▲ The international site purchase.

These days, a program called ‘The Real Man’ is gaining in popularity. However, not all feedback from viewers has been positive. A small group of people, watch this program and react negatively to this message. They criticize the show for beautifying the army, and argue that it will make it harder to seek improvements for the fundamental problems by portraying it with such an idealistic setting. However, others think that it is not the duty of the show to improve the fundamental problems of our army, but rather to entertain people, which is what they are doing right now.

‘The Real Man’ is entertaining people by showing an army, which is an integral part of the world of our country’s men, on television. These days, the private first class Kim incident, where a soldier committed suicided because of cruel and aggressive treatment by the army shocked a lot of people. As a result, some people are doubting whether or not this program should continue broadcasting.
The Dankook Herald (DKH) prepared a list of pros and cons for the question, “Should we abolish “Real Man” since it’s beautifying the army?”

Firstly, people who agree on the statement are concentrating on the fact that they are not showing the fundamental problems of the army and just continue to beautify army life. They also argue that by beautifying the army, people are not being properly informed about the real problems that are taking place and this will not help people keen to improve the fundamental problems. As a result, the number of victims will continue to rise.

In contrast however, people who disagree on the statement say that the army is a place that is difficult to manage, but by watching ‘The Real Man’, more people are gaining sympathy with it. Also by watching the program, general viewers can learn how hard the soldiers are working for their country,
and people who served in the military can get a sense of nostalgia, while active-duty soldiers can be made to feel their jobs are worthwhile.

It is significant that the show is using its broadcast to help the army, which was shrouded in darkness, to be more transparent to the general public. However since this program is broadcasted to a large number of viewers, even though it is an entertaining show, it has been a problem for some, that they do not deal with the chronic problems our army faces, leaving them to suggest the producers are not fulfilling their social responsibility.

DKH interviewed professor Chung Jae-chorl (School of Journalism and Communications) to hear his professional opinion about whether or not the program should be cancelled. DKH first asked how he felt ‘The Real Man’ beautifying the image of the military. “It is true that serious incidences
have occurred, but I think the program performed its duty to generate interest and provide information about the army to women and juveniles who are
detached form it,” he said. Also, he added that reality is mirrored because celebrities take part in actual training in the show.

Subsequently, DKH asked whether we should consider it just an entertainment program and differentiate it from the social issues or the problem related to the idea that it beautifies the military. " ‘The Real Man’ was originally aired as an entertainment program, so that viewers would not think it reflected and included real army life. Also, people need to understand that some points are added for
entertainment,” he replied.

He also added that. “I’m opposed to its cancellation. However, I also believe that in time, when the material is exhausted and ratings drop, the program will naturally fall out of use.”

Finally, DKH asked about any changes that ‘The Real Man’ would have to make in order to continue in the future. “The negative aspects of army life should be material for the program and the production crew should sublimate the social issues with the fun,” he concluded.

“The Real Man” is risky to broadcast due to calls for its cancellation. It is hard to say that ‘The Real Man’ reflects reality, since it exempts the cruel acts that have been recently exposed in the army. However, we cannot criticize the program unconditionally because it was produced to generate interest in viewers. To conclude, DKH suggests ‘The Real Man’ start to use its medium to reflect the good and bad sides as well as the practical needs of the military in Korea.