Foreign media unable to access South Korean government ministries and excluded from background briefing opportunities. Artificial embargoes set by Korean reporters that delay the delivery of breaking news. Hurdles that complicate and in some cases prevent international media from obtaining primary source documents.

These are some of the problems blighting the ROK’s media ecosystem, which has for decades operated on a two-level basis that overtly favors local media over the international press, even though no rules or laws exist to formally justify the prejudice.

While there have been some improvements in foreign media outlets’ access to the ROK government in recent years, there is little hope the situation will improve significantly.

That’s because the government fears the consequences that creating an equal playing field would create among the Korean press corps, former government spokespersons, long-time journalists on the peninsula and media commentators told Korea Pro. 

But remedies to equalize government access for local and foreign media do exist, some observers say, with at least one ministry having already created a precedent that could be applied elsewhere.

THE PROBLEM

South Korean journalists’ privileged access to the government contributes to numerous problems for international news consumers, say those familiar with the local media ecosystem.

The lack of equal access to some of the most critical government ministries in South Korea is the clearest example of where this two-track approach is most felt. 

Local journalists selected to each ministry’s press corps — or “kijadan” — may attend regular briefings held exclusively for Korean reporters and even work daily within the assigned ministry. Foreigners — in most cases — have no access to these opportunities.

Ministries also usually share news of forthcoming government decisions and announcements with Korean reporters in each “kijadan” ahead of their foreign counterparts. Further, Korean reporters who have worked for local and international media outlets confirm that ministry spokespeople who engage with local media tend to have senior positions compared to those who engage with international ones.

Worse, press corps reporters often agree to artificially delay embargoes on releasing news gathered from within their ministries to allow for the convenience of taking a coffee or lunch break, multiple correspondents in Seoul familiar with the system told Korea Pro.

“I was really shocked when I first went to the defense ministry,” said a Korean staffer now working at an international news agency but who previously worked for a local outlet.

North Korea had conducted its first-ever submarine ballistic missile launch, the staffer said, but Korean journalists who got the information during a Ministry of National Defense (MND) briefing event decided to wait to publish it.

“Some of the senior reporters said: ‘Let’s do that at two. Yes, cool. Let’s go,’” the staffer recounted, to allow time for a mutually agreed lunch break. “I was really shocked.”

Beyond the embargoes, foreign media often encounter problems obtaining primary source information. 

For instance, international media can find it almost impossible to obtain court documents from some jurisdictions that are easily accessible to local reporters. In addition, some ministries delay distributing statements or press releases to foreign journalists, with chatrooms for local reporters getting preference over those for foreign media.

“I’m very often surprised that most [ROK] government officials just don’t know about this,” said the Korean staffer. “They just don’t understand why we have to have this two-tier system.”

The two-track system also creates burdens for professionals at the government level.

“We can’t publicize information in an effective, efficient way, as we have to have two sessions,” said a former ministry spokesperson on condition of anonymity.

As the ROK attracts growing global attention, and more international news organizations open bureaus in Seoul, the current system leaves much to be desired in light of the Yoon administration’s goal for the ROK to become a “global pivotal state.”

“I lived in the U.S. for years, and I never heard [of the government] trying to distinguish between foreign and U.S. media,” a former Blue House official told Korea Pro.

“As soon as you step into Korea, it’s foreign and non-foreign,” the former official continued. “[So there’s] a huge war between foreign and Korean media.”

Andrew Salmon, a veteran Korea correspondent, also added that the problem “ebbs and flows from administration to administration.” It cannot be defined as a “left-wing or right-wing” issue.

An illustration of a photographer | Image: Korea Pro

GOVERNMENT FEARS

The two-track South Korean press access system is a hangover of a bygone era that has calcified and will be difficult to change due to resistance from local media, former spokespersons and press workers told Korea Pro.

“If you look at how the “kijadan” is run and managed, I think it’s the same as how it’s done in Japan,” said a Korean reporter working at an international media outlet, talking on condition of anonymity due to not being permitted to provide comments to third-party media. 

“We still have a lot of Japanese systems,” echoed a correspondent at a Korean media outlet on condition of anonymity for the same reason.

But the government can’t seem to break the two-track system even if it wanted to.

“I think the main stumbling block … is that local reporters on many government beats don’t want it [the two-track system to change], and they pressure the ministries [they’re assigned to] not to allow it,” said Mike Breen, who covered South Korea for decades as a journalist.

Other observers say government officials fear what might happen if they ignore local media outlets’ demands.

