• Korean journal of communication and information
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• v.46
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• pp.280-322
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• 2009

The purpose of this study is put on the evaluation of public support for media with the case of Special Act on Supporting Local Press whose main purpose can be said to help local press in crisis intending the improvement of news quality. However, it was controversial whether public support on specific media under the governmental leadership, which is related to the disputes on its abrogation with the change of the regime. Therefore, this study tries to evaluate its achievement focused on its effect on the diversity of public opinion especially with the eyes of audience. In-depth interviews were executed to find out whether it had helped local press to improve public interest for the last three years of public support. The interviewees, the readers as well as monitors of local press, answered that there had been some improvement in news quality and diversity of local press in general. However, they thought that fund support for news gathering cost was problematic and would be negative in the long-term perspective. In conclusion, the interviewees regarded Special Act on Supporting Local Press as necessary one to help local press in crisis but pointed out also that the act might not enough to change local press because the situation they were facing is so complex. Hence, this study argues that the evaluation of Special Act on supporting Local Press should be approached Abstracts 683 not on the basis of political logics but of the public interest and democracy.

• Korean journal of communication and information
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• v.33
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• pp.227-251
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• 2006

The Law Ensuring the Freedom and the Functions of Liability of the Newspapers ("The Newspaper Law") which was passed in the National Assembly on January 1, 2005 is considered as a tremendous setback compared to "the Newspaper Bill" of civil press organizations. Of the two instruments to ensure the editorial freedom, the regulation on the newspaper company ownership share distribution was eliminated and the editorial committee (editorial codes of ethics) became an arbitrary system. That is, the Newspaper Law was criticized as a law of "half-success." However, the Newspaper Law has its own benefit by institutionalizing the establishment of the Korea Commission for the Press, the Press Fund, and the Korea Newspaper Circulation Service for Promoting Newspaper Businesses and by strengthening the criteria to estimate market dominant businesspeople in newspaper market than general markets to ensure the diversity of public opinions. As the Newspaper Law was promulgated, Donga-Ilbo and Chosun-Ilbo submitted the Constitutional Petition against "the Newspaper Law" and the Constitutional Court is expected to give the decision soon. Based on the "Supplements on the Grounds of the Constitutional Petition against the Newspaper Law" ("the Petition"), this paper will examine the main issues of the debates over the Constitutionality of the Newspaper Law.

• Korean journal of communication and information
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• v.51
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• pp.117-135
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• 2010

The regulation of media concentration which is provided in the German Interstate Treaty on Broadcasting (RStV) is part of the rules forming the "positive broadcasting order" required by German Constitutional Law. This control ensures that the diversity of viewpoints can be articulated to the public. Broadcasting must operate independently from the state and from particular social groups if it is to be a genuine service to the public. One risk of economic competition in the media is a tendency towards the concentration of business enterprises. Moreover, economic competition is no guarantee for journalistic diversity. The aim of balanced diversity in the broadcasting sector can only be pursued by creating conditions under which different voices obtain the chance to be heard in an equitable manner. Within the framework of the meaning of section 26, it shall be assumed that there is a predominant impact on public opinion if the programs attributable to one company reach an annual audience share of 30 percent. The same shall apply if the company reaches an audience share of 25 percent and holds a dominant position in a related media-market or an overall assessment of its activities in television. The restriction of audience shares has limits such as that the audience shares of news programs and education and entertainment programs are pooled. Therefore, there is a vagueness about the productivity of different program branches.

• Korean journal of communication and information
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• v.33
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• pp.169-191
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• 2006

Changing our monopoly broadcasting advertising system into free competition system may give rise to serious troubles that intensify commercialism of broadcasting and reduce diversity of public opinion. In the boundaries of public interest out of danger, korean broadcasting system should adopt a system that partially adopts the principle of free market. Broadcasting advertising sale system affect the whole broadcasting system because it functions as an effective capital-resource provider. Thus, it affects the broadcasting policies' righteousness and efficiency. Due to the non-elastic nature of the total advertising market, broadcasting advertising's size affects other media's capital allocation process. Therefore, broadcasting advertising sales system not only affects broadcast's social duty and public interest, but also affects the whole media industry. First, provide fair and open-competitive measures to support broadcast sales policy so that the market-based system can be run smoothly. Second, block any un-due influence from advertisers by separating production/programming and advertising sales. Third, sustain public broadcast system, not based on the advertising sales but based on the subscription fee. Fourth, social intervention of the advertising market. Fifth, provide policies that can set up multiple media channels/outlets and public opinion. By providing the minimum capital resources to the public broadcasting system, the broadcasting system can act on its public-interest duty and support the people's right-to-know rights.