Chairperson Lee Jin-sook's impeachment has been derailed, allowing the Korea Communications Commission to breathe a sigh of relief. The Commission is expected to prioritize urgent tasks, such as the re-licensing of broadcasting companies. However, due to the opposition party's non-cooperation, it is likely that the Commission will continue with its two-member system instead of its original five-member structure, making it difficult for them to carry out their duties effectively.
The Constitutional Court decided on the morning of the 23rd to dismiss the impeachment motion against Korea Communications Commissioner Lee Jin-sook. Among the eight judges, Kim Hyung-doo, Jung Hyung-sik, Kim Bok-hyeong, and Cho Han-chang expressed dissenting opinions, while Moon Hyung-bae, Lee Mi-sun, Jung Jeong-mi, and Jeong Gye-seon raised opinions in favor. A dismissal decision requires the agreement of six or more judges, and the impeachment motion was rejected due to an even split in opinions.
The National Assembly previously passed the impeachment motion against Lee when three Commissioner positions from the National Assembly's recommendations were vacant. This was based on the reason that she held a plenary session to appoint the boards of KBS and MBC with only Vice Chairperson Kim Tae-kyu.
Chairperson Lee returned to her duties at the Korea Communications Commission after being suspended for over 170 days since August 2 of last year, just two days after her inauguration. During her absence, Vice Chairperson Kim served as acting chairperson. In a one-person system under Vice Chairperson Kim, no major issues could be decided, leading the Commission to only carry out basic administrative work and effectively become a dormant state.
◇ Korea Communications Commission likely to address urgent issues, such as broadcasting company re-licensing
With the return of Chairperson Lee, the Commission is expected to focus on resolving priority tasks. Notable items on the agenda include the re-licensing and re-approval review of broadcasting companies. The Commission was supposed to complete re-licensing reviews and decisions for 146 channels belonging to 12 domestic operators, including KBS 1TV, MBC TV, and EBS TV, by the end of last month, but it could not hold plenary sessions under the one-person system, leading to the failure of that process. Consequently, 146 channels are effectively continuing broadcast operations without licenses. Additionally, at the end of 2023, the Commission had postponed the re-licensing deadline by about a month due to tight review periods when it was under a two-member system with former Chairperson Kim Hong-il and former Vice Chairperson Lee Sang-in.
The Korea Communications Commission plans to promote legislation regarding user protection related to artificial intelligence (AI) and to mandate that content generated by AI should be labeled as produced by artificial intelligence in order to protect users from the negative impacts of new digital services like AI and the metaverse. To eradicate illegal spam, it is also increasing penalties such as confiscating crime proceeds and imposing penalty surcharges, as well as improving AI spam filtering and establishing a new overseas message-blocking system.
In an effort to prevent the dominance of foreign big tech companies, the Korea Communications Commission is also planning to establish a South Korean version of the Digital Services Act (DSA) this year. The DSA currently enforced by the European Union requires big tech companies to comply with illegal content removal orders from regulatory authorities, with a maximum penalty surcharge of 6% of their previous year's revenue for violations. The Commission announced that as the broadcasting market shifts towards online video services (OTT) and contracts, it aims to create legislation encompassing both broadcasting and OTT sectors to enable media corporations to compete confidently on a global stage.
◇ Conflict over the legality of the 'two-member system' with opposition inevitable… work disruption unavoidable
However, as the two-member system of Chairperson Lee and Vice Chairperson Kim continues, legal disputes over the agenda review and decision-making process are expected to persist. The Korea Communications Commission is required to be composed of a five-member standing committee, including a chairperson and vice chairperson, but due to ongoing conflicts between the ruling and opposition parties, three standing committee members have yet to be appointed. Courts have previously pointed out issues with the composition of public broadcasting boards that were conducted under the two-member system.
The National Assembly is currently delaying the recommendations for standing committee members due to disagreements surrounding public broadcasting issues. The Democratic Party of Korea recommended Assembly Member Choi Min-hee as a standing commissioner to the Korea Communications Commission in 2023, but President Yoon Suk-yeol withheld the appointment due to legal disqualifications. Since last year, the Democratic Party has been delaying its recommendations for their two allotted standing committee members. Consequently, even if the Korea Communications Commission is waiting for the appointment of three standing commissioners to gain momentum in its work, it seems that work stagnation will be inevitable.
Shin Yul, a professor of political science and diplomacy at Myongji University, remarked, "It is as if the Constitutional Court acknowledged through its ruling that the current two-member system of the Korea Communications Commission can continue for now," adding that "there's a high likelihood that the opposition will seek to continue exerting its influence over broadcasting rights, which will likely impede the Commission's work."
Park Sang-byeong, a political commentator, stated, "There is a high possibility of conflict arising over issues such as the appointment of public broadcasting board members and proposed new broadcasting laws between the Korea Communications Commission and the opposition. In this case, disruptions to the Korea Communications Commission's work during the remaining term of Chairperson Lee will be unavoidable."