‘신문등의자유와기능보장에관한법률’의 헌법적 고찰

Critical Analysis on New Press Law in terms of Freedom of Speech Clause

Though new press law has been made by mutual agreement between two big parties, the governing Uri Party and the opposing Grand National Party, it seems not to have been born after much deliberation. The governing party was busy in propagandizing needs for reforming the media, especially the press. The ultimate goal of the media reform can be summed up as media diversity, which cannot be denied by anyone in a democratic nation. However, the Uri Party spent little time in finding effective means to deal with media concentration in an era of diverse media. The Uri Party's Proposal to revising the Press Law consists of all regulations conceivable without consitutional review. The Proposal forces all newspapers to constitute an editing committee which is regally entitled to make decisions of content trend in the publication, even against either the editor's or owner's will. The Proposal also obliges all newspapers to compose an readers committee, which may participate in editorial process. New press law, promulgated after sudden compromise between two parties on the first day of 2005, does not prescribe two committees mandatory. As a result, new press law can escape an unconstitutional brawl. A presumption clause of press concentration draws high attention from large newspapers. However, as newspapers in its nature different from other products in relation with democracy, I believe, a presuming standard of concentration in the press can be different from others without being sentenced unconstitutional. It must be a big step toward establishing constitutionalism in Korea since almost all controversial provisions are eliminated with consent of two largest parties. However, it should not be praised just because new press law has little chance to be sentenced unconstitutional. It is time to lament over having lost an opportunity to revise press law for the enlargement of free speech right. Next time, we must have enough time to contemplate effective instruments to achieve media diversity without hurting the core of freedom of speech.