Problems in media reports related to NK

By Yang Moo-jin

At the ROK-U.S. summit, the two leaders agreed that diplomacy and dialogue based on existing agreements between the two Koreas and between the U.S. and North Korea are essential for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the establishment of a regime under peace. The two leaders also confirmed U.S. President Joe Biden's support for inter-Korean dialogue, engagement and cooperation.

Despite close cooperation between the ROK and the U.S. on North Korea, the media has not changed its behavior of distorting the facts as if there is a big disagreement, leading to serious consequences such as the estrangement of the ROK-U.S. alliance and damage to efforts to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.

At a symposium held in Seoul in May, Moon Chung-in, who is a former special adviser to President Moon Jae-in for foreign affairs and security, remarked, "If a human rights issue is raised, North Korea sees it as a hostile policy toward the North, and it becomes difficult for the North to come out in a dialogue mood at that moment." The VOA then requested the U.S. State Department to comment on the remarks made by the former special adviser.

An official from the Office of the Spokesperson of the U.S. State Department expressed the existing principled position regarding human rights and said, "The United States is committed to putting human rights at the center of foreign policy, and the United States will show unity with like-minded partners in addressing human rights abuses."

By citing these VOA reports, some domestic media came out with provocative articles claiming that the U.S. pressured the ROK government indirectly, or that human rights are feared to become a "detonator" for the ROK-U.S. summit, stretching the meaning as if the two countries had significant differences ahead of the meeting.

U.S. media outlets such as Voice of America and Radio Free Asia promptly request comments from the U.S. State Department with only a fragmentary part of the contents mentioned by high-ranking officials such as the President and Minister of the Republic of Korea related to North Korea policy, excluding the overall context. They are inducing the expansion and reproduction of related issues as if there is a large difference in the stances on North Korea policy between the ROK and the U.S.

Such reporting behavior is not recognized for justification both in form and content. The question is about complex inter-Korean relations issues with overlapping interests, while the answer is merely the basic position of the U.S. government, which appears just like a product coming out of a vending machine. In addition, there is a problem that responses are handled very practically at the level of the spokesperson's office of the US State Department although the parties who make the remarks are high-ranking officials, such as the President and Ministers of the Korean government. In other words, it can be seen that the question and the answer are structurally separated and out of balance. Most of all, this is a serious problem, because unfair coverage is distorted again by some reports from South Korea. This has become a routine practice.

South Korea's Unification Minister Lee In-young met with Lee Joong-myung, chairman of the Ananti golf course and the Korea Golf Association. The chairman shared a proposal to jointly host the 2025 World Amateur Golf Championship at a golf course Ananti built on Mount Geumgang. "We will closely interact with the association at the government level as soon as we get a chance to communicate with North Korea," said Minister Lee.

Referring to Minister Lee's comments, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department said, "The United States supports inter-Korean cooperation, and close coordination with our ROK ally will be central to U.S. strategy on North Korea. United Nations sanctions on DPRK remain in place, and we will continue to enforce them, including through diplomacy at the United Nations and with the DPRK's neighbors." But some reports from South Korea distorted the facts as if the U.S. government refuted Minister Lee's statements by giving prominence to the U.S. government's theoretical position on sanctions against North Korea despite President Biden's support of inter-Korean cooperation.

VOA says on its website that the news it delivers will be accurate, objective, and comprehensive, while pledging to represent America and not any single segment of American society. RFA may also be considered to have the same orientation. I recommend that VOA and RFA take time to reflect on themselves and whether their repeated reporting behaviors are accurate, objective and represent the American view. Since VOA reports as if there are big differences between the ROK and the U.S. by citing only a part of what Korean and U.S. government officials say. That's where those who comprise the South Korean media must ask themselves if they are running the risk of losing balance and being partial in their reporting due to their political interests.

Yang Moo-jin (yangmj@kyungnam.ac.kr) is a professor at the University of North Korean Studies and vice chairman of the Korean Association of North Korean Studies. He is also a standing committee member of the National Unification Advisory Council and policy consultant at the Ministry of Unification.