New KBS chief faces backlash from union, opposition party

KBS’ new President and CEO Park Min holds a press conference at KBS Art Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

New head accused of suppressing press; union poised to take legal action

By Jun Ji-hye

The new chief of the country’s largest public broadcaster KBS has been accused of suppressing freedom of speech, as one of the first things he did on his first day in office was dismissing a presenter of the broadcaster’s main news program and removing current affairs programs criticized by the conservative ruling People’s Power Party of being biased.

Park Min, KBS’ new president and CEO recommended unilaterally by conservative members of the broadcaster’s board and approved by President Yoon Suk Yeol, was appointed to the position on Monday.

Park was formerly an editorial writer at the Munhwa Ilbo daily and had no experience in broadcasting. Because of this, his appointment provoked criticism that someone higher up has pulled strings.

On his first day on the job, Park sacked Lee So-jung, the main anchor on “KBS News 9,” as well as left-wing journalist Joo Jin-woo, the host of the current affairs radio talk show “Joo Jin-woo Live.”

Park also removed current affairs TV show “The Live” from its broadcast schedule.

Due to the suddenness of the decisions, Lee, who had been on the news program for the last four years, and Joo, who had hosted the radio talk show for the past three years, were not given the opportunity to make their farewells to their viewers and listeners.

On Tuesday, Park held a press conference and tried to explain his actions, saying the company lost public trust due to its “unfair and biased reporting” during the tenure of his predecessor.

“I sincerely apologize for the loss of trust by undermining fairness, which is a core value of a public broadcaster,” Park said, noting that there have been consistent controversies over biased reporting by several TV and radio programs over the past several years.

“There have been some cases, in which presenters sided unilaterally with a certain side and invited guests with a certain political orientation,” Park said.

But the motives of Park’s actions were still questioned by many, including the broadcaster’s union and the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea as well as some viewers, as the governing party has repeatedly accused the programs and presenters affected by his decision of lacking objectivity.

Besides removing the programs and presenters, Park also appointed about 70 executive- and director-level officials on his first day in office. Many of them had sided with the presidential office in a conflict in September last year between the office and local broadcaster MBC, in which a hot mic recorded President Yoon talking about U.S. Congress and President Joe Biden during his trip to New York.

Members of the KBS branch of the National Union of Media Workers call on KBS’ new President and CEO Park Min to step down in front of KBS Art Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

Joo called Park's action taken so quickly after beginning the job a “typical and contemptible attempt to suppress the press.”

“I thought this day would come, but I never thought it would come this suddenly and thuggishly,” Joo said during his appearance on an MBC radio program. “At least the company should have given me an opportunity to say farewell to my listeners.”

He denied the accusation that his radio talk show was politically biased, saying “One shouldn’t say a program is biased simply because it is sometimes critical of the government and the ruling party.”

Some viewers of “The Live” also expressed their anger over the program’s removal on its official website and YouTube channel.

One viewer wrote, “Is a program removed simply because a CEO orders so? The broadcaster has gone way too far. I really enjoyed watching this program. Now, I lost one of the joys of my life.”

The KBS branch of the National Union of Media Workers said Park, from day one, violated a collective agreement as well as rules concerning the broadcast schedule. It claimed that the broadcaster removed “The Live” from its broadcast schedule without any consultation with the production staff and that the company notified Lee and Joo abruptly of their dismissal.

“These actions also appear to be in violation of the Broadcast Act, which guarantees freedom and independence of the broadcast schedule and stipulates that nobody can interfere in such affairs,” the union said in a statement, noting that it will take legal actions against Park and those who helped him.

The main opposition party joined the criticism, saying the Yoon administration “began operating a scenario to conquer the press.”

Reps. Jo Seoung-rae, Min Hyung-bae, Ko Min-jung and Heo Suk-jeong, who belong to the National Assembly’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee, said President Yoon left a blemish on the history of the public broadcaster by approving Park’s appointment.

“The Yoon government should abandon its desire to conquer the press and listen to the voices of the public before it is too late,” the four lawmakers said in a statement.