Kim Seung-won, a member of the Democratic Party, said that a thorough investigation by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, which is obligated to supervise the ABC Association’s alleged manipulation of paid copies, is necessary.
Rep. Kim Seung-won quoted the media today report at the plenary meeting of the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee on the 24th, saying, “It has been reported in detail that the number has been inflated. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also said that it is grasping the facts. Is that correct?” and Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee replied, “We are ending the audit and analyzing the results.”
Earlier, Media Today reported that the number of daily newspapers certified by the ABC Association is likely to be half of the actual number by acquiring the results of an on-site survey conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, which is investigating allegations of incidental manipulation of the ABC Association.
Rep. Kim said on the day, “According to the Government Advertising Act, the number of issued and paid copies announced by the ABC Association becomes the standard for calculating subsidies provided by the government and affects the selection of government advertising media and the calculation of advertising unit prices. Paid copies are an important criterion for calculating the advertising unit price. It has an effect on government advertising.”
Rep. Kim Seung-won said, “Criminally, it is close to fraud, and furthermore, there is a possible violation of the Fair Trade Act. In particular, the Chosun Ilbo received the most government subsidies, and if the media today’s report is true, wasn’t it a false reception of half,” he stressed, “The investigation should be done thoroughly.” In response, Minister Hwang also replied, “That’s right.”
Rep. Kim Seung-won said, “(Newspaper companies) are divided into A grade and B grade, so the government advertisement unit price is different, but A grade is Jo Jung-dong. Jojung-dong, which belongs to Class A, needs a more thorough investigation. If it’s not Grade A, the government wasted tax on that margin and the newspapers were taking unfair gains.” In response, Minister Hwang replied, “I know that (unit price) is different because it has an advertising effect,” and “I am waiting for the results of the investigation.”
Rep. Kim Seung-won said, “According to the Fair Trade Act, even if the number of copies is not properly delivered to the reader, if an advertisement is lured, imprisonment for up to two years or a fine of up to 150 million won is possible. It is possible to impose penalties within 2% of sales,” he emphasized. “There must be a thorough investigation in this area.”
In response, Minister Hwang said, “This part is currently limited to office audit. “I am in charge of legal advice on whether an investigation can be requested,” he said, and “I will report a comprehensive report of the office audit. If the incidental manipulation turns out to be true, we will respond to corrective actions and recommendations for improvement.”
Rep. Kim Seung-won said, “I think the customary behavior of the Jojung-dong giant newspaper could be tax evasion and illegal acquisition. It must be corrected,” he stressed, and “(if it inflated the number of copies) there is a side that the newspaper has distorted the formation of public opinion. It is important to save public taxes and create a fair media ecosystem.”
Rep. Kim Seung-soo, who spoke after Congressman Kim Seung-won’s question, said to Minister Hwang, “Regarding illegality and corruption, any authority must transparently investigate and correct any errors without sanctuary. However, he asked, “How did you get the data from Media Today?” and asked, “It can be considered as OBI Rak, but this (reported on suspicion of incidental manipulation) came out in a situation where the ruling party insisted on passing the media relations law. The suspicion that it was pre-planned cannot be cleared. Please explain the data leakage section transparently.”
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