Are music programs from the "Big Three" are biased??

With the same faces being seen over and over again on music programs from SBS, MBC, and KBS, it’s not surprising to hear rumors of favoritism and bias against the three public broadcasting networks.

Chosun collaborated with music critic Kim (of the Chugye University for the Arts) to research the number of broadcast appearances celebrities made from January through November of last year. Their results were alarming, in that they proved the domination of the ‘Big Three’ – SM Entertainment, YG Entertainment, JYP Entertainment.

SM Entertainment came out on top as the entertainment agency with the most amount of broadcast appearances.  SNSD, SHINee, f(x), Super Junior, and many others appeared a total of 187 times on the three networks, basically boiling down to over four appearances a week.

SM artists performed in 60 episodes of KBS’s “Music Bank“, 67 episodes of MBC’s “Show! Music Core“, and 60 episodes of SBS’s “Inkigayo.”

Following SM Entertainment was Cube Entertainment, who currently houses artists such as B2ST,4minute, and G.NA.  Cube Entertainment artists appeared a total of 114 times in all three networks, while JYP Entertainment followed with 107 times, then Core Contents Media, and finally YG Entertainment.

When looking at the artists alone, B2ST came out on top with a total of 49 appearances on all three channels. CNBLUE followed up with 44 appearances, and SNSD and SHINee tied in third with 41 appearances.

The results show that idol groups were obviously the most-loved, but it was the expense of other artists, who were unfortunately ignored. Male group Norazo appeared on KBS and MBC 15 and 13 times respectively, but only once on SBS. Meanwhile, December appeared on KBS and SBS 14 and 12 times, but only once on MBC.

But just because you’re an idol group doesn’t mean that you’re secured a position in the limelight as well. DNT and Tae Sa Bi Ae (殆死悲愛) both released new tracks last year, but only appeared one time on all three channels the entire year. They’re not alone, as results further showed that there were 50 to 60 other teams who were barely given an opportunity; at their expense, hotter stars were given more room and more airtime.

CEO Kim Woong of Drug Record, who manages Crying Nut, commented, “Ever since six to seven years ago, we’ve given up even anticipating making music program appearances. The problem is the imbalance of the music that TV programs air.”

Much of the “favoritism” comes from the need for the networks to keep their other programs alive. In order to secure a steady flow of cast members and guests for their variety programs, they inevitably try to stay in the good graces of the big power companies. Since they’ve lost viewer ratings value, music programs have become just another venue for networks to appease entertainment agencies with.

All three of the major music programs have dropped to 5-6% in viewer ratings, so it goes to show that under all that glitz and glamor, music programs are basically nothing more than another business deal.

One CEO of an entertainment agency revealed, “In order to get celebrity B to appear on their variety program, they’ll let celebrity A, who’s under the same agency, onto their music program. This ‘give and take’ deal has grounded itself in the industry, and it makes it harder for anyone else to appear on shows anymore.”

Critic Kim concluded, “As long as this ‘cartel relationship’ exists between the big agencies and the broadcast networks, the public cannot expect to be able to hear a variety of music. TV viewers always complain that there’s no longer music ‘worth listening to,’ but they have to realize that the music they hear from the TV is very limited and biased.”

‘Top 10 entertainment agencies that appeared on the most music programs in all three public networks in 2010′:

1. SM Entertainment – 187
2. Cube Entertainment – 114
3. JYP Entertainment -107
4. Core Contents Media – 97
5. YG Entertainment – 95
6. Pledis Entertainment – 82
7. Star Empire – 76
8. FnC Music – 70
9. DSP Media – 63
10. Starship Entertainment – 57

‘Top 10 artists who appeared on the most music programs in all three public networks in 2010′:

1. B2ST – 49
2. CNBLUE – 44
3. SNSD/SHINee – 41
5. SISTAR – 40
6. SECRET – 38
7. Rainbow – 37
8. 2AM/2PM/After School – 35