It's Not Nice to Fool South Korea

Dibs is on the road this week, but she sent me an advance copy of her latest contribution: Enjoy!

Tempers are flaring in South Korea right now because a wildly popular and perky TV and radio personality, Jung Ji-young—although credited with translating a wildly popular self-help book from English, which sold over a million copies between November 2005 and August 2006—is now being accused of lying. Her famous name was allegedly a ploy on the part of the publisher to create an instant bestseller while some poor schlub did the actual work. "An unnamed professional translator told an Internet newspaper on Wednesday he signed a contract to translate the book in mid-August last year on condition that it would be published under someone else’s name," reports the Korean daily Chosun Ilbo. "He handed in the translation in early September. The translator did not know whose name would grace his work. 'The publishers told me they spent as much as US$120,000 on the copyright and that they need to use a high-profile person as a nominal translator for marketing purposes,' he said." Jung actively promoted the book, even doing signings which attracted huge crowds.

You're wondering what this book was, right? Don’t Eat the Marshmallow ... Yet! by Joachim de Posada and Ellen Singer: a guide to finding "sweet success in work and life" (that's from the subtitle) via delayed gratification. The title derives from a Stanford University study in which children were given marshmallows and told that if they held off on eating the treats, they would be given more marshmallows later as rewards. De Posada is a motivational speaker whose consultation clients include the Milwaukee Bucks, the Los Angeles Lakers, Panamanian Olympic teams, Verizon, Pfizer, Kodak, Xerox, 3M, and Continental Airlines. Singer is the author of a memoir, Quicksand: One Woman's Escape from the Husband Who Stalked Her. According to Korea’s JoongAng Daily: "The publishers, The Korea Economic Daily and Business Publications, in a press release Thursday said Jung 'participated' in translating the book... 'It was the first time Jung has translated a book, and to ensure the book’s quality we asked another professional to translate it.'... [The publisher] apologized for not being entirely upfront." To make amends, Jung will be donating her profits from the "translation" to charity.