By Na Jeong-ju
Staff reporter
President Lee Myung-bak has named Hong Sang-pyo, an experienced journalist and now a managing director of the cable news network YTN, as his new senior secretary for public relations, Cheong Wa Dae announced Thursday.
Hong, 53, a native of Boeun, North Chungcheong Province, replaces Lee Dong-kwan, who had been in charge of the presidential office's media relations since Lee's inauguration in early 2008.
The President also tapped Yu Myeong-hee, 56, a researcher at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, as senior officer for national future, a newly created post to deal with the country's long-term vision for science, information technology and "green" growth.
He promoted secretary for message planning Kim Du-woo, 53, to secretary for planning and coordination.
The appointments are part of a sweeping reshuffle of presidential staff as the conservative leader is seeking a turnaround following the ruling Grand National Party's unexpected defeat in the June 2 local elections.
On July 7, Lee reorganized the presidential secretariat in hopes of regaining public confidence in the governing camp. Since then, he has tapped Yim Tae-hee, a three-term GNP lawmaker, as new presidential chief of staff and National Tax Service Commissioner Baek Yong-ho as his policy planning chief.
He also replaced several senior secretaries and will change some more by Sunday to complete the reshuffle, Cheong Wa Dae sources said.
The new senior secretary for public relations, Hong, worked at Yonhap News Agency from 1982 to 1994 before moving to YTN, where he worked as chief of the political, city and international news desks. He studied political science and diplomacy at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul.
Yu, the senior officer for national future, was born in Seoul and has a degree in microbiology from Seoul National University.
She earned a doctorate in microbiology at the University of California, Berkeley.