hankyoreh

an online feminist journal.

With the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism seeking to revise the enforcement decree of the Newspaper Act to tighten up the requirements for registering online newspapers, there is growing opposition to the revision on the grounds that it would infringe on freedom of expression and media diversity.

On Aug. 21, the Ministry announced plans to revise the enforcement decree of the Newspaper Act in an attempt to prevent overheated competition, increasing sensationalism, and pseudo-journalistic activity, this last point referring to newspapers running articles that are sponsored by companies.

This revision would replace the current registration requirement for online newspapers, which makes them submit a list of three reporting and editorial staff two of whom must be reporters with one that would force them to prove they have hired five full-time reporting and editorial staff.

Aside from the change in the number of staff, the biggest difference is that online newspapers would have to prove that their staff are employed full-time. Once the public discussion period ends on Oct. 1, the revision will be reviewed by the Regulatory Reform Committee and the Ministry of Government Legislation, after which it is likely to be promulgated by the end of the year.

Newly registered online newspapers will have to satisfy the registration requirements immediately, while already registered online newspapers will be given a grace period of one year to satisfy the new requirements.

On Sep. 21, the North Jeolla Province Citizens' Coalition for Democratic Media and the Jeolla Association of Journalism held an emergency debate about the revision.

The Culture Ministry's revision to the enforcement decree of the Newspaper Act is based on the inaccurate assumption that small newspapers are doing fake or pseudo journalism. I'm concerned that small newspapers that are doing the work of journalism will disappear, said Kim Eun-gyu, a professor at Woosuk University who delivered a presentation during the debate.

The revision to the enforcement decree of the act was promoted on the assumption that minimum regulations are needed for becoming part of the media establishment. If a website isn't able to meet the registration requirements, it can still carry out journalistic activities without registering itself as an internet newspaper, said No Jeom-hwan, head of the ministry department in charge of media policy.

There is little difference aside from the fact that a registered newspaper receives a little more social recognition, No added.

For small internet newspapers, however, it's not quite as simple as that. Aside from social recognition, the question of whether a website is officially recognized as an internet newspaper also has an effect on government aid and on the scope of reporting activity.

For example, take the internet newspaper Arise, which describes itself as a feminist journal. Arise has been recognized for providing an outlet for underrepresented groups such as women and sexual minorities.

Currently, Arise is receiving a subsidy from the Korea Press Foundation that, though small, helps it stay in business. If this newspaper's registration was revoked, it would have to give up this subsidy. It would also face restrictions on a number of activities including conducting interviews at and receiving press releases from companies and government agencies, both local and central, and attending press conferences.

Currently, we have just three full-time editors and reporters. Increasing this to five would be impossible given our finances. The government ought to be supporting small internet newspapers that provide a different viewpoint from the established media, not doing away with them, said Cho Lee Yeo-ul, who both publishes and reports for Arise.

According to a survey by the Association of Internet Reporters, 85% of internet newspapers currently in operation today have less than 100 million won in yearly revenue. Assuming that hiring five full-time employees would cost 90 million won a year (US$76,200), it's quite likely that these internet newspapers would not be able to meet the new registration requirements.

The Culture Ministry believes that the explosion of online newspapers has led to competition for sensationalism and fake reporting. It cites statistics showing a rapid increase in petitions for meditation to the Press Arbitration Commission (PAC) in the area of the internet as reflecting the problems caused by the spread of internet newspapers.

But the Citizens' Coalition for Democratic Media issued a statement disputing these claims. Since fake reporting and competition for sensationalism are more common in the major media, revising the enforcement decree of the Newspaper Act is unlikely to have the effect of correcting the current problems with the internet news market, the statement said.

Aside from expressing one's views, there are few responses that can be made when the government announces it is revising an enforcement decree, and expressing one's views is not enough to stop the process. If the Culture Ministry's current draft of the revision is enacted, we will respond in a number of ways, such as filing a petition with the Constitutional Court, said Do Hyeong-rae, secretary general of the Association of Internet Reporters.

By Choi Won-hyung, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]