"Is Smoking Indoors Illegal?" Kian84 Sparks Debate Over Smoking During Broadcast

Mixed Reactions from Netizens Over Smoking Scenes Broadcast
OTT Programs Are Not Subject to Alcohol or Smoking Regulations

Webtoon artist and broadcaster Kian84 has sparked controversy by portraying himself smoking a real cigarette as a guest on SNL Korea Season 5, which airs on the video platform (OTT) Coupang Play. Since OTT platforms are not subject to the Broadcasting Act, smoking scenes are not regulated. However, some argue that because OTTs have influence comparable to public broadcasters, Kian84's actions were inappropriate.

The problematic scene appeared in the "I Love You Studio" segment of episode 9 of SNL Korea Season 5, released on the 27th. This segment parodies the popular 1990s program "Love Studio." Kian84 played a cartoonist looking for a woman to marry. The smoking scene occurred as he lamented his age. After saying, "I'm old, so this time I really have to get married... my mother is very worried," he suddenly took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. Then he pulled out a lighter from his pocket, actually lit it, and took a puff.

The problematic scene appeared in the 9th episode of SNL Korea Season 5, titled "I Love You Studio" by Kian84, which was released on the 27th. This corner is a parody of the popular 1990s program "Love Studio."
[Photo by Coupang Play SNL Korea Season 5]

The scene was broadcast as is, and the surrounding cast members appeared shocked and tried to stop Kian84. Kwon Hyuk-soo hurriedly said, "What are you doing right now?" and Jung Sang-hoon was flustered, saying, "He really lit it. Ah, the smell of cigarette." Kian84 replied, "It's the 1990s... since it's the early 1990s concept." Then Kwon Hyuk-soo joked while calming the situation, "He made all of us nervous to ease his own tension."

A similar situation was staged once more near the end of the segment. Kian84, upset about not finding a partner, took out a cigarette again and put it in his mouth. This time, he also actually lit it, and cigarette smoke rose inside the filming set. The cast members rushed to stop him again. Viewers had mixed reactions to this scene.

Netizens commented, "It's a paid OTT channel and the target audience is 19 and older, so what's the problem?", "Alcohol is allowed but cigarettes are not?", and "It's just an element of comedy." Some felt it was acceptable and amusing considering the past broadcast concept, but others criticized that openly smoking indoors during filming was excessive. One netizen wrote, "The problem is not the depiction of smoking itself, but that indoor smoking is clearly illegal and he lit a cigarette here."

Article 9, Paragraph 4, Item 16 of the National Health Promotion Act designates entire facilities as non-smoking zones if the total floor area of office buildings, factories, and mixed-use buildings is 1,000㎡ or more. Smoking indoors in a non-smoking zone can result in a fine of up to 100,000 KRW. In fact, last September, EXO member D.O. (Do Kyung-soo) was fined after being caught smoking in a waiting room.

Meanwhile, smoking scenes in OTT programs are not subject to regulation. Unlike public broadcast programs governed by the Broadcasting Act, OTT programs are not regulated.

The Broadcasting Act establishes regulations on broadcasting review compliance, and Article 28 of these regulations states that "when broadcasting deals with content such as drinking, smoking, gambling, luxury, and waste, the expression should be handled carefully so as not to glorify or encourage them." Accordingly, scenes of drinking or smoking do not directly appear in movies, dramas, or entertainment programs aired on public broadcasters.

On the other hand, OTT programs are subject to the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (Information and Communications Network Act), which prohibits harmful sites and illegal information distribution but does not regulate drinking or smoking scenes. For this reason, smoking scenes are easily found in OTT programs. According to an analysis report titled "2023 National Assembly Inspection Issue Analysis" published last year by the National Assembly Legislative Research Office, monitoring 14 popular drama works from seven domestic and international OTT services showed that 12 of them (87.5%) featured tobacco products and smoking scenes.