Court Suspends Effectiveness of MBC's 30 Million Won Fine Over 'Biden, Nallimyeon' Case

The court suspended the enforcement of the disciplinary action imposed on MBC by the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) regarding the 'subtitle controversy' that arose during President Yoon Seok-yeol's visit to the United States in September 2022.

Seoul Administrative Court.

According to the legal community on the 27th, the Seoul Administrative Court Administrative Division 8 (Chief Judge Lee Jeong-hee) approved MBC's request for a suspension of execution of the fine imposed by the KCC the day before.

The court ruled, "The effect of the 30 million KRW fine imposed on MBC by the KCC on June 11 will be suspended until the main judgment is delivered." Accordingly, MBC does not have to pay the fine until the first trial verdict on the cancellation lawsuit of the fine is announced.

Earlier, in April, the KCC decided to impose a 30 million KRW fine on MBC, led by commissioners recommended by the ruling party. The KCC reflected this decision in its sanction on June.

On September 22, 2022, President Yoon was leaving an international conference venue in New York, USA, and said, "What should we do, it’s embarrassing that these XX in the National Assembly didn’t approve 000 0000." This moment was captured by broadcast cameras. When reporting this, MBC added the subtitle '(USA)' before 'National Assembly' and changed the part 'did not 000 0000' to 'if they don’t, Biden will...' The presidential office explained that the president actually said 'if they don’t do it and let it go,' referring to our National Assembly, not the US Congress.