President Lee Jae-myung stated that he will further increase direct communication with the public, according to Sung Ki-hong, Senior Presidential Secretary for Public Communication at Cheong Wa Dae.

In a post titled "The President's Communication" shared on X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook, Senior Secretary Sung wrote that on the airplane returning to Seoul after concluding his state visit to Mexico, President Lee stated, "I reflected on myself. Going forward, I must communicate more diligently with the public and engage in more direct communication".

President Lee has recently been significantly expanding direct communication with the public through active social media use.

Sung, who accompanied President Lee on his tour of the United States and Mexico last month, noted, "Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's communication with the public drew attention during the visit to Mexico," mentioning that President Sheinbaum holds "Mañanera," a live-streamed press conference, four days a week at 7:30 a.m., and spends the remaining three days traveling across the country to listen to voices on the ground.

He then cited British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and former U.S. Presidents Barack Obama and Franklin Roosevelt as examples of world leaders who actively use social media.

He also quoted a recent analysis by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism stating that "it is a universal trend for top political leaders around the world to directly communicate with the public through social media, YouTube, podcasts, and live-streaming channels," explaining, "Active communication through new media, including social media, is a natural trend for leaders of democratic nations."

Senior Secretary Sung emphasized, "What is important is not staying on any single platform, but expanding the space for communication to where the people are," adding, "The president's direct communication will also diversify further in that direction".

Sung stressed, "Communication methods also change with the expansion of democracy and the advancement of media," adding, "Approaching where the people are, answering the people's questions, and listening to the people's voices is the essence of direct communication and the realization of democracy".

He further added, "Social media is merely one of many channels for communicating with the public," and "what the president aims for is not simple 'social media politics,' but dialogue that narrows the distance between the public and the president, and communication that lowers the wall between state affairs and the people".

(Photo: Cheong Wa Dae Press Corps, Yonhap News)