South Korea – (E9) Participation
Citizen participation is convenient and active. News outlets offer various online channels through which the public can comment, share user-generated content, and engage in public discussions.
Indicators: Equality / Interest mediation
South Korea – (E8) Level of self-regulation
Each news media outlet has its own mission statement, and most have codes of ethics or conduct. Readers’ rights instruments and ombudspersons are present in many of the leading news media outlets but are not found very widely and often serve as customer service of sorts.
South Korea – (E7) Code of ethics at the national level
Codes of ethics exist both at the national and the firm levels. Newsroom practice does not always match what is laid out on paper.
South Korea – (E6) Content monitoring instruments
Public and civic monitoring bodies provide content monitoring regularly and offer easy public access to decisions and statistics online.
South Korea – (E5) Affordable public and private news media
Accessing news is relatively easy in South Korea, with news articles and television news programmes provided free of charge online most of the time. Various forms of news are accessible as long as one has a personal computer or a smartphone. Channel reception fees, cable, and smartphone plans are generally affordable.
South Korea – (E4) Minority / Alternative media
Minority and alternative media are extremely scarce, and news media specialising in investigative journalism are still very small in comparison with legacy media. However, the rise of Internet news has given these news outlets greater reach.
South Korea – (E3) Diversity of news formats
The popularity of smartphones to access news while on the move has contributed to the emergence of “card news” as a convenient, visualised news format. New and innovative formats of news presentation have started to take off, especially geared towards younger audiences who are used to the fast-paced and eclectic news available on social media platforms.
South Korea – (E1) Media ownership concentration national level
A higher concentration ratio (CR3) is observed when the news media market share is calculated based on news consumption (47.3%) rather than production (38.2%).
South Korea – (E2) Media ownership concentration regional level
The ownership concentration at the regional level largely matches the national level, although there may be some regional preferences for specific news outlets.
Denmark – (E5) Affordable public and private news media
Public service media are relatively affordable. Newspapers – both print and online – are relatively expensive.
