Kim Eo-jun "Board of Audit and Inspection visits TBS... Because of a single host"

Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun. [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun stated on the 22nd, "The Board of Audit and Inspection visited TBS on the 21st under the pretext of a preliminary investigation before the official audit," and criticized, "The appearance fee is just an excuse, and isn't this an attempt by a certain political faction to oust a host they dislike?"

On the same day, Kim said on TBS Radio's 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory,' "Has there ever been a case in history where the Board of Audit and Inspection audited a specific institution because of a single radio host?"

He pointed out, "Some organizations filed petitions with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to impose fines on TBS, and a certain lawyer group submitted a petition to the National Tax Service to investigate my tax evasion. An organization led by a lawyer who was part of the People Power Party's Media Special Committee said they would report bus drivers if 'News Factory' was played on buses," and questioned, "Is this really just about the appearance fee?"

Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun. Photo by TBS, screenshot from the broadcast of 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory'.

He continued, "If it were about the appearance fee, the sponsorship advertising revenue that 'News Factory' earns annually matches the total production costs of TBS's TV and radio," adding, "They increased the sponsorship advertising revenue from the 3 billion won range to the 10 billion won range and raised TBS's listenership from 7 to 9 a.m. by 15 times, so the story should end there."

Kim then said, "The appearance fee is just an excuse, and in reality, isn't this about a certain political faction trying to remove a host they dislike from broadcasting?" and questioned, "Isn't this the same as when the Board of Audit and Inspection was mobilized to oust KBS President Jeong Yeon-ju during the Lee Myung-bak administration?"

Earlier, the People Power Party claimed that TBS paid Kim about 2 million won per episode under a verbal contract, totaling approximately 2.3 billion won over five years.

As the controversy grew, TBS issued a statement explaining that verbal contracts for appearance fees are a "long-standing practice in the broadcasting industry." They also rebutted that separate contracts are only drawn up when requested by the host.

Meanwhile, according to People Power Party lawmaker Park Dae-chul, the Board of Audit and Inspection stated, "TBS is subject to accounting audits and duty inspections under the provisions of the Board of Audit and Inspection Act."

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