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Kim Jang-kyum, Chairman of the People Power Party's Special Committee on Media Freedom, holds a press conference at the National Assembly's Communication Hall on May 18. Highlighting a string of recent court rulings that affirmed the legality of decisions made under the legacy Korea Communications Commission's "two-member quorum," Chairman Kim criticized the current Korea Communications Standards Commission for prematurely declaring the two-member structure illegal before a final Supreme Court ruling and selectively dropping appeals in lawsuits concerning YTN. / Photo via Yonhap News

The People Power Party (PPP) launched a scathing critique on May 28, claiming that "articles unfavorable to the Lee Jae-myung administration and the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) are vanishing."

In a joint statement, the PPP's Special Committee on Media and Special Committee on Media Freedom declared, "Public anxiety regarding the suppression of the press and the silencing of journalists by the DPK and President Lee Jae-myung has manifested into reality."

"Immediately following the structural collapse at the Seosomun Overpass demolition site, controversy erupted after Representative Kim Dong-a of the DPK was captured smiling at the scene," the committees noted. "Subsequent reports revealed that inside a group chat consisting of supporters of mayoral candidate Jung Won-o, remarks emerged framing the tragedy as an 'opportunity' and even stating that 'it would be better if the damage were more severe.' The issue, coincidentally, is that articles damaging to these DPK figures are being deleted one after another."

"One's conduct at the scene of a disaster is directly tied to the responsibility of a public official. The attitude of politicians and public servants in the face of a national tragedy is naturally subject to scrutiny and criticism," they emphasized. "Reporting on these issues and raising questions is the fundamental role of the press."

The committees pointed out, "Typically, if a news outlet identifies faulty expressions or grounds for rebuttal in its reporting, it supplements the content through corrections, counterarguments, or minor textual edits. Unless there is a blatant and critical factual error, it is incomprehensible for an entire article covering a public figure's conduct, real-time remarks, and actual occurrences at the scene to be completely wiped."

"The gravity of the situation escalates significantly if this is not an isolated incident of article deletion, but rather an extension of the ongoing pressure on the media and the stigmatization of critical reporting that has persisted since the inception of the Lee Jae-myung system," they shouted. "President Lee and the DPK have routinely labeled critical outlets as 'malicious' or sources of 'fake news,' using the president's social network platforms to target specific media companies and journalists as objects of public denunciation. In the process, field reporters have been forced to walk on eggshells when writing articles critical of power, and concerns have mounted continuously that news agencies are shrinking in the face of political coercion."

They further added, "What is unfolding right now is not a simple matter of 'article deletion.' It is a reality where critical coverage of the ruling power is erased, journalists are coerced into silence, and media companies are forced to fall in line. A society where managing the temperament of the political elite takes precedence over the public's right to know is the very definition of a dictatorial regime's 'media consolidation' that the public fears."

"The citizens are witnessing the dangerous warning signs of media control and authoritative oppression becoming a reality under President Lee and the DPK framework," they concluded. "The Lee Jae-myung administration and the DPK must thoroughly disclose to the public whether they exerted pressure on media outlets to delete unfavorable articles, and we strongly urge them to halt their selective censorship and attempts to seize control of the press."

                                                                                                           Kim Dong-wook