Saturday, August 18, 2012

Korea-Japan Tension Spills Over into Entertainment and Sport

Japanese satellite TV channel BS Nippon said Wednesday it is canceling Korean soap opera "A Man Called God" starring actor Song Il-gook due to growing anti-Korean sentiment in the island country.

BS Nippon planned to air the first episode on Aug. 21, but canceled it fearing complaints from Japanese viewers as Song participated in a patriotic relay swim to the Dokdo Islets to mark Liberation Day.

Actor Song Il-gook swims across the East Sea on Tuesday in a relay from Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province to Dokdo to mark Liberation Day. /Newsis 
Actor Song Il-gook swims across the East Sea on Tuesday in a relay from Uljin, North Gyeongsang Province to Dokdo to mark Liberation Day. /Newsis
Song became popular in Japan thanks to the success of TV series "Jumong."

Meanwhile, the Sankei Shimbun reported that Japanese professional football team Shimizu drew angry phone calls from fans when it announced on Tuesday that it acquired Korean Olympic squad forward Kim Hyun-sung on a short-term loan until January next year.

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