Founding Father or National Traitor? Contested Memories of Syngman Rhee in Mid-1990s South Korea.

This article examines the contested memory of Syngman Rhee, the first president of South Korea, in the mid-1990s. It discusses the divided nature of South Korean society and the struggle between conservatives and progressives in shaping the country's cultural memory. The text explores the attempts by conservative scholars and mass media to revise the memory of Rhee, leading to historical disputes and increased polarization. It also discusses the role of mass media in shaping collective memory and the influence of journalists' routines and social memory on their reporting. The article highlights the highly ideologically polarized media landscape in post-authoritarian South Korea, with conservative media conglomerates representing the old ruling elite and progressive media outlets representing the progressive perspective. The text also discusses the negative memory of Rhee until the 1990s and the calls for a re-evaluation of his legacy that emerged in the early 1990s. It mentions the efforts by Chosun Ilbo, a conservative newspaper, to revise the cultural memory of Rhee in 1995, presenting him as the "father of the nation." The text also explores the re-evaluation of Rhee through an exhibition and writings by Lee Han-u, which aimed to challenge the negative perception of Rhee and present him as a realist leader who played a crucial role in establishing a modern nation-state. However, it acknowledges that Lee's account omits certain events and simplifies the complex political situation of the liberation period. The article discusses the controversy surrounding the re [Extracted from the article]