Choi Hyeokjin: "Withdraw FBC Director Appointments... Oh Se-hoon, Stop Pressuring MBC"

Independent lawmaker Choi Hyukjin, a member of the National Assembly’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, criticized the Broadcasting and Media Communications Commission’s appointments of Oh Jeong-hwan and Jung Jae-wook as directors of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture (FBC), as well as the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s suspension of advertising on MBC and its lawsuits and criminal complaints against the broadcaster. He called for guarantees of public broadcasting’s independence.

On September 28, 2022, members of civic groups hold signs calling for an end to press suppression in front of MBC headquarters in Mapo-gu, Seoul, as People Power Party lawmakers visit to protest. / Photo by National Assembly Photojournalists Group

On October 19, Choi said, "Appointments that undermine the independence of public broadcasting and pressure on critical media outlets must stop." He added, "I will continue to scrutinize the commission’s responsibility for appointing the directors and Mayor Oh’s pressure on the media."

At its 42nd plenary meeting on October 15, the commission approved the appointments of Oh Jeong-hwan and Jung Jae-wook, who were recommended by the People Power Party, as FBC directors. Their terms begin on October 19. The FBC, MBC’s largest shareholder, holds a 70% stake in the broadcaster and is responsible for appointing the MBC president and overseeing its management.

Choi called for the appointments to be withdrawn, citing the two directors’ past actions. In 2017, Oh caused controversy at an FBC board meeting when he compared veteran reporters who returned to work after a strike to Jews persecuted by the Nazis. Jung served as defense counsel for former MBC President Kim Jae-cheol, who was indicted on charges of occupational embezzlement, and became head of MBC’s Legal Affairs Office through a special recruitment process in 2014.

"People who are not free from past conflicts and controversies have been appointed as FBC directors, who appoint the MBC president and oversee its management," Choi said. "These appointments run counter to the public’s expectations for MBC’s normalization and stronger independence for public broadcasting."

The Seoul Metropolitan Government’s suspension of MBC advertising and its legal action also came under scrutiny. According to Choi, from 2024 through August 2026, the city placed KRW 2.18 billion in advertising with KBS and KRW 1.96 billion with SBS, but only KRW 370 million with MBC. In particular, the city completely halted its advertising on MBC this year.

In June 2026, the Seoul Metropolitan Government filed a lawsuit seeking KRW 300 million in damages and a correction against MBC, its head of news, and the reporter responsible for a report about missing reinforcing bars at Samseong Station on the GTX-A line. Choi alleged that Mayor Oh’s side had also filed criminal complaints against Seoul National University professors who took part in a broadcast interview, following complaints against the producers and anchor of "PD Notebook."

Independent lawmaker Choi Hyukjin. Rep. Choi's office.

"The city’s budget for promoting its administration, funded by taxpayers, does not belong to the mayor personally," Choi said. "Cutting advertising to a broadcaster that has aired critical reports and responding to journalists and experts with lawsuits and criminal complaints uses public authority and funds to undermine the media’s watchdog role."

He also urged MBC’s new president, Lee Seong-ju, to take active steps to protect reporting and production teams. Choi said the broadcaster should strengthen legal support for reporters, producers, and outside sources targeted by lawsuits and criminal complaints, formally protest to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, and consider requesting a review of its advertising spending.

"I will not stand by as conduct that undermines media independence continues, from appointments of FBC directors tasked with overseeing public broadcasting to local authorities’ suspension of advertising and their use of lawsuits and criminal complaints," Choi said.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.