Decoding Shinsegae chair’s two apologies

Shinsegae Group Chair Chung Yong-jin on Tuesday stood in front of dozens of cameras, bowing in apology to take full responsibility of Starbucks Korea’s recent “Tank Day” marketing controversy.

A week earlier, he released a written apology on May 19, the day after Starbucks Korea had come under fire for slogans that critics linked to the country’s pro-democracy movements in the 1980s.

The overlapping parts in both apologies acknowledged that the incident left a deep scar on the souls and bereaved ...