction of her new drama, she bowed her head in apology. Then, she returned her Master’s degree.

According to some reports, she received a round of applause in the news conference for her courage and cool manner in dealing with something that could be a career-breaking scandal for others.

Her new drama is expected to start as scheduled.

In contrast, the comedian vehemently denied that she plagiarized, saying, “If someone accuses me of stealing anothers’ studies, they should provide evidence that is systematically and scientifically relevant.”

“It is an attempt to defame me,” she was quoted as saying.

The pep talk artist reacted similarly, claiming that she was the victim of unfair treatment by the media.

“This is a classical case of risk management that showed how diametrically different the results can be, depending on one’s reaction to the same challenge,” the risk management official said. “Actress Kim has not just better looks but better brains over the other two, if you excuse my directness.”