[Choice Times=Kim Geum-hyeok, Media Spokesperson, People Power Party]

At his New Year’s press conference on January 21, President Lee Jae-Myung was asked about opposition leader Jang Dong-hyuk’s request for a one-on-one meeting with the president, made while Jang was on a hunger strike. The president effectively rejected the request, saying, “I have seen people fabricate words I never said and use them as a tool for political strife,” and adding, “If I were to engage in direct dealings with individual parties, what would become of the National Assembly? At this moment, dialogue between the ruling and opposition parties should come first.” (Editor’s note)

What is the role of the press?

They are those who ask questions and receive answers. The press monopolizes access to information that the public cannot easily reach, and with the unique weapon of questioning, it asks on behalf of the people what they want to know, conveys the answers, and keeps those in power in check. That is the role of journalism.

On January 22, President Lee’s New Year’s press conference lasted more than three hours at the presidential office. During that time, while the leader of the largest opposition party was continuing a desperate, life-or-death struggle sustained by an oxygen respirator, not a single journalist present asked the president about Jang Dong-hyuk’s hunger strike.

There were also no questions about the major power-related crimes erupting one after another within the ruling camp. The organizers emphasized that the questions had not been pre-coordinated, but if that is indeed true, then the problem is even more serious.

Do the journalists seated there truly not see the country’s tragic reality? In a situation where special prosecutors aimed at uncovering their own questionable misconduct are fiercely opposed, while so-called “second comprehensive special prosecutors”—effectively tools for suppressing the opposition—are pushed through at lightning speed, do they really fail to sense the stench of authoritarianism?

If they know and remain silent, that is cowardice. If they do not know, it is simply incompetence. When the press is cowardly, power goes unchecked. When journalists avert their eyes, a nation’s freedom soon loses its vitality.

#PressFreedom #UncheckedPower #JournalismUnderPressure