ABSTRACT
The development of the press in the Republic of Korea has taken many of the same dramatic turns that have marked the country's political history since 1948. When General Park Chung-hee and the officers of his junta overthrew the government in May 1961, they cited the record of irresponsibility as the justification for their massive "cleanup" of the press. The government continued to keep the press on a tight tether through the subsequent phases of Park's rule: the Third Republic and the Fourth Republic under the so-called Yushin Constitution. Park Chung-hee's own views naturally shaped the system of press controls that went into effect after the May 16, 1961, military coup. The decrees most directly affecting the press were Emergency Measure Number One, announced on January 8, 1974, and Number Nine, announced in May 1975. The press card system and realignment of branch offices resulted in drastic cuts in the number of accredited journalists in South Korea.
