A Nobel Literature Prize winner Albert Camus quoted, “A free press can, of course, be good or bad, but, most certainly without freedom, the press will never be anything but bad.” The true quality of the media is to operate under freedom of expression and report the truth, and the same is required from university press. As many publishing organizations at other universities have faced incidents of oppression, Korea University (KU) needs to look at the degree of freedom it is allowing student voices.

A university press is a representation of student voices, and it is important that they are allowed to speak freely. In the 1980s, the democratization movement occurred, and the school press was a place where students could discuss the problems of the government and exchange ideas. In the 21st century, the school press serves a similar role, but has taken on a less active form.

The reason why sharp criticism and acute discussions have disappeared from school publication is because students submit to the barriers which exist in society. Reporters fear that writing articles directed at a particular person or group will leave them vulnerable to disciplinary action, and unfortunately, that is often true. The most vulnerable are universities that have become integrated with chaebols. If students oppose such takeover, the school reacts by oppressing them.  

For example, in October of 2013, SungKyunKwan University (SKKU) newspaper experienced the misfortune of missing their publication for two months. This was because the supervising professor denied accepting a revised article to be put up. The article was about the school closing up a meeting related to Samsung labor union. A similar happening occurred at Chung-Ang University (CAU) in November of 2009, when the school magazine, Chung-Ang Munhwa, criticized the school’s benefactor, Doosan Industries, and was recollected just three hours after distribution.

School presses are struggling to regain their independence from supervising professors and strengthen their freedom of expression. The current editor-in-chief of the SKKU newspaper, Jo Su Min, said that the overall attitude of reporters in handling campus news was to report it, good or bad.

“We do not deliberately avoid writing articles that are politically controversial or are related to the Samsung Foundation. In fact, we feel a conviction to report news that the students must be informed of, even if that means colliding with the school.” But the newspaper is far from free of university oversight. “Although we have more intervention in editorial rights compared to other schools, we always try our best to convince the school of our stance, and persuade them to accept it.”

The CAU newspaper staff seemed to have similar opinion on this issue. Kim Min Sun, the current editor-in-chief, said that they try their best to stay unbiased in writing on political issue and make campus issues known through analytical reporting. “Our newspaper serves the role of a watchdog when it comes to discussing controversial issues, and all of our evaluations are based on fact.” She pointed out that true quality required university presses to be hard-nosed and truth-seeking.

At KU, there are several publication such as KU Weekly, The Granite Tower (GT), KU Business Journal, and Godae Munhwa. Unlike CAU and SKKU, KU is not as dependent on one chaebol. In this respect, the school press is comparatively free from direct intervention. Godae Munhwa, a progressive school magazine, runs under independent editorial and financial rights, and authority over human resources. Being autonomous in this way guarantees freedom of expression, which is essential in forming a healthy environment to discuss social issues.

KU Weekly’s current operational method also proves that publishing organizations in KU are ensured less intervention from the school. According to KU Weekly’s editor-in-chief Lee So Yeon, although the publisher is KU President Kim Byung Chul, the editor-in-chief has complete editorial control, and the whole process of publishing is completed within the organization. Lee talked about the importance of independent editorial rights when it comes to reporting. “The current management method might undergo transformation when a new school president is appointed. However, under the current system, we neither share our editorial rights with someone outside KU Weekly, nor do we think it is a right thing to do.”

▲ Agreement between SKKU newspaper and supervising professor.

When asked about the extent to which KU Weekly was ensured freedom of the press, Lee replied that KU Weekly has considerable freedom compared on other school papers around Seoul. The reporters are free to reflect their initial plans of how to write the news, and senior students and graduate members of KU who retired from KU Weekly refrain from intervening in the publishing process.

The only times when KU Weekly confronts situations similar to intervention is when they are dealing with news directly targeted towards KU. “One member of KU Weekly’s editorial department is an assistant administrator who was editor-in-chief and is currently part of the KU administration. Because of this, he responds quite sensitively on school issues. But in that case, the assistant administrator and the editor-in-chief have a face-to-face talk to discuss ways to adjust our positions. There were a few times when the focus of the article was slightly revised, but no dramatic changes or actions have been made.”

▲ CAU students demanding to be free from school intervention.

Because KU is not reliant on one chaebol, publication organizations are comparatively free from intervention compared to schools like SKKU and CAU. However, the fact that assistant administrators and assistant professors tell reporters to write in more rounded fashion insinuate that we are silently being controlled. As a result, sharp criticisms have also disappeared.

▲ CAU students demanding to be free from school intervention.

Multiple factors have contributed to the crisis of school presses. Whether it be the takeover of a company or the publication’s relationship with the school, the reporters and readers need to engage in active interaction. KU is also not free from such dangers, and it is always important to check if our voice is expressed properly. It is time for university presses to rethink their true role, and provide grounds to inform what is true, just and important.