ED President and press

Suppressing critical media regresses nation

A week ago, prosecutors raided the home of the head of Newstapa, an online news site.

The raid was triggered by the investigative media outlet’s reporting of an alleged fake interview in 2021. The government believed the reporting was carried out to discredit the then-opposition presidential candidate, Yoon Suk Yeol.

It was the second search and seizure of the investigative media company in the last three months. In September, prosecutors also raided three broadcasters who reported on the issue by quoting Newstapa.

Verifying a presidential candidate’s qualifications is a basic duty of the media. The online paper may or may not have been used by people with political intentions, but the facts of this case are not yet complete. Still, the governing camp accused the media outlet of defaming the president. The head of the ruling party called it election rigging and “treason punishable by death.”

Korea is not the scene of a raging battle, but journalism has become a life-or-death job here it appears.

Yoon vowed to better communicate with the public through the media when he took office 19 months ago. That was also the reason, at least ostensibly, for moving the presidential office from Cheong Wa Dae to the former defense ministry. However, it has been more than a year since the president has taken questions from reporters. He has not held news conferences or met journalists upon arriving at the office daily even though he initially promised that he would.

The “diplomatic” president has had interviews mainly with U.S., U.K. and Japanese newspapers or broadcasters before embarking on foreign tours. The only Korean media outlet enjoying that privilege was the hard-right Chosun Ilbo. Instead, Yoon made “direct” communication with the public through well-choreographed town hall meetings or live telecasts of his opening remarks at cabinet meetings. Former presidents held yearly press conferences, mainly prearranged ones. Yoon avoids even that.

Nobody likes to be criticized, but elected officials cannot evade criticism. Even the media-averse Donald Trump has appeared on CNN, his fiercest critic, even if just for political purposes. Unfortunately, it appears highly unlikely for Yoon to give an interview to any of the left-leaning media outlets in Korea in any scenario. He seems to think of the media as a mechanical message conveyor.

The former U.S. leader termed critical or unfriendly news as fake news. We hope Yoon’s frequent mentioning of fake news does not harbor such intentions.

Recently, the chief executive nominated former senior prosecutor Kim Hong-il to head the Korea Communications Commission, a broadcasting watchdog. Kim reportedly was Yoon’s most respected prosecutor and effectively fought crimes. Still, Kim has no experience in media affairs, let alone broadcasting. One can’t help but wonder if the president thinks many potential criminals reside at broadcasting stations.

Even right-wing dailies, including Chosun, are urging Yoon to rethink and withdraw his nomination for the head of the commission. The president has yet to make his next move. If Yoon pushes ahead with his decision, he won’t be able to avoid isolation.

Most Koreans know all this is related to the parliamentary elections next April. Even as legacy media's influence declines, terrestrial broadcasters still exert considerable influence, especially in tight elections. If that is why Yoon is appointing his former boss as his broadcasting czar for at least the next four months, he must think twice.

That will lead the ruling party – and the president – to an irrecoverable defeat in the remaining years.

Political scientists say Yoon has ample reason for wanting a victory in the general elections, given his unpopular policies and low approval rating. Some say a big defeat could even paralyze his administrative ability.

A different scenario is possible only if Yoon changes his mind and does the opposite. The president could tell prosecutors to stop harassing critical journalists, designate a new broadcasting czar and hold a news conference on New Year’s Day. These will save the governing party, firm up his presidency and ensure smoother state administration.

And that is not a tall order in a normal democracy.