Wednesday was "Newspaper Day," but nowhere did you see any excitement. Readers have a cold reaction when they think about newspapers. Once upon a time it everyone recognized them as the lantern that lit bright the times. You get a bitter feeling when you remember those days. We fully realize that newspapers have themselves to blame for being rejected by those of this current era.
The Korea Newspaper Association has a slogan for Newspaper Day, "Like a lantern in front of readers, like a mirror before the world!" and it clearly shows you what the roots and solution to the crisis are. You see the shadow of hypocrisy in a slogan that is all too much a matter of course, and newspapers are skilled at coming up with phrases that sound right. It has been newspapers that have gone right ahead and behaved in a manner that is inconsistent with that slogan. It would be reasonable to say newspapers have betrayed the call of the times at every turn of history. Their antinomic logic has stirred up confusion instead of making sense of it. The hypocritical logic even turned back the wagon wheel of history.
The point of departure for the contradiction is to be found in the acquisition of power. The press is often called the "fourth branch of government." It is endowed with the authority to keep government in check, as power will inevitably go astray. That super-powerful position held by the press, however led to a different form of deviation from ethical standards. The press still bears historical scars from long being in bed with those enjoying political power, and that the nature of such power as enjoyed by the press leads to a lack of self-restraint. Even though there has been progress in political democracy, the arrogance and hypocrisy of newspapers has not ceased. They remain weak in the face of capital. When it comes to the economy they are weak like dead leaves. They bow before the neo-liberal wave and the pursuit of efficiency and productivity. Here and there you see signs that they have abandoned their capacity and obligation to keep the contradictions of the times in check.
We still believe in newspapers' potential, however. We are convinced that the "paper newspaper" will be final lantern that lightens the chaos of the digital age, because it is almost the only medium that carries homo sapiens' unique characteristics. We hope that through humble self-reflection and painful effort they will regain the readers who have turned elsewhere. That is the resolve and pledge of the Hankyoreh, which will soon appear with a whole new face.
The Hankyoreh, 7 April 2005.
[Translations by Seoul Selection (PMS)]
[Editorial] The Hypocrisy and Arrogance of Newspapers |
