SBS's giant plush bear character 'Tupyoro'. Courtesy of SBS

Election broadcasts are the culmination of each broadcaster's production capabilities. Broadcasters catch viewers' attention with their creative ideas and attractions at every election. There is fierce competition among broadcasters to top the ratings ahead of the general election on April 10. They are using a variety of means, including cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) technology, more sophisticated predictions of election results, and hiring popular stars as one-time special announcers.

SBS and KBS focus on providing spectacular attractions through cutting-edge digital technology. SBS organized an “AI GEN” election broadcast, which utilized all AI technologies. “Tupyoro,” a teddy bear character who has undergone one-on-one deep learning based on generative AI chatbot technology and AI virtual voice technology, will serve as a live commentator. Tupyoro will explain complex election data in an easy way to understand. In the “AI the Person in the Past and Now” section, rare past videos of the leaders of major political parties will be released for the first time, including the interim leader of the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP) Han Dong-hoon's videos when he was working as a public prosecutor and the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) Lee Jae-myung's videos when he was working as a lawyer. It is based on SBS's proprietary AI people search technology which instantly identifies and finds the face of a person in thousands or tens of thousands of video archives with a single photo of face.

KBS also heavily relies on generative AI technology for election broadcasts. It uses AI to create avatars of major candidates, and these avatars will stage a rap battle on stage with music that rewrites the lyrics containing their pledges. On its YouTube Live channel, which will be held simultaneously with the TV broadcast, virtual YouTuber characters host the program and interact with viewers in real time. Viewers will also be able to see how many votes each candidate received from the characters of KBS’ popular drama "Korea–Khitan War,” which has recently ended.

Unlike the broadcasting companies boasting state-of-the-art technologies, MBC has decided to focus on content for commentary and discussion. It aims to go beyond informing viewers of the vote results and to help them satisfy their curiosity. At the MBC Election Broadcasting Meeting held at MBC in Seoul on April 3, Kim Kyung-tae, head of the election broadcasting planning team, said, "The principle of the election broadcast is to focus on the number, which is the core of election broadcasting," adding, "We will present the most accurate number to grasp the flow of public sentiment and provide appropriate commentary.” He also added, “We are preparing a broadcast that can be viewed comfortably by minimizing all distracting factors." Kim Dae-ho, who has built up a friendly image by appearing in various entertainment programs, will host the show.

The exit polls, which will be conducted jointly by the three major broadcasting companies, are the biggest interest of people. The broadcasters will survey 500,000 voters at more than 2,000 polling stations nationwide from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Election Day. The results will be announced simultaneously at 6 p.m of the day. In addition to the joint exit polls, the companies have also been working hard to predict the probability of winning through data analysis systems. KBS plans to predict the chances of winning before the vote count is completed by utilizing "Decision K+," which has upgraded the existing election prediction system to the next level. SBS and MBC will provide more sophisticated forecasts through their “AI Aurora” and “ABC” systems, respectively.

Cable channels are also preparing to compete with the major broadcasters. JTBC plans to attract viewers in their 20s and 30s by recruiting actress Joo Hyun-young, who is well-known as the "Representative of Millennials and Gen Z" in the "SNL Korea" series. Joo has been participating in the YouTube channel "Jupisodes" which is organized by JTBC's general election broadcasting planning team as a representative of residents to convey public sentiment. She will also appear in the vote counting broadcast on Election Day serving as a one-time special announcer.