🚨 Broadcasting Three Laws Amendment: Broadcasting Governance Reform and Media Independence

Today Korean Social News | 2025.06.29

📌 President Lee Jae-myung Negative on Broadcasting Laws Amendment? Ruling-Opposition Coordination Controversy

💬 Ruling and opposition parties continue to clash over the Broadcasting Three Laws amendment. People Power Party lawmaker Park Jung-hoon pointed out that the amendment is being pushed without enough coordination with the presidential office. On the other hand, Democratic Party lawmaker Choi Min-hee said the KCC reform is the party's independent decision and there was no coordination with the presidential office. President Lee Jae-myung showed his will for amendment by taking a photo holding a "Support Broadcasting Three Laws Amendment" sign with the media union leader, but his specific position on the actual amendment is unclear. Political issues around broadcasting governance reform are sharply divided, drawing attention to the direction of the amendment.

Summary

• Broadcasting Three Laws amendment means improving broadcasting governance by revising the Broadcasting Act, KCC Act, and Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act.
• It aims to strengthen broadcasting independence through KCC restructuring and introducing board-centered governance.
• Conflicts continue in the amendment process due to different positions between ruling-opposition parties and political controversies.

1️⃣ Definition

Broadcasting Three Laws Amendment means legislative efforts to improve broadcasting governance and strengthen media independence by revising the Broadcasting Act, Korea Communications Commission Act, and Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act. Simply put, it means fixing the core laws that manage broadcasting and communications to create a fairer and more independent broadcasting environment.

This is an institutional improvement plan to secure broadcasting independence from political power and guarantee citizens' right to know and freedom of expression.

💡 Why is it important?

• Strengthens political independence of broadcasting to create a fair media environment.
• Improves KCC governance to increase transparency and responsibility.
• Protects citizens' right to know by guaranteeing public broadcasting autonomy.
• Minimizes political intervention in broadcasting policy decision processes.

2️⃣ Main Content and Amendment Direction of Broadcasting Three Laws

📕 Structure and Current Status of Broadcasting Three Laws

• Broadcasting Three Laws are core laws in the broadcasting and communications field. Main structure is as follows:

  • Broadcasting Act: Basic law that regulates broadcaster licensing, broadcasting program scheduling, and broadcasting advertising.
  • Korea Communications Commission Act: Law that defines KCC's structure, functions, and operation methods.
  • Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act: Special law that regulates EBS's establishment purpose, organization, and operation methods.
  • These three laws together form the basic framework of Korea's broadcasting and communications policy.

• Major problems with current broadcasting governance are being pointed out. Main problems are as follows:

  • KCC chairman's authority is overly concentrated, enabling independent operation.
  • Political influence is strong, lacking independence in broadcasting policy.
  • Public broadcasting governance like KBS and MBC is easily influenced by politics.
  • There is room for political considerations to intervene in broadcaster executive appointment processes.
  • Broadcasting regulation and promotion functions are not clearly separated, causing conflicts of interest.

📕 Main Amendment Direction and Content

• KCC restructuring is a core task. Main restructuring directions are as follows:

  • Plans to maintain the current 5-member committee system while distributing the chairman's authority are being reviewed.
  • Plans to increase the number of standing members to strengthen collective leadership are being discussed.
  • They try to secure political neutrality by balancing ruling and opposition party recommended members.
  • Plans to separate broadcasting and communication functions to increase expertise are also reviewed.
  • Content to strengthen term and status guarantees to enhance independence is included.

• Public broadcasting governance improvement is also an important task. Main improvement directions are as follows:

  • Plans to reduce political influence in KBS and MBC board composition are being discussed.
  • Board-centered governance is introduced to check CEO's independent operation.
  • Civil society and expert participation is expanded to increase social representation.
  • Transparent appointment procedures and qualification requirements are strengthened to secure expertise.
  • Content to strengthen EBS's independence and identity as educational broadcasting is included.

