[Desk Column] Viewers Are Not Fools

[Asia Economy Senior Reporter Jinsoo Lee] One day, with a sudden gust of wind, South Korea's chaebol heiress Yoon Se-ri (played by Son Ye-jin) makes an emergency landing in North Korean territory due to a paragliding accident. The secret love story unfolds between her and North Korean army officer Ri Jeong-hyeok (played by Hyun Bin), who hides and protects her and eventually falls in love with her. This is the storyline of the tvN weekend drama "Crash Landing on You" (written by Park Ji-eun and directed by Lee Jung-hyo). So far, the main settings in the drama have been the North Korean military housing village near the Demilitarized Zone and Pyongyang.

Recently, "Crash Landing on You" was reported for violating the National Security Act. The conservative party, the Christian Liberty Party, explained the reason for the report in a statement on the 10th, saying, "North Korea has never lowered its gun aimed at us," and "However, due to the president and broadcasting companies who cannot distinguish the enemy, the public has been incited."

They argued that North Korea, as South Korea's main adversary, cannot be glorified for any reason, and that in the drama, North Korean soldiers are portrayed not as armed threats but as peaceful characters.

The Christian Liberty Party added, "According to the National Security Act, one must not praise or sympathize with anti-state organizations that threaten the existence of the Republic of Korea," and "We hope that the false agitators will be promptly investigated and severely punished."

Article 7, Paragraph 1 of the National Security Act, mentioned by the Christian Liberty Party, states that "Anyone who, knowing that it endangers the existence, safety, or the free democratic basic order of the state, praises, encourages, propagandizes, or sympathizes with the activities of an anti-state organization or its members or those who have received orders from them, or who propagandizes or agitates for state rebellion, shall be punished by imprisonment for up to seven years."

It is true that concerns were raised even before the first broadcast of "Crash Landing on You" because the setting was North Korea. In response, PD Lee Jung-hyo said at the production presentation, "The subject of North Korea itself may cause discomfort," and "Although North Korea actually exists, I hope viewers see it only as a disconnected space and situation where the protagonists can unfold their romance within the work."

Until now, protagonists in Korean works dealing with the division of the Korean Peninsula have often been imbued with a sense of tragedy. "Shiri" (1999) realistically portrayed the tragic love between North Korean special agent Lee Bang-hee (played by Kim Yun-jin), who infiltrated South Korea, and South Korean intelligence agent Yoo Joong-won (played by Han Suk-kyu), born from the tragedy of division. "Joint Security Area JSA" (2000) focused on the friendship between North and South Korean soldiers but remained a frustrating commentary on the reality. Nevertheless, the setting sparked political debates between conservatives and progressives.

As PD Lee Jung-hyo said, although "Crash Landing on You" shows "North Korean life, those elements are just one of the fun components that blend with the romance to form the drama." Due to the unique nature of the country, North Korea was set as a background with fantasy elements.

The drama depicts scenes where people secretly buy and sell South Korean goods in jangmadang (traditional markets), North Korean soldiers use South Korean electric rice cookers and large wall-mounted TVs in their military housing, and people secretly watch South Korean dramas and listen to K-pop. Even in Pyongyang, power outages occur frequently, and trains stop, causing waits of over 12 hours. There are lodging inspections of private homes at unpredictable times. Listening devices are hidden in various hotel rooms. People can be taken by the State Security Department at any time for any reason.

It is difficult to see "Crash Landing on You" as a drama that "praises or sympathizes" with North Korea. Moreover, no one watching the drama would long for North Korea or wish to live there.

In this day and age, it is somewhat absurd to report a commercial drama under the National Security Act. Movies and dramas primarily deal with fiction due to their genre characteristics. Besides, our viewers are not so naive as to be influenced by fiction.

Viewers are not fools. Perhaps for those who mistakenly think the cultural consumption level of viewers is low, this phrase appears at the very beginning of the drama.

"This drama is a work of fiction, and the characters, events, organizations, and settings depicted have no relation to reality."