Broadcaster head suggests confidence vote amid appointment feud

By Tony Chang
SEOUL, Dec. 17 (Yonhap) -- The head of South Korea's largest cable news channel
suggested holding a vote of confidence to resolve a feud sparked by his
appointment, the chief of a coalition of international journalists said
Wednesday.

Officials at YTN, South Korea's sole 24-hour news network, said their chief
executive Gu Bon-hong indicated he is considering holding a vote of confidence to
settle the dispute, Aidan White, secretary general of the International
Federation of Journalists, said at a press conference in Seoul
Appointment of Gu, a confidant of President Lee Myung-bak, as the head of YTN in
July has since triggered a bitter confrontation between the network's management
and union workers. The management fired six union leaders and penalized several
others who led a 90 day sit-in in October to protest the appointment.
"The CEO has suggested himself having a vote," said White, who met with YTN's
laid-off workers, management officials, as well as with telecommunications
regulators and lawmakers over the last three days in Seoul.
White suggested that the management and union leaders meet as soon as possible to
discuss the terms of a confidence vote and other pending issues such as
reinstatement of fired workers.
YTN's unionized workers have filed complaints with the Seoul Central District
Court, claiming Gu's appointment was "illegal" and thus any punitive action
against union members should be withdrawn.
odissy@yna.co.kr
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