Unnecessarily upsetting local media could have long-term consequences, the former Blue House official explained.

“Public opinion is often shaped by the media — and your role as press secretary is to do your best so that [negative trends] don’t happen,” they said.

“Maybe they would forgive it if it happened just once or twice, but treating foreign media equally for an extended period? No government or press secretary could bear [the consequences of doing] that. If the [local] press turns their back against the ministry, it can look like a war.” 

Former ROK President Park Geun-hye’s fate is a clear case of why the government might be fearful of upsetting local media, explained the locally hired reporter at an international outlet. 

“When the local media decides as a cohort to screw the government, they could do it,” the reporter said, citing the media’s “united” approach during the Choi Soon-sil scandal of 2016 that eventually brought down the Park administration.

The former Blue House official explained that those fears might not be unfounded, citing the experience of working with a presidential candidate who held a foreign media presser and revealed newsworthy remarks not previously shared with South Korean media.

“Immediately after, I got so many complaints from local media outlets,” the official said. “‘How could a candidate running for Korean president disclose such news before doing so to the Korean media,’ they asked.”

PROTECTING WHAT’S THEIRS

Interviews with current and former Korean correspondents shed light on why the South Korean press corps might take umbrage if the government leveled access with international media, with the issue coming down to protecting their interests and minimizing competition.

“To be part of the press corps, you must belong to a media outlet with a strong reputation or a legitimate media company,” said Kim Han-ul, a Korean journalist who was part of the MND’s “kijadan.” 

To obtain access to this club, the media outlet and reporter in question need to begin a meticulous, multi-prong effort to win the support of existing members. 

“You have to befriend the right people, befriend the ‘kansa’ — the press corps leader — who might then let you in by tweaking the votes or adding seats to the media corps,” Kim continued.

Once voted into this particular press corps, the media outlet or reporter must make regular payments to maintain a ministry desk area where the newly embedded journalist can work. “You have to show up a certain number of days for regular briefings,” the locally hired reporter adds.

Members accepted into the “kijadan” must also observe the media corps’ internal rules, which include respecting the government’s and Korean press corps’ embargoes. Breaking these embargoes can result in fines and penalties.

Thus, it’s easy to see why there might be resistance to providing equal access to foreign press — especially if they do not adhere to the same norms. The uproar would be swift if ministry officials offered equal access to foreign media outlets. “The reaction from the local media would be obvious: ‘Who are you to give them such an easy pass?’” said the locally hired reporter.

Kim, the former MND journalist, agreed that expanded competition might “jeopardize” the “positioning” of Korean journalists within the domestic press corps pools. 

“They don’t want to lose a scoop to a foreigner because their boss would be like, ‘What were you doing? This foreigner wrote about the story,’” Kim said. “It would be an embarrassment if foreign press published a story before them [or] they didn’t follow the embargoes as they do.”

But others disagreed, saying that individual Korean journalists could be happy to work alongside foreign media at ministry briefings.

“I would be open to it … because I want to see a lot of things from other perspectives,” said the correspondent at the Korean media outlet. 

And the Korean staffer now working at an international news agency agreed: “Korean reporters … don’t necessarily accept the boundary separating local and international media.”

An illustration of a photographer and her mirror image | Image: Korea Pro

CULTURE, STAFFING AND DEMAND

Other factors may be contributing to cementing the two-level access norm in South Korea, others interviewed by Korea Pro said.

Firstly, former officials said that successive Korean governments tend to be more anxious about the second-order consequences of foreign media coverage than what comes after local media reporting.

“Presidents and ministers are concerned about meeting with … foreigners in general,” said the former Blue House official, arguing that inaccurate translation can sometimes lead to “consequences that can be severe.”

In contrast, discussions with Korean journalists are more “comfortable,” the former Blue House official continued because local reporters “understand the underlying rationale” and “idea” of what is being said.”

Many others share this sentiment.

“When discussing sensitive topics, ministries avoid having interviews with the foreign press because there’s a higher possibility of being mistranslated or having their words taken out of context,” said a former ministry spokesperson.

Secondly, some government offices might refuse to engage with foreign media organizations simply due to staffing shortages. Requests must often be sent up the chain and approved by multiple layers of directors, which can be further complicated if it has to be done in a language other than Korean.

Finally, some foreign media simply don’t demand equal access. As some international bureaus in the ROK only have one or a few reporters, it would be impossible for foreign media outlets to attend briefings in the various ministries regularly, as required within the “kijadan” system. 

