[2021 National Audit] Kim Eo-jun Debate, Opposition "Biased Broadcasting"... Ruling Party "Media Suppression"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Eun-mo] The ruling and opposition parties clashed over the political bias of Traffic Broadcasting (TBS)'s flagship program, 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory,' during the National Assembly audit. The People Power Party claimed that 'News Factory' consistently engages in biased reporting favoring the ruling party, while the Democratic Party defended the program, calling it 'media oppression.'

On the 5th, Lee Kang-taek, president of TBS, who appeared as a witness at the National Assembly Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee's audit, actively refuted the bias allegations.

Park Sung-joong, the opposition party's secretary and a member of the People Power Party, criticized, "Looking at the guests who appeared on News Factory, Professor Ki Mo-ran (currently the Blue House's Quarantine Planning Officer) said that vaccine procurement was not urgent, and even Cho Min (daughter of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk) appeared. It cannot escape the bias controversy."

Hwang Bo-seung-hee, also from the same party, added, "Since more than two-thirds of the budget comes from the Seoul Metropolitan Government, fairness should be guaranteed even more, but it is not. Recent polls show that 66% believe the broadcast is biased, and 54% responded that Kim Eo-jun should step down. The public sees it as biased."

Hwang questioned President Lee, "There have been derogatory remarks belittling the COVID-19 situation as the Daegu or Shincheonji incident, and there were also defending comments about North Korea's loudspeakers toward the South, saying they did not fire missiles. Is the criticism of bias merely claims from certain groups?"

Jeong Hee-yong, a People Power Party member, criticized, "Kim Eo-jun's News Factory has received a total of six sanctions: four cautions and two warnings. According to media reports, if sanctioned at the full meeting of the Korea Communications Standards Commission scheduled for the 14th, it will be the seventh. It is the most for a single program."

In response, the ruling party criticized the opposition for calling the media company president to the audit hearing itself, arguing that the claim of political bias was wrong. Han Jun-ho, a Democratic Party member, said to the People Power Party, "Summoning the head of a media company as a witness at the audit is media oppression. Then shouldn't Channel A and TV Chosun also have been summoned as witnesses?"

Jeon Hye-sook, also from the Democratic Party, said, "It is uncomfortable that the National Assembly tries to set broadcasting guidelines," and requested, "The chairman should stop the questioning of President Lee Kang-taek." However, Lee Won-wook, the committee chairman from the Democratic Party, concluded, "The adoption of President Lee as a witness was already agreed upon between the ruling and opposition secretaries," and the questioning of President Lee continued.

Democratic Party member Jo Jeong-sik said, "There were issues about Kim Eo-jun's appearance fees wasting Seoul citizens' taxes, so we thoroughly examined them. I believe this issue should not become a controversy. Isn't that why the Korea Communications Commission granted the broadcasting license renewal? Raising disputes over this is just unnecessary nitpicking."

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