[Magnifier] No Breakthrough for Terrestrial Broadcasters' Drama Awards Turned Year-End Ceremonies

Lee Yi-kyung / Photo by KBS

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Iseul] The year-end award ceremonies of the three terrestrial broadcasters (MBC, KBS, SBS) have been criticized for turning into mere 'year-end office parties.'

Last year, due to the pandemic, the online video streaming service (OTT) market expanded, and K-content such as "Ojingeo Game" (Squid Game) gained popularity worldwide. Full-length series and movies released online, such as "D.P." and "Jigok" (Hellbound), received significant attention and sparked a craze.

Industry insiders unanimously say the content market is already 'saturated,' but the performance of the three broadcasters was poor. The number of viewers watching dramas during their original broadcasts decreased. This was largely because they failed to secure good dramas, being overshadowed by OTT and cable channels. The ratings of terrestrial dramas, which lacked competitiveness in the content market in terms of completeness and entertainment, have hardly recovered.

Last month, the 2021 year-end award ceremonies were held one after another. Actors Namgung Min, Ji Hyun-woo, and Kim So-yeon each received the acting awards from MBC, KBS, and SBS, respectively. Then, two winners were announced for the grand prize, and again two people came on stage claiming to be grand prize winners. The same happened in other categories such as excellence awards and rookie awards.

The three broadcasters divided the awards into many categories. It was the same in 2020, but this time the number increased even more. They even classified awards by genre rather than production count, resulting in a string of joint winners.

There were embarrassing awards where it was unclear what achievements were being recognized. The tension was lost, and although trophies were shared amicably, the acceptance speeches were lengthy. As a result, the ceremony lasted over four hours, including commercial breaks. The number of winners was so large that it made COVID-19 seem irrelevant.

Everyone was happy to receive awards, but actors standing in front of the microphone recited names from the production staff to their agency managers and even hair salon employees. They also mentioned all sorts of older brothers, sisters, and younger siblings. Even though they were actors from different productions, their speeches were similar as if copied and pasted. While the gratitude is understandable and those named must have been happy, viewers had to endure these endlessly repetitive speeches, which was exhausting.

At the KBS Acting Awards, the acceptance speech of Lee Yi-kyung, who won the supporting actor award for "Amhaeng-eosa: Joseon Secret Investigation Team," is worth noting. After briefly expressing thanks on stage, Lee Yi-kyung made a phone call. Upon saying "Honey," a voice from the receiver replied, "Mom is watching the broadcast." Lee Yi-kyung had connected the call to his mother.

Lee Yi-kyung showed tears, saying, "It took so long. Your son won an award. I'll bring it home tomorrow," and his mother responded, "I hope you become an actor who brings joy to many people." He then quickly ended the call. This short but powerful acceptance speech was the only one that attracted attention.

Photo by KBS

Meanwhile, on the 31st of last month, public broadcaster KBS received criticism for seating actors in the audience without masks at the acting awards. This was in stark contrast to SBS, which eliminated the audience and had only the award presenters quietly go on stage to receive their awards and leave.

The award ceremonies are getting longer each year because the number of people to be awarded is increasing.

Is it really necessary to broadcast the year-end award ceremonies of the three terrestrial broadcasters on TV? While it may be an event that broadcasters cannot give up for revenue reasons, if it is a meaningless 'year-end office party,' there is no reason for viewers to watch. At this rate, viewers might have to watch award ceremonies lasting over five hours.

The irony is striking between the global acclaim of "Ojingeo Game" (Squid Game), which was nominated for prestigious awards such as the Critics' Choice Awards and Golden Globes, and the terrestrial broadcasters' situation, which has been criticized for even their award ceremonies being boring.

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