Trot singer Hong Jin Young apologized as she admitted that her doctoral dissertation at the Chosun University was plagiarized. She stated, "I will accept the results from the Chosun University and repent deeply. I will acknowledge everything and self-reflect upon it."

In the official apology, she stated she disrespected those who are still preparing their doctoral dissertations day and night. Hong Jin Young also stated that she was afraid that she would never be able to stand on stage. She admitted that she should have acknowledged her faults and should have apologized right away but was quick to make excuses.

Hong Jin Young concluded her apology by saying she will have time to self-reflect and repay the love she has received until now. She claimed that she was being greedy and was trying to achieve something unfitting for her.

Despite her apology, many Korean netizens have turned their back on the Trot singer as they express great disappointment and anger at her attitude and action during the entire controversy.

Previously, Hong Jin Young was suspected of plagiarising her master thesis on trade at the Chosun University after her paper was analyzed by a plagiarism analysis site and resulted in 74% plagiarism.

After the news reports of her plagiarism spread, Hong Jin Young left a message on her social media account saying, "I feel frustrated because anything I say would be seen as excuses when the parts that were of no problem initially is suddenly being seen as plagiarism."

However, The Research and Reconciliation Commission under the Research Ethic Institute of Chosun University tentatively judged that Hong Jin Young's dissertation was plagiarised on December 15th. The graduate school committee asked Hong Jin Young to submit explanatory documents by 5 PM on December 18th. The documents submitted to the graduate school committee will decide whether or not her dissertation was plagiarized.

Korean netizens left comments criticizing Hong Jin Young and her careless actions since the whole ordeal. Netizens commented, "To be honest, I don't understand why celebrities like Hong Jin Young and Nancy Lang are so obsessed about getting a master's degree. If you're a singer, you just need to sing well," "It's scary how she was thinking about finding excuses to keep appearing on broadcasts," "She's so brazen, she's apologizing now after she kept saying she didn't plagiarize," "I hope she doesn't make a comeback, just retire," "Now you're apologizing? You're only worried you might lose the doors to earn money," "I'm very disappointed because everything she said was a lie. I really liked her as a singer," and "I understand you're apologizing for your wrong actions, better late than never but it's too late."