‘언론자유 확장’의 실질적 의미에 대한 시론적 탐색

초록

South Korea was ranked 41st place among 180 countries in the press freedom index by the Reporters Sans Frontières (Reporters Without Borders) in 2019. This is the highest rank since 2006 (31st at the time) and higher than that of the United States. This suggests that press freedom has expanded over the last few years since it was ranked the lowest in 2006. Based on this understanding, this study aimed to explore the actual meaning of the expansion of press freedom through a review of the related legal cases selected by the Korean Society for Media Law, Ethics, and Policy Research. First, Korean courts tend to apply the rule of void for vagueness (“명확성의 원칙”) strictly. Second, although Korean courts allow a remedy for the damage beforehand, they try to use a stricter basis in allowing the remedy. Third, the court’s ruling is focused on making a balance between the freedom of speech and the fundamental rights of the individual. Fourth, all cases of defamation are judged by the Supreme Court in a timely manner, which implies that there is still a social need for the courts to judge them as unconstitutional. In conclusion, press freedom is being well protected from a big frame. On the other hand, there remain a few complicated issues, such as fact-based defamation and prior damage relief system, which can be difficult to resolve in the near future. In particular, there is the possibility that the right of reply system can be abused by the Korean government or public party because the court did not draw a fine line between fact and opinion. The press should remember that Korean courts tend to put more weight on personal rights than on freedom of the press.

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