After World War II (1939?1945) the world came under a new form of conflict, the Cold War. At the frontline of this war, the Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950, killing more than two million people and resulting in millions of Koreans orphaned and separated from their families. In 1983, thirty years after the ceasefire, the Cold War still raged as ferociously as ever. In September 1983, the Soviet Union shot down a Korean Air passenger plane as it flew over the Pacific Ocean, killing all 269 on board. Then in October, North Korea carried out a bomb attack targeting the president of South Korea during a state visit in Rangoon, killing 21 South Korean officials and injuring 40. The Cold War had not ended on the Korean Peninsula. It was in June of the same year that 100,000 people crowded the plaza in front of KBS in Yeouido, Seoul, ardently hoping for a reunion with lost relatives. And as they watched the reunions on TV, the whole nation wept with sorrow. The KBS Special Live Broadcast “Finding Dispersed Families” was a symbol of the movement for peace to overcome the Cold War regime, informing the world about the wretchedness wrought by war and calling for peace.

2) Place

The Archives of the KBS Special Live Broadcast “Finding Dispersed Families” are a documentary heritage that informs the world of the wretched legacy of war on the Korean Peninsula, the frontline of the Cold War and the only divided nation left on earth; it was also an epic effort to heal wounds of the divided Korean people.

From the morning after the first broadcast on June 30, 1983, the area around KBS in Yeouido was crowded with people from dispersed families waiting to submit applications to appear on the program. Posters put up by people seeking lost relatives covered not only the main building of KBS but also the footpaths, Yeouido Plaza, and the trees by the roadside. It was an unforgettable sight. Participation in the broadcast proceeded in the following order: filling in application form → submitting application (application number issued) → appearance on television. The application form asked for the applicants’ details such as name, age, sex, hometown, present address, details on the person being sought, relationship with that person, place and time of separation, any distinguishing physical features, and any other information that might prove useful. KBS staff helped those who had difficulties writing their application form. Because of the limitations of live broadcasting, a flood of calls were received requesting to see parts of the program again. In response, KBS installed 24 TV sets in the open studio and on the rooftop of its building and played videotapes of the broadcast. The central hall in the KBS main building teemed with people ? those applying to appear on the program, those waiting for news and a possible reunion after appearing on the program, and journalists from 25 countries. Live broadcasting was carried out from the open studio (TS-1) in the main hall. This studio was the main stage for the event, where history was made, the place where people from dispersed families waited anxiously as KBS employees just as anxiously tried to find lost family members for them, and where tearful reunions took place.

3) People

The Archives of the KBS Special Live Broadcast “Finding Dispersed Families” are records of ordinary Koreans, people who had been unable to find lost relatives on their own and had resigned themselves to living with the loss. They are the stories of people who had lived through history though they may not be recorded in it. There was a woman who fainted the moment she heard the voice of her older brother she had been separated from for 42 years. There were some driven to suicide by the thought of the families they had left behind in North Korea. One man, overjoyed at the reunion with his elder sister, suddenly shouted “Hurrah for KBS! Hurrah for public broadcasting!” A brother and sister who had not even known whether each was alive or dead exclaimed and burst into tears when they recognized each other through the exchange of a few words at the registration counter, before they even appeared on television. People thought up all sorts of ingenious ways to attract attention to their own particular stories. The person who stood up with a mannequin, the person who brought along a goat, the person who wore a gold crown, the person who dressed as a scarecrow, the person who played the accordion, the people who wrote their stories on an ET doll, or a car, or a motorcycle ? all were trying hard to draw notice to themselves. Most of the people appearing on the program were ordinary working- and middle-class Koreans. Unlike upper-class countrymen who had been searching for lost family members on their own, using their own resources and varied means of communication including phone calls and newspaper advertisements, the people who surged to KBS did not have the resources to search for lost relatives without help. With its unprecedented 138-day broadcast, KBS enabled people to directly participate in public media and deliver their own messages. This documentary heritage is significant as an audiovisual record of ordinary people appearing on television of their own accord and telling their stories in their own words, how they had involuntarily been separated from their families through war and their nation’s division.

4) Subject and Theme

“The Pain of War and Division, and Healing Wounds”

This documentary heritage informs the world of the pain and misery suffered by the ten million Koreans from dispersed families as they lived through the Korean War and national division. It is a compelling record of beginning the process of healing and recovery from the wounds of war through reunion with family members after more than 30 years of separation.

“Human Rights and Humanitarianism”

The scenes of families hugging and weeping in each other’s arms after meeting for the first time in over 30 years made plain the strength of family bonds and love. Scenes showing the sorrow of those who were unable to meet, hemmed in by opposing political systems and ideologies, are records of universal human love longing to reach out. The reunion of dispersed families is an issue that should transcend politics and military affairs.

“Peace and Unification”

“Finding Dispersed Families” made it clear that the issue of dispersed families is not confined to South Korea but one that must be tackled by both South and North Korea through unification. It also delivered a message of peace to the whole world, a reminder to all that such a tragedy should never be allowed to happen again.

5) Form and Style

The KBS Special Live Broadcast “Finding Dispersed Families” is a unique and groundbreaking use of television for humanitarian engagement with the task of finding loved ones for people torn by war from home and roots. The vividness and rich expressiveness of color TV, which was just becoming widespread in Korea at the time, magnified the effect of the campaign. In some cases, even without knowing the name or appearance of the lost relatives, people were able to recognize relatives just from seeing each other on TV. After this broadcast, many TV programs with people-finding themes and format began to appear?and continue to this day. In addition, the computer search service launched at the same time as the live broadcast proved