Controversy Over Use of Image with Kimigayo-Kimono and Reversed Taegukgi in Opera 'Nabibuin'
Following the controversy surrounding the 'KBS Commentary Booth' and the 'KBS News' weather segment aired on Liberation Day, KBS posted an apology on its website, and President Park Min also expressed his apologies.
On the 16th, Park Min, President of KBS, stated at an executive meeting, "The owners of KBS are the people, and it was emphasized at the time of my inauguration that we must deliver accurate information and knowledge so that the public can properly judge social issues and provide comfort to the people through broadcasting." He added, "On such a nationally important day, I sincerely apologize to the public on behalf of the executive team for causing discomfort."
He continued, "Through this incident, we will reflect more deeply on the role and responsibilities of a public broadcaster and work diligently to address them."
KBS will urgently improve the immediate issues revealed by promptly launching a 'Task Force' (TF) chaired by the Vice President to begin institutional reforms. The task force will be composed of director-level officials from various departments including news, production, programming, technology, personnel, and review.
Meanwhile, on the 15th, the 'KBS Commentary Booth' program aired the opera 'Madama Butterfly,' which is set in Japan. Viewers criticized the broadcast as inappropriate for Liberation Day, leaving strong comments on the website and social media platforms.
KBS issued a statement regarding 'KBS Commentary Booth,' saying, "We apologize to viewers for causing concern and disappointment." The opera 'Madama Butterfly,' composed by Italian composer Puccini, depicts the tragic love between an American officer stationed in Japan and a Japanese woman, and the national anthem Kimigayo is played during a wedding scene in the opera. Due to the controversy, the originally scheduled 'Madama Butterfly Part 2' broadcast on the 15th was replaced with another program. KBS stated, "We will investigate the circumstances of the broadcast to ensure such incidents do not happen again, hold appropriate parties accountable, and pay closer attention to production."
However, KBS faced further criticism for using an image of the Taegeukgi flag reversed left to right during the '930 News' broadcast that morning. KBS explained, "The producer flipped the Taegeukgi image using computer graphics to match a scene where a person was holding the flag."
They added, "KBS immediately corrected the Taegeukgi image upon identifying the issue and has re-uploaded the corrected video on the news website. We sincerely apologize for this mistake and will take great care in future productions to prevent such problems from recurring."
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