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Ex-lawmaker's comeback as news anchor provokes ire
By Jun Ji-hye
Yoo Jung-hyun
By Jun Ji-hye
Former ruling party first-term lawmaker Yoo Jung-hyun’s comeback as the host of a cable news program has aroused questions over the fairness and neutrality of news reports.
Yoo, who failed to get reelected in the 2012 general elections, began hosting “MBN News 8,” Saturday.
“I returned to the news program after a 10-year hiatus,” Yoo was quoted as saying by cable news network MBN. “I have mixed feelings as it is my first time as the main anchor. I will do my best to deliver news to the middle-aged, the main viewers of the program.”
Yoo worked as an announcer at SBS for five years from 1993 and then as a freelance announcer until he started his political career in 2007. He began as a member of the election campaigning camp for former President Lee Myung-bak of the Grand National Party (GNP), now the ruling Saenuri Party.
He was soon elected lawmaker of Seoul’s Jungnang district under the banner of the GNP in the 2008 general election.
Critics are calling into question whether a former governing party member is able to be fair and just as a news caster.
Journalist-turned-political analyst Lee Kang-yun said, “Yoo served as a lawmaker of the ruling party. Given that he failed to be reelected, he is probably looking to run in another one. Taking this into consideration, it is almost impossible for him to maintain neutrality as a news anchor.”
In fact, this is not the first time that a former ruling party member has joined a news or other talk program at “conservative” channels, which are often mired in controversy over their right-wing inclinations.
The four general programming cable channels ― TV Chosun, Channel A, JTBC and MBN ― are run by the nation’s top conservative dailies: Chosun Ilbo, Dong-A Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo and Maeil Business Newspaper, respectively. They were launched in 2011 thanks to what critics say were privileges granted by the Lee administration.
Lee Yoon-sung, who had hosted MBN News 8 before Yoo, was also a former four-term lawmaker for the GNP. Former GNP lawmakers ― Shin Ji-ho, Jin Sung-ho and Ahn Hyung-hwan ― have been appearing on talks shows on political issues, broadcast by TV Chosun, Channel A and JTBC, respectively.
“Such former politicians are probably using conservative cable channels to pave the way for getting publicity, which will help them return to politics,” analyst Lee said. “Some utilize such programs to improve their damaged image. It is a matter of course that viewers cast doubt over the fairness and neutrality of such programs.”
Lee cited the case of former GNP lawmaker Kang Yong-seok, who became a “public enemy” in 2010 after making sexist remarks to female collegians who wanted to become TV announcers. Kang’s public image, however, has been considerably improved after his appearances on various cable programs where he displayed his knowledgeable discourse.
An official from the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, who asked not to be named, noted, “Frequent recruitment of former governing party members by cable news programs will eventually aggravate a back-scratching alliance between the political circle and the press, which is not good for the nation.”
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