📕 Recent Amendment Discussion and Issues

• Ruling and opposition parties have clearly different positions. Main issues are as follows:

  • The Democratic Party focuses on KCC authority distribution and public broadcasting independence strengthening.
  • The People Power Party prefers gradual improvement rather than radical reform.
  • Broadcasting company unions actively support introducing board-centered governance.
  • The government is concerned about maintaining broadcasting policy consistency and efficiency.
  • There are difficulties in ruling party-government coordination due to position differences between the presidential office and ruling party.

• Various concerns are raised during the amendment process. Main concerns are as follows:

  • There is wariness about the possibility of the amendment being misused for political purposes.
  • Concerns are raised that broadcasting policy continuity and consistency may be damaged.
  • There is a possibility that decision-making may be delayed due to excessive authority distribution.
  • It is pointed out that broadcaster autonomy and creativity may be restricted.
  • Concerns about the impact on international credibility and competitiveness also exist.

Main Issues of Broadcasting Three Laws Amendment

1. Political Neutrality: Concerns that political intentions should not intervene in the amendment process
2. Governance Efficiency: Possibility that authority distribution may lead to decision-making delays
3. Broadcaster Autonomy: Concerns that excessive regulation may restrict broadcasting creativity
4. Social Consensus: Criticism that it is being pushed without sufficient social discussion
5. Effectiveness Issue: Questions about whether law amendment alone can bring substantial changes

3️⃣ Need for Broadcasting Governance Reform and Overseas Cases

✅ Need and Background for Reform

• Structural problems in Korea's broadcasting governance have accumulated. Main background is as follows:

  • Controversies related to broadcaster president changes have been repeated in past governments.
  • Cases where broadcasting independence and fairness were damaged due to excessive political intervention occurred.
  • Broadcasting policy consistency and predictability were lacking due to KCC's unilateral decisions.
  • Viewer and public trust has been continuously declining.
  • Internationally, Korea's media freedom ranking is relatively low.

• Broadcasting's public role and social responsibility are being emphasized. Main points are as follows:

  • Public broadcasting should operate for public interest and be free from political influence.
  • Broadcasting should fairly convey diverse opinions and information as a core element of democracy.
  • The role and function of traditional broadcasting should be redefined in the rapidly changing media environment.
  • Governance should be improved to guarantee viewer sovereignty and participation.
  • An environment for improving broadcasting content quality and securing creativity needs to be created.

✅ Major Countries' Broadcasting Governance

• Britain's BBC model is a representative reference case. Main features are as follows:

  • BBC operates a board-centered governance system.
  • Board members are appointed through open recruitment and strict screening, with political independence guaranteed.
  • BBC Trust plays a role in monitoring public interest and independence.
  • The government decides license fees, but BBC makes programming and operation decisions completely autonomously.
  • Institutional devices to minimize parliamentary and government intervention are established.

• Germany and France's public broadcasting systems are also worth referencing. Main features are as follows:

  • Germany operates independent broadcasting governance at the state level due to its federal characteristics.
  • Broadcasting councils (Rundfunkrat) represent all walks of society and play a broadcasting monitoring role.
  • France's Audiovisual Superior Council (CSA) independently handles broadcasting regulation.
  • Broadcasting independence is secured through distancing from political circles.
  • Civil society participation and monitoring functions are institutionally guaranteed.

4️⃣ Related Terms Explanation

🔎 Korea Communications Commission (KCC)

• KCC is a government agency that regulates and promotes broadcasting and communications.
• Korea Communications Commission means a presidential advisory collegial administrative agency responsible for planning, establishing, and promoting broadcasting and communications policies, licensing and approving broadcasters, and reviewing broadcasting programs and advertisements. It was launched in 2008 by integrating functions of the Broadcasting Commission and Ministry of Information and Communication.
• KCC's main functions include first, licensing, approval, registration and re-licensing, re-approval of broadcasters. Second, review and sanctions of broadcasting programs and advertisements. Third, policy establishment and implementation for broadcasting development and promotion. Fourth, competition promotion and user protection policies in the communications market. Fifth, internet and information protection policy establishment.
• KCC consists of 5 members including 1 chairman and 1 vice-chairman, with the chairman and 2 standing members working full-time. The structure where ruling and opposition parties each recommend 2 members and the president appoints the chairman has been continuously criticized for being easily influenced by politics.

