KBS board picks Lee Tae-hyun as nominee for president as two directors walk out
In short
KBS's board chose Lee Tae-hyun (이태현), former CEO of Content Wavve, on 20 October as its nominee for the 28th president, after final interviews with three candidates. He won at least three-fifths of the 10 registered directors, while two directors recommended by the People Power Party left before the vote. He still needs a National Assembly confirmation hearing and appointment by the president.
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KBS's board held an extraordinary meeting on 20 October and chose Lee Tae-hyun (이태현), a former CEO of Content Wavve (콘텐츠웨이브), as its nominee for the 28th KBS president. It interviewed three candidates: Lee, Kim Young-sam (김영삼), a former CEO of KBS Media, and Eom Kyung-cheol (엄경철), a former head of KBS's Busan broadcasting headquarters, and then held a vote. Lee obtained at least three-fifths of the 10 registered directors. Korea Economic Daily reported the board said six or more directors voted in favour and that the revised broadcasting law sets the threshold at three-fifths. Hankook Ilbo said the board did not disclose the exact result. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
The vote was marked by a dispute. Lee Kang-deok (이강덕) and Jang Han-sik (장한식), directors recommended by the People Power Party, joined the board after being appointed the previous day. They asked for the vote to be postponed, saying they did not have enough time to vet the candidates. The request was not accepted and they left just before the vote. In a statement, reported by Chosun Ilbo, they said Lee's record at Content Wavve showed his management ability was unproven and urged Cheong Wa Dae and the National Assembly to refuse the nomination. [ 4 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 12 ]
According to Kukmin Ilbo, the statement also called the selection a combination of insufficient management ability and procedural irregularity and demanded that the KBS president be chosen again from the start. The two directors claimed Lee ran up an accumulated operating loss of 297.3 billion won while heading Content Wavve from 2020 to 2024. They also said KBS's stake in the company, originally 20%, fell to 3 to 4% after a merger with a rival. CBS NoCut News reported that opposition-recommended directors opposed the nomination over his record and the selection procedure. [ 11 , 12 ]
The selection followed a process introduced under the revised broadcasting laws. After a public call in September drew 28 applicants, the board narrowed them to 10 for mid-stage interviews and then to five. On 17 October a committee of 205 citizens heard the five candidates' management plans, deliberated and recommended three for the final interview. [ 1 , 4 , 6 , 8 ]
Lee is 58 and was born in 1968. He graduated from Korea University in philosophy and joined KBS as a producer in 1994. He later served as head of the programming policy department and of the content business bureau, then as CEO of Content Wavve, and most recently as CEO of the Hanam Cultural Foundation (하남문화재단). In his interview, he named stronger content competitiveness and financial stability through asset use as priorities, Hankook Ilbo reported. Korea Economic Daily quoted him as saying public media should expand abroad. [ 3 , 5 , 12 , 13 ]
The board is to send the nomination to the presidential office. Lee must then pass a National Assembly confirmation hearing before the president appoints him. The term is three years and can be renewed once. Until then, Park Jang-beom (박장범) remains KBS president, Hankook Ilbo reported. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 7 ]
Why it matters
The nominee must still pass a National Assembly hearing and be appointed by the president before taking office. The two directors who walked out have called on the authorities to reject the nomination, so the next steps may be contested.
Key facts
- KBS's board held an extraordinary meeting on 20 October and chose Lee Tae-hyun, a former CEO of Content Wavve, as its nominee for the 28th KBS president. [ 2 , 4 , 6 , 7 , 11 , 12 ]
- Lee won at least three-fifths of the 10 registered directors; the revised broadcasting law sets that threshold. [ 3 , 4 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 12 ]
- Directors Lee Kang-deok and Jang Han-sik, recommended by the People Power Party, asked to postpone the vote, were refused and left before it. [ 4 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 11 , 12 ]
- A panel of 205 citizens narrowed the candidates to three on 17 October; the board interviewed all three on 20 October. [ 1 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Lee must pass a National Assembly confirmation hearing and be appointed by the president; the term is three years, renewable once. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 7 , 8 ]
- Park Jang-beom continues as KBS president until the appointment. [ 5 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- KBS's board chose Lee Tae-hyun as nominee for the 28th president on 20 October after interviewing him, Kim Young-sam and Eom Kyung-cheol. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 7 , 11 , 12 ]
- Lee obtained at least three-fifths of the 10 registered directors' votes. [ 4 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 12 ]
- Lee Kang-deok and Jang Han-sik asked for the vote to be postponed and left the meeting before it after the request was not accepted. [ 4 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 11 , 12 ]
- Lee must pass a National Assembly confirmation hearing and be appointed by the president; the KBS president's term is three years with one possible renewal. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 7 , 8 , 12 ]
Still unclear
- The exact vote count. Korea Economic Daily reported the board said six or more of 10 directors voted in favour, while Hankook Ilbo said the board did not disclose the exact result.
- Whether Lee's record at Content Wavve amounts to a management failure. Only the two directors who walked out made this claim, in a statement; the other documents do not assess it.
- The years Lee led Content Wavve. Hankook Ilbo says 2019 to 2024, the directors' statement as reported by Kukmin Ilbo says 2020 to 2024, and Korea Economic Daily says he moved there in 2019 and led it for five and a half years.
- Whether the nomination will be approved at the hearing and by the president. The hearing and appointment have not yet taken place.