hankyoreh

Nov. 29. (Photo by Ryu Woo-jong)　

The Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo, Dong-A Ilbo, and Maeil Business Newspaper are holding a joint event today to celebrate as their general programming networks go on the air. So begins a new era that will see these conservative networks, the product of all sorts of special privileges and irregularities, laying waste to the media market. It is a crisis for the media, as well as a serious crisis for South Korean democracy.

The arrival of the new networks means much more than just a few extra channels on television. It means that conservative political figures and media clans have launched an effort to solidly entrench their interests in the media market. That the aim of the alliance is to guard the profits of the one percent of reactionary interests and elect another conservative administration through seizure of the media is evident from the actions of the ruling party and general programming networks to date.

After the Lee Myung-bak government’s 2009 railroading of media legislation, permission was granted in late 2010 for the launch of the general programming networks, with no consideration at all given to viewer demand and advertising market conditions. Meanwhile, the Korea Communications Commission (KCC), under Chairman Choi See-joong, did the dirty work of offering the new networks special privileges through all kinds of underhanded maneuvering.

Listing all of the benefits offered is itself a tall order: must-carry regulations for the general programmers’ content, pressure on cable system operators to assign golden channels, permission for direct advertising sales and in-program advertising, and relaxation of rules on production and programming ratios. The result of this was a set of “broadcasting behemoths” without precedent anywhere else on the planet, enjoying more perks than terrestrial networks despite being aired on cable.

The Lee government’s aims in launching the general programming era are clear: to strengthen ties with the conservative media clans who were de facto partners in getting Lee elected president in 2007, and to get conservatives elected in next year’s general and presidential elections by establishing a completely and utterly conservative media environment. After repeated efforts to enter broadcasting amid changes in the media market, the media clans of the Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo, and Dong-A Ilbo pursued their financial interests by openly supporting the Lee administration that supported lifting the ban on newspaper-broadcast cross ownership. When their support was rewarded with permission to operate networks, they ventured to engage in advertising sales themselves, ignoring discussions in the National Assembly on legislation for broadcast advertising sales representatives, the so-called “media reps.”

Their viewership ratings have yet to be seen, yet they are deploying organized crime tactics in their transactions, demanding as much as 70% of terrestrial network advertising. Some have even proposed pledges to develop feature programming to suit the tastes of advertisers. Any trace of fairness in media with the separation of broadcast journalism and production and advertising transactions has long since been cast aside.

The day when general programmers throw their weight around cannot but be a bleak one for South Korean society. The general programmers will reign alongside the Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo, and Dong-A Ilbo newspapers - which already have a more than 70% share of their market - as the predators of the television advertising market, while local and religious networks and smaller newspapers will find themselves on the brink of extinction.

The networks’ advertising sales pose a dire threat of increasing corporate influence over the media, with commercials as their weapon. It is apparent what this will result in: a media market dominated by establishment interests, with fewer and fewer avenues for the 99% in South Korean society - the workers, farmers, and working class - to have their voices heard. In short, we will be taking a deeper step into an era of a conservative monopoly on opinion, as a collapse of the media ecosystem takes with it diversity in voices. We are also sure to see a parade of provocative and sensationalistic programming as the networks compete with each other for viewership ratings.

The Conservative Monopoly on Opinion and the Disappearance of Democracy　

What this means for South Korean society is a crisis of democracy the likes of which we have never seen before. Diversity of opinion is a minimum requirement if democracy is to exist. Democracy simply cannot flourish when a society’s opinion is dominated completely by one perspective. And both the preferential treatment the general programmers are basking in and the thuggish tactics they do not hesitate to employ are threats to a healthy market order and the fairness that is a basic value of democracy.

This is why conscientious people here in South Korea are opposed to the general programmers. The fight to eliminate the perks given to them and ensure a fair market order is a desperate battle to preserve opinion diversity and democracy.

In that sense, it is entirely reasonable that the Democratic Party and other opposition parties would refuse to attend the celebratory event for the four new networks. Their decision contrasts sharply with the congratulatory interview former Grand National Party Chairwoman and leading presidential contender Park Geun-hye gave with them.

Meanwhile, the National Union of Media Workers is launching a general strike today to demand the retraction of the special treatment given to the general programmers and the enactment of media rep legislation. As the new networks go on the air, so too is a struggle commencing from the conscientious and progressively minded of this country. We hope every South Korean joins in this fight.　　

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