‘Semiconductor citizen reporter’ Lee Bong-ryeol claims Samsung pressured his employer

A serious allegation has emerged from the South Korean tech scene, with semiconductor expert and Ohmynews citizen journalist Lee Bong-ryeol accusing Samsung Electronics of pressuring his former employer to stifle his critical commentary. Lee claims that Samsung directly contacted his previous company, STM in Singapore, to protest his writings that were critical of the tech giant and its chairman, Lee Jae-yong.

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Samsung should have spoken directly to me if they had complaints, not pressured the company I worked for to silence me. Isn't that despicable?

According to Lee, STM initially demanded he cease publishing such articles, even threatening termination. Although the company later retracted the termination threat after legal review, they insisted he stop writing. Lee states that STM cited potential damage to their business relationship with Samsung, a major client, as the reason for this pressure. Ultimately, Lee resigned from STM in March, citing his desire not to harm his company, though he felt Samsung's approach was "despicable" for attempting to silence him through his employer rather than engaging directly.

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It's unthinkable. How can we contact another company and ask them to take action against their employee? We have checked internally and there was absolutely no such request made to STM.

Samsung Electronics has vehemently denied these claims, with a spokesperson stating that it is "unthinkable" to contact another company to request action against its employee and asserting that no such request was made to STM. STM Korea's PR representative also stated that no such request was made to their Korean branch and that they would investigate the matter concerning STM Singapore. This incident highlights the intense scrutiny and potential pressures faced by individuals who publicly critique powerful corporations in South Korea, particularly those with significant global influence like Samsung.

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No such request was made to STM Korea. We will investigate whether such a request was made to STM Singapore.