🔎 Public Broadcasting

• Public broadcasting operates with public funds and pursues public interest.
• Public broadcasting means broadcasting established by the state or public organizations and operated with public funds (license fees, government support, etc.), prioritizing public interest and public good over commercial profit. In Korea, KBS, MBC, and EBS are public broadcasters.
• Public broadcasting characteristics include first, operation with public ownership and public funds. Second, basic principles of public interest, fairness, and public good. Third, prioritizing social responsibility over commercial profit. Fourth, pursuing diversity and universality to reflect voices of minorities and socially vulnerable groups. Fifth, maintaining independence from political power and commercial influence.
• Public broadcasting governance is a very important issue. It should operate independently without receiving political influence, but at the same time must secure accountability to citizens since it uses public funds. For this reason, introducing board-centered governance and establishing transparent executive appointment procedures are continuously discussed.

🔎 Board-Centered Governance

• Board-centered governance is a system where the board of directors handles core business decisions.
• Board-centered governance means a corporate governance structure that limits individual CEO authority and has the board make important management decisions while checking the CEO. When applied to broadcasters, it can be expected to prevent the president's independent operation and secure public interest.
• Advantages of board-centered governance include first, preventing CEO's independent decision-making. Second, reflecting opinions of various stakeholders. Third, improving transparency and accountability. Fourth, enhancing management quality through expert board members. Fifth, enabling stable management from a long-term perspective.
• But there are also disadvantages. Decision-making processes may become complex, reducing speed, and management efficiency may decrease due to conflicts among board members. Also, if board expertise and independence are not secured, it may have reverse effects. For broadcasters, it is important to exclude political influence in board composition and include broadcasting experts and civil society figures.

5️⃣ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: Can the Broadcasting Three Laws amendment actually guarantee broadcasting independence?

A: The Broadcasting Three Laws amendment can establish important institutional foundations for securing broadcasting independence, but it is difficult to guarantee complete independence by itself. The effects of law amendment can be evaluated in three aspects. First, structural improvement effects can prevent individual independent decisions through KCC authority distribution and introducing board-centered governance. Second, procedural transparency strengthening can reduce political intervention by increasing openness and fairness in executive appointment processes. Third, checks and balances system establishment can strengthen mutual checks through participation of various stakeholders. However, law amendment alone has limitations. To secure substantial independence, changes in social awareness, improvement of media professionals' expertise and ethics, and continuous monitoring and participation by civil society are needed. Also, political restraint and autonomous efforts by broadcaster members are important factors. Ultimately, law amendment is a necessary condition but not a sufficient condition.

Q: What impact will the Broadcasting Three Laws amendment have on general viewers?

A: If the Broadcasting Three Laws amendment is successfully implemented, it is expected to have generally positive effects on general viewers. The most direct change is improvement in broadcasting content quality. Broadcasters freed from political influence will be able to produce more diverse and creative programs, allowing viewers to access richer content. Also, the right to obtain accurate information is strengthened through fair and balanced news and current affairs programs. Second is expanded viewer participation opportunities. In board-centered governance, civil society representatives are more likely to participate, so viewer opinions can be better reflected in broadcasting policies. The role of viewer committees will also be strengthened, improving communication between broadcasters and viewers. Third is increased transparency. Broadcaster operations and decision-making processes become more transparent, allowing viewers to better understand broadcaster operations. However, short-term confusion during the reform process or adaptation periods due to program changes may be needed. The important thing is that these changes should lead to creating a viewer-centered broadcasting environment.