Lee Defends Live Cabinet Broadcasts Amid Debate Over Ministerial Dissent

President Lee Jae Myung has defended his administration’s practice of livestreaming substantive Cabinet discussions, rejecting claims that the broadcasts discourage ministers from openly disagreeing with him.

In a post on X on Friday, Lee said he could not support calls to move entire Cabinet sessions behind closed doors. He described public access as consistent with the principle that government administration should generally be disclosed and invited citizens to share their views on the dispute.

His remarks followed a news report alleging that some Cabinet members had raised concerns during a dinner with Prime Minister Han Seong-sook. According to the report, ministers believed the presence of live cameras made it difficult to challenge the president or object to his comments and wanted the prime minister to propose ending the broadcasts.

Lee called that account untrue and expressed regret over what he characterized as false claims. The prime minister’s office had also denied the report, saying ministers had not asked Han to recommend halting the livestreams.

The administration says the broadcasts are intended to make state affairs more transparent and allow public opinion to be reflected in policy. Lee argued that Cabinet minutes were already made public in the past and that opening part of the meetings to citizens was compatible with the public nature of government decision-making.

The Lee administration began livestreaming substantive Cabinet discussions in July 2025, departing from the previous practice of broadcasting only the president’s opening remarks while keeping the main deliberations closed. The first televised session on July 29, 2025, ran for one hour and 15 minutes. A later meeting on May 20, 2026, lasted four hours and 42 minutes, the longest broadcast to date.

The controversy highlights a tension between two goals of executive decision-making: public transparency and candid internal debate. Supporters of open meetings can point to direct public access to policy discussions, while critics may question whether officials can speak as freely when every exchange is broadcast. Lee’s response makes clear that his administration intends to keep transparency at the center of its Cabinet procedures rather than return all substantive discussion to closed sessions.

No change to the livestreaming policy was announced. The president’s intervention instead challenged the premise that ministers had sought such a change and placed the question of open Cabinet deliberations before the public.