The South Korean government seems to be considering putting restrictions on smoking scenes in content on OTT platforms, along with K-Dramas, amidst recent controversies. Netizens are questioning why there’s a focus only on these scenes when issues of drugs, violence, and alcohol consumption are also very prevalent in the society.
As per a Korean media outlet, various OTT platforms are under scrutiny for showing smoking scenes without any warning or without restrictions, which is thought to be the reason behind the increase in the number of teenagers smoking. To address these concerns, the government plans to propose restrictions on depicting smoking scenes to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The South Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare will be attending the 10th Conference of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in Panama from February 5-11. Their goal is to urge other member countries to adopt measures, reducing the portrayal of tobacco and smoking scenes on OTT platforms and other media, among various awareness initiatives.
The Head of the Health Promotion Department of the Ministry, Jeong Yeon-hee, also stated, “We will share in detail the results of our country’s tobacco control policy with the international community, and carefully examine the matters discussed at the general meeting and use them to strengthen the domestic anti-smoking policy.”
Presently, smoking scenes in K-Dramas and other shows are often excluded or discreetly blurred out, but on OTT platforms, there are no explicit restrictions regarding the same. A prime example of this being Netflix’s drama ‘Doona!,’ in which the lead actress, Bae Suzy, is constantly shown to be smoking cigarettes.
Puzzled by this news, and odd limitations, global K-Drama enthusiasts expressed various opinions. Most are concerned about the government’s detailed focus only on cigarettes, whereas there’s tons of other equally significant concerns like violence, drug use, and notably, the excessive alcohol consumption.
Many responded that, “if regulations are necessary for on-screen smoking, then they should apply equally to drinking and drug use.”
Another one said, “They show really graphic stuff, like slicing open bellies and attacking people with axes, but cigarettes are where they draw the line?” Another chimed in and stated, “I don’t use tobacco or alcohol, but I’m puzzled by how murder, fraud, sexual abuse, bullying, and domestic violence are all acceptable themes in shows and movies, yet cigarettes are the main worry. Alcohol is often linked to more sexual assaults than cigarettes. Maybe that should be banned, too?”
However, any official update regarding this censorship is still awaited.
