(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on July 24)

More TV channels

The nation will be thrown into political turmoil if the main opposition goes
ahead with its pledge to take action in protest against the ruling party's
railroading of media bills. Worse still, news media unions and antigovernment
civic groups are vowing to team up with the opposition Democratic Party.

Before the bills were put to a vote Wednesday, the Democratic Party said all of
its lawmakers would resign from their posts and launch an all-out antigovernment
campaign if the ruling Grand National Party rammed the bills through the National
Assembly.
An undaunted National Assembly speaker called for a vote on media and other
pending bills on Wednesday afternoon, plunging the parliamentary main hall into
chaos. The voting proceeded, though lawmakers from the opposing parties scuffled
and called names, resulting in interruptions. No civility befitting lawmaker
status was to be found, to the chagrin of many voters, until the bills' passage
was declared.
No matter what they said, both the conservative, business-friendly Grand National
Party and the progressive Democratic Party were guided by their own self-interest
when dealing with the media bills, which were designed to lift a decades-old ban
on the cross ownership of newspaper and television companies. At issue was
whether or not to allow conservative newspaper publishers and corporate
conglomerates to have ownership of terrestrial and cable TV businesses.
There is no denying that the bills' revision was long overdue. The revision bills
will benefit the general public - by providing viewers with greater channel
choice and creating new jobs in the broadcasting industries - when they are
signed into law. Under the revised laws, the government is set to issue licenses
for up to four new cable TV channels - two general channels providing news,
entertainment, drama and other programs, and two news-only channels. A newspaper
company and a business conglomerate will be allowed to acquire up to 30 percent
of any channel.
The Grand National Party may have overestimated the number of jobs to be created
by the passage of the media bills when it was promoting them. But there is no
denying that it will provide so many new jobs because the demand for locally
produced programs is certain to surge in the years ahead.
Another important bill that passed the National Assembly is the revision to the
law on financial holding companies. Its passage will permit a non-financial
company to acquire up to 9 percent stake in a commercial bank, up from the
current 4 percent. This will certainly help reduce the influence foreign
investors are exercising in the banking industry.
(END)