KBS Reporters, PDs to Boycott Production
By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
Program directors (PDs) and reporters of KBS are threatening to boycott production of all the station's programs to protest the recent dismissal of workers who opposed the appointment of Lee Byung-soon as head of the broadcaster.
KBS reporters and PDs said Monday that they have decided to boycott production unless the company rescinds the punishment. They will soon have their union members vote on whether to take collective action and decide later on when to start it.
The decision came after the broadcaster dismissed a PD and two reporters who were co-leaders of a group, separate from the KBS union, last week. The group opposed the dismissal of former head Jung Yun-joo and the appointment of Lee by President Lee Myung-bak, claiming the President handpicked a figure favorable to the government, thus compromising the political neutrality of KBS.
KBS said they dismissed them not because they opposed the chief but because they interfered with a board of directors meeting in August when it attempted to dismiss Jung.
The reporters' and PDs' associations, together with the broadcaster's union, said they will fight to reverse what they called unfair punishment, saying the company had proclaimed an all-out war against them. They held a rally at the KBS building in Yeouido, Seoul, with some 700 members participating.