Jeong Cheong-rae: "The opposition clings nastily to Kim Eo-jun's appearance fees... It's strange if they don't raise them"

"Kim Eo-jun, the domestic MVP pitcher in the radio industry if compared to baseball"
"Oh, no matter how much he hates Kim Eo-jun, there is no way to drive him out"

Jeong Cheong-rae, member of the Democratic Party of Korea.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Amid opposition parties raising suspicions about broadcaster Kim Eo-jun's high appearance fees, on the 2nd, Jeong Cheong-rae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, criticized, "Attacks on Kim Eo-jun are unacceptable no matter how you look at it, so they end up clinging to his appearance fees in a disgraceful manner."

On that day, Jeong posted on his Facebook under the title "People Power Party, I'll teach you how to drive Kim Eo-jun out!" saying, "When attacking the top race car driver doesn't work, they attack the car and then the paved road. This is the worst of the worst," expressing his criticism.

He continued, "They attack with a detached logic saying 'His appearance fee is higher than the TBS president's,'" and likened it to "attacking Son Heung-min's salary for being higher than the coach's, or nonsensically mumbling why a conglomerate chairman's income is higher than the president's."

He added, "Also, they attack by asking 'Why is his appearance fee 10 times higher than other broadcasters?'" and questioned, "This is like asking why Yoo Jae-suk, who is the same kind of host, receives 10 times more than someone else. How is this different from denying the capitalist market principle of supply and demand?"

Broadcaster Kim Eo-jun. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Jeong also stated, "The TBS 'News Factory' hosted by Kim Eo-jun is the undisputed number one in radio listenership, and naturally, it has become a significant source of advertising revenue. In baseball terms, Kim Eo-jun is the domestic MVP pitcher of the radio industry," asserting, "If Kim Eo-jun's appearance fee isn't high, that would be strange."

He continued, "'News Factory' is sustaining the traffic broadcasting station," and said, "The value of star players with high team contribution soars accordingly. Professional athletes score goals and accumulate wins to raise their value."

He compared, "The ticket power of celebrity entertainers follows the same principle," and asked, "If you ask why the guarantee for a lead actor in a movie that surpassed 10 million viewers is so much higher than that of a minor role actor, what would you answer?"

Jeong emphasized, "Kim Eo-jun is a professional. He is an ace pitcher and an ace goal-getter," and stressed, "No matter how much Mayor Oh Se-hoon dislikes him, there is no way to drive him out by violating the Broadcasting Act. This is according to the Broadcasting Act and the regulations of the independent foundation."

Furthermore, he said, "There is a way to drive Kim Eo-jun out," adding, "If he causes a broadcast accident, is arrested in flagrante delicto, or if the listenership plummets so that the cost-effectiveness of his appearance fee compared to listenership becomes terrible, he will inevitably be ousted."

He continued, "If the People Power Party wants him out, they have no choice but to campaign to lower the listenership of 'News Factory' together with their party members and supporters," sarcastically saying, "People Power Party should claim, 'Let's not listen to Kim Eo-jun's News Factory,' 'Let's lower the listenership of Kim Eo-jun's News Factory.'"

In conclusion, he said, "I argue, 'Let's appreciate Kim Eo-jun,' and 'Kim Eo-jun, keep going.'"

Earlier, the People Power Party claimed that Kim Eo-jun's appearance fee per episode is about 2 million won, and that he must have received more than 2.2 billion won since the current government took office.

Regarding this, TBS stated that the host's appearance fee is personal information and cannot be disclosed. TBS said, "Appearance fees are sensitive personal income information and cannot be disclosed without the consent of the individual," adding, "Considering TBS's role in increasing financial self-reliance, the production cost of 'News Factory' accounts for less than 10% of total revenue."

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