An image shared on Facebook purportedly shows South Korean President Moon Jae-In on the cover of Time Magazine.

Screenshot/Facebook

Verdict: False

Time Magazine did not run this cover. The image is fabricated.

Fact Check:

The Facebook image allegedly shows Moon on the cover of Time Magazine with the Korean word “naeronambul,” along with its translation: “If they do it, it’s a romance; if others do it, they call it an extramarital affair.” Some South Koreans have used the word “naeronambul” to describe perceived hypocrisy from the president, Reuters reported.

There is no evidence, however, that the Facebook image shows a genuine Time Magazine cover with Moon on it. A search of Time Magazine’s recent covers did not yield any results for the alleged cover. Moon was previously featured on the cover of Time in May 2017, days after he was elected president, but that cover features a different image of Moon as well as a different title.

Through a reverse image search, Check Your Fact found the photo of Moon used for the fake Time cover was published by South Korean outlet Oh My News in April 2014. The photo shows Moon frowning during a National Assembly meeting, according to its caption. (RELATED: Does This Image Show Time Magazine Naming Rachel Levine ‘Woman Of The Year’?)

The use of “naeroanmbul” in the altered Time Magazine cover is likely in reference to a recent increase of disapproval of Moon’s government. Some South Koreans believe the Democratic Party, to which Moon belongs, has been hypocritical, with politicians and government officials being accused of sexual harassment and corruption after the party promised to “clean up” politics in 2017, Reuters reported. The Democratic Party lost mayoral races on April 7 in the cities of Seoul and Busan in what was seen as a rebuke of Moon, according to The New York Times.