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Article 8
 

(Requests for Counterargument Report on Election News)


(1) A political party (limited to a central party; hereafter in this Article the same shall apply) or a candidate (including a person wishing to become a
candidate; hereafter in this Article the same shall apply) affected by public accusation against his/her personal character, biased propaganda of policies, etc. through broadcast or periodicals, etc. from the date on which the Election Broadcast Deliberative Committee or the Election News Deliberative Committee is established to the election day, may make a written request for a broadcast of the counterargument report to the broadcasting company which made the relevant broadcast, and for a printing of counterargument reports to the press company which printed the relevant news, respectively, within 10 days from the date on which he/she became aware of the relevant broadcast or printing of news: Provided, That this shall not apply where 30 days elapsed from the day of the relevant broadcast or printing of news.


<Amended by Act No. 6663, Mar. 7, 2002; Act No. 8879, Feb. 29, 2008; Act No. 9974, Jan. 25, 2010>


(2) The broadcasting company or the press company shall, in case where it has received requests under paragraph (1), make, without delay, consultation with the relevant political party or the relevant candidate or his/her proxy about the content, size, frequency, etc. of counterargument reports, and shall broadcast the counterargument report free of charge within 48 hours from the time of receipt of requests in case of broadcasting, and print the counterargument report free of charge on the issue next to the same periodicals, etc., for which an editing is not completed, in case of periodicals. In such cases, where the next issue of periodicals is to be published and distributed after the election day, the counterargument report shall be printed in general daily newspapers under subparagraph 1 (a) of Article 2 of the Act on the Promotion of Newspapers, etc. to be distributed in the very area wherein the relevant periodicals have been distributed, within 48 hours from the time when the request has been made, and the expenditures therefor shall be borne by the relevant press company.


<Amended by Act No. 6663, Mar. 7, 2002; Act No. 7681, Aug. 4, 2005; Act No. 8879, Feb. 29, 2008; Act No. 9785, Jul. 31, 2009>


(3) Where agreement is not reached pursuant to paragraph (2), the relevant political party, candidate, broadcasting company, or press company shall,
without delay, refer the case in question to the Election Broadcast Deliberative Committee or the Election News Deliberative Committee, and the Election Broadcast Deliberative Committee or the Election News Deliberative Committee shall deliberate on it within 48 hours from the time of reference to make a resolution of rejection, dismissal or acceptance, and notify without delay the relevant political party, candidate, broadcasting company, or press company thereof. In this case, where such Committee makes a resolution of acceptance of the counterargument broadcast or report, it shall also determine the matters necessary for the counterargument report such as the content, size, frequency and others.


<Amended by Act No. 6663, Mar. 7, 2002>


(4) The provisions of Article 15 (1), (4) through (7) of the Act on Press Arbitration and Damage Relief, etc. shall apply mutatis mutandis to any
request for the counterargument report. In such cases, the "request for the correction report" shall be deemed the "request for the counterargument
report", the "correction" shall be deemed the "counterargument", the "right to file the request for the correction report" shall be deemed the "right to
file the request for counterargument report", the "correction report" shall be deemed the "counterargument report", and the "written correction
report" shall be deemed the "written counterargument report", respectively.


<Amended by Act No. 7681, Aug. 4, 2005>


[This Article Wholly Amended by Act No. 6265, Feb. 16, 2000]