'Controversy Over the Delayed Launch of the 5th Term' - KCSC Speaks Out: "70,000 Communication Reviews Pending"

방심위 Urges Prompt Recommendation of Members by Political Circles at Press Briefing on 31st
Serious Issues with Fake News on Digital Sex Crimes and COVID-19 Vaccines
5,000 Complaints on 'Historical Distortion' Controversy over Joseon Exorcist

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] "I apologize that the Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC) is not functioning properly. I also feel sorry for the victims who suffer daily from digital sex crime information, enduring pain worse than hell."

The 5th KCSC, which should have been properly launched at the end of January, is once again facing controversy over its 'delayed launch,' causing the entire organization to face an administrative vacuum. While the ruling and opposition parties have been engaged in heated debates over the recommendation of commission members, important matters such as digital sex crime cases and fake news related to COVID-19 vaccines have been postponed. Complaints related to the SBS drama "Joseon Exorcist," which has been embroiled in historical distortion controversy, have reached about 5,000.

Min Kyung-jung, Secretary General of the KCSC, said at a virtual press conference on the afternoon of the 31st, "Three years ago, the 4th commission was also launched more than seven months late, and the number of broadcast review sanctions in the first year reached 941 cases. This year, nearly three times more, about 20,800 cases were processed late, which also disrupted the work of related agencies."

The KCSC, an independent civilian organization, is composed of an administrative support organization centered on nine commissioners serving three-year terms. The President, the Speaker of the National Assembly, and the National Assembly’s Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting and Communications Committee each recommend three members. Currently, the opposition party, the People Power Party, is refusing to recommend commissioners, stating that "if the Blue House’s recommended personnel are not disclosed, we will not recommend commissioners."

Secretary General Min also said, "Just before the Lunar New Year holiday started, on February 15, I sent letters to four people: Park Kyung-seok, Speaker of the National Assembly; Lee Won-ok, Chair of the Science and Technology Committee; and the ruling and opposition party secretaries Cho Seung-rae and Park Sung-jong, but unfortunately, no response has been received yet." No response has been received from the political circles.

According to the KCSC, as of the 29th, about 8,600 broadcast complaints have been received. Approximately 70,000 cases are pending in telecommunications review. Fake news related to COVID-19 vaccine use, which investigative agencies and other related organizations have requested the commission to block, amounts to about 130 cases. Regarding urgent digital sex crime information, about 2,000 cases have been deleted through self-regulation, but about 3,300 cases are still awaiting review.

Among these, complaints related to "Joseon Exorcist," which ended early after only two episodes, amount to 5,149. Complaints related to the SBS drama "Penthouse 2" and the tvN drama "Vincenzo" have also been received, with 533 and 10 cases respectively. If sanctions are imposed after the broadcasts continue or end, timely sanctions become impossible, reducing the effectiveness of the sanctions.

Secretary General Min said, "There is a flood of public opinion regarding scenes that aired without filtering, such as recent issues of historical distortion and brutal violence," adding, "The Review Department is comprehensively reviewing similar cases as references, and these cases will be reviewed and decided as soon as the commission operates normally." He further added, "(Regarding Joseon Exorcist) regardless of whether the broadcast is canceled, the two episodes will be reviewed, and the results will be notified to the broadcasting company."