Mainstream media cited for distorted reporting on a number of issues
Last week, the prosecution arraigned four people on charges of violating South Korea's National Security Law, with civic groups speaking out against the media's coverage of the cases.
On December 11, the civic group Lawyers for Democratic Society said that most media reporting on the cases was biased in a manner typical to South Korea in that it 'painted reformists as stimulators of chaos in national affairs.' The group compared the recent media coverage to mainstream reporting in the 1980s that derogated members of the democracy and free speech movements.
The group said that the media were irresponsible in mentioning the real names, family members' names, and places of employment of those charged with espionage. It also said that the media's approach to the cases was typical of "distorted reporting," such as an earlier incident when some in the mainstream media suggested that a 2002 candlelight vigil for two middle-school students crushed by a U.S. tank was designed by people working with North Korea in order to encourage unrest in South Korea, the group said.
The lawyers' group went on to cite several instances of biased reporting this year. Another case of media distortion mentioned was the report about presidential candidate Park Geun-hye, who was slashed with a knife during an election campaign for one of her party's candidates. "Some media said that [the attack] was a political tactic leading up to the local elections on May 31," done to garner more votes for the opposition Grand National Party. In the process, the man that allegedly attacked the female party leader suffered from his human rights being completely compromised, the lawyers' civic group said.
The group also cited the media's taking political sides and distorting coverage during bickering over the reform of the fiscal management of private schools. Also mentioned was unbalanced reporting on the labor dispute at steelmaker POSCO this fall. Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]
