KCC States "Gyeonggi Broadcasting Reauthorization Unrelated to President's Press Conference"

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] The Korea Communications Commission (KCC) has directly refuted claims that a question posed by reporter Kim Ye-ryeong to the president influenced the renewal of Gyeonggi Broadcasting's license.

Earlier, on the 25th, reporter Kim Ye-ryeong announced her resignation from Gyeonggi Broadcasting on her Facebook, stating, "It has been a long... time at 'Gyeonggi Broadcasting,' where I have been for 23 years." She added, "At the January 2019 New Year's press conference, my question to the president ultimately affected the renewal of our Gyeonggi Broadcasting's license, leading me to conclude that I needed to make a decision."

On the 27th, the KCC stated, "The license renewal review for Gyeonggi Broadcasting was conducted through a screening committee composed of external experts in law, management, and accounting, and based on their review, the KCC made a resolution." They emphasized, "Matters related to reporter Kim Ye-ryeong's question were never reviewed or discussed."

The KCC explained the reason Gyeonggi Broadcasting received a conditional license renewal rather than a full renewal, saying, "They were violating the Broadcasting Act and the Commercial Act, and an abnormal situation existed where Executive Director Hyun OO, not the nominal representative director, controlled overall management."

A KCC official pointed out, "Following the screening committee's opinion, we requested the submission of a 'Plan to Enhance Management Transparency and Strengthen Programming Independence,' but Gyeonggi Broadcasting responded insincerely by submitting a brief reply indicating their intention to maintain the current situation." The KCC also noted, "Considering the license renewal screening committee and hearing results, a license renewal denial was fully possible, but a conditional renewal was resolved to protect listeners."

They further emphasized, "The content on reporter Kim Ye-ryeong's SNS and some media reports damage public trust in the legitimate work of the KCC, a collegiate administrative agency, and are completely untrue."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.