On August 21, the Korea Communications Commission voted to dismiss Kwon Tae-sun, chairperson of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture, nearly completing the process to change the structure inside the board overseeing the management of public broadcasting in favor of the government. The Yoon Suk-yeol government is expected to conclude its grasp of broadcasting by replacing the president of public broadcasting stations. Some experts believe the government may take a step further and make the public broadcasting system obsolete with privatization.

Broadcasting insiders expect a proposal to dismiss Kim Eui-cheol, president of KBS (Korea Broadcasting System), to be placed before the KBS board of directors as early as the end of this month or early next month at the latest. According to the shorthand reports from the KBS board, directors supporting the government and the ruling People Power Party (PPP) have constantly pointed out the deficit at KBS along with the bias of particular programs.

The candidate for KBS president is determined through public participation. When they decide on a final candidate, they request a presidential appointment. After a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly, the president approves the appointment. The KBS board of directors can shorten the time it takes to select the candidate.

Ahn Hyung-joon, president of MBC who entered office in February, is currently being investigated by the prosecutors. On August 15, the police transferred his case to the Prosecution Service claiming he interfered with an internal audit of CJENM. If the prosecutors confirm the charge against Ahn, they can immediately launch a process to remove him from office.

When the president of a broadcasting network is replaced with a “government-friendly” figure, this can lead to new faces replacing existing hosts of some shows.

In the past, the People Power Party argued that particular programs on KBS and MBC were biased. In a meeting to discuss the party’s strategy on the floor on July 28, Park Sung-joong, a PPP lawmaker and secretary in the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, named the hosts of radio programs, such as Choi Gyeong-yeong’s Top Current Affairs (KBS) and Shin Jang-sik’s News High Kick (MBC), and argued that they invited more opposition-friendly figures on their shows.

He also mentioned the media coverage of the confirmation of Lee Dong-kwan, nominee for the chair of the Korea Communications Commission, and pointed his finger at MBC’s News Desk.

KBS is currently in the middle of a constitutional appeal trial on the Enforcement Decree of the Broadcasting Act, which states that the TV transmission fee be collected separately. MBC is involved in an administrative lawsuit on an audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection, which the network argues was unjust. If the presidents of the two major networks are replaced, it is also likely for the two stations to withdraw the constitutional appeal and the administrative litigation to confirm the illegality of the government.

Some people voiced concern that the government would in the long term try to destroy the public broadcasting system. In his confirmation hearing before the National Assembly on August 18, Lee Dong-kwan said, “It is right to minimize public broadcasting and allow the consumer to choose in a system of competition in order to ensure the free communication of information.”

In a press conference on July 3, the PPP lawmakers Park Sung-joong, Kim Yeung-shik and Yoon Doo-hyun of the parliamentary Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee argued, “It is the state’s duty to immediately shut it (KBS 2TV) down if it fails to meet the standard for renewing its license.” Last November, when conflicts intensified after the Office of the President denied an MBC reporter a seat on the presidential jet, Code One, lawmaker Park appeared on SBS radio and said, “There is some level of consensus (inside the PPP on the privatization of MBC).”

The Korea Communications Commission is currently undergoing procedures to renew the license of KBS 2TV, and the process is expected to continue until the end of the year. If the network fails to get its license renewed, it could lead to discussions of a possible sale of the frequency to another company. MBC will practically be privatized if the Foundation for Broadcast Culture sells its MBC shares. However, in this case, it can clash with the Foundation for Broadcast Culture Act, which stipulates the foundation as the largest investor of MBC.

Kim Seo-joong, a professor in the Division of Media & Contents at Sungkonghoe University, said, “Commercial media focuses more on maximizing profits by selling the ‘preference’ of the people, and concentrates less on in-depth discussions on the values that society should seek.” He further explained, “A media outlet that has a sense of duty and accepts its attention to people who are relatively few in number, such as minorities and people outside the Seoul metropolitan area, as its duty is public media,” and argued, “A situation where the number of commercial media is increasing explosively actually calls for more public media.”

Nam Young-jin, former chairman of the KBS board, and Kwon Tae-sun, chairperson of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture, have launched a legal response to their dismissals, and this can be a variable. If the courts suspend the execution of their dismissals, the status quo will be maintained inside the board of directors of KBS and the Foundation for Broadcast Culture for the time being.