In this light, Breen, the veteran reporter, noted that the two-track access system might not be a problem for all: “I’m not convinced this is too much more than an annoyance for the foreign press.”

As a result, there have been cases of seats reserved for foreign media being wasted in the past, the former Blue House official said. The former ministry spokesperson said local reporters would find it unfair if the government provided equal access only for foreign reporters not to use it. 

“The Korean government and media companies must adopt more reasonable global standards,” they explained. “But at the same time, once that privilege is given, the foreign press has to live up to the norms like any other Korean media.”

THE CURRENT SITUATION

Despite the decades-long two-track access norm, no formal law or regulation justifies the government’s current approach to press communications, Korea Pro confirmed.

“It’s just a customary thing,” said the former Blue House official. “If I open the code book, you can’t find anything (justifying it).”

But precisely because there is no formal law codifying the practice, the government denies there is any discrimination. “The official position is we never try to treat [media] differently,” the former Blue House official said.

Yoon Suk-yeol’s presidential office told Korea Pro it “provides equal access to information to domestic and foreign media without any discrimination.”

The Ministry of Unification told Korea Pro that there were “no laws or mandates” stipulating how it should support local versus foreign media queries but didn’t control access to its back briefings.

South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) told Korea Pro it provides “customized services” to foreign media but that the “physical space” at their building is “provided for the domestic press” as “domestic correspondents to MOFA are covering MOFA full-time, unlike the foreign press, who cover all issues and all ministries in Korea.”

Similarly, an MND official said the ministry “has never refused to allow foreign media outlets to participate” in its press briefings. It specified that requests for briefing access could be facilitated between two and 24 hours ahead of time.

But when Korea Pro requested access to an MND briefing, an MND official responded: “Attendance in the background briefing requires the cooperation of the press corps’ secretariat and the consent of all members of the press corps.”

A WAY FORWARD?

Even if most international media cannot meet the minimum attendance requirements of various South Korean press corps, there will always be times when equal access is vital.

For example, an outburst of hostilities between the Koreas, a spark of war in Taiwan, or a major opening of the DPRK economy would likely put pressure on international media outlets to rapidly focus on South Korea. In such cases, being able to attend the same briefings as Korean journalists would be vital for ensuring high-quality international coverage.

What can be done to remedy the situation?

“Firstly, we need much more exposure [of the problem],” said the former Blue House official. “Every time I speak to my friends in media, I always say: “It’s your role to make this an issue. You, as a journalist, that’s the power you have. Isn’t it your role to correct it?”

If attention can lead to action, one option might be for the “kijadan” to offer limited but permanent spaces for foreign media in each ministry.

The Seoul Foreign Correspondents’ Club (SFCC), which holds regular briefings for foreign media, allows a limited number of Korean journalists to attend its events, said the Korean staffer now working at an international news agency, offering a potential template for others to do the same.

“A realistic and doable way could be to allow us to send a pooler or two,” said the staffer. “We can send us a couple of reporters, and we can send [the transcripts] to everybody else.”

But despite the SFCC template, this might not sit well with the “kijadan” — for reasons previously described. 

According to Kim Han-ul, the Korean journalistic solution would be to “create a press corps for foreigners … [with] someone who speaks English to manage the foreign journalists so the message doesn’t get lost in translation.” But that is “not going to happen anytime soon,” she added, “because there’s a conflict of interest, I think.”

However, the former ministry spokesperson pointed to a past precedent. 

Unlike the ministries Korea Pro focused on for this investigation, the Ministry of Economy and Finance allows foreign reporters to access background briefings — to work from within the ministry and to obtain primary source materials in real-time.

“So that’s an exception because the “kijadan” at the Ministry of Economy and Finance accepted [foreign media],” the former spokesperson said, describing their approach as “a global standard.” 

Asked to explain the context of its unique access offering, the ministry told Korea Pro: “Any registered reporters, regardless of foreign or local media, can work from the ministry, receive press releases in advance and access back briefings and formal or informal press conferences.”

What’s more, the equal foreign-local access system has been in existence for over 30 years, the ministry added.

But despite that precedent, the government appears to have little appetite to make substantial changes. 

“I think nobody knows how to start,” said the Korean staffer now working at an international news agency. “No one has dared to touch it… and no one can really figure out how.”

Eventually, said the former Blue House official, things will change.

“At some point, the government will realize there’s no meaning in treating [the two sides] differently.”

Yeji Chung contributed reporting to this report. Edited by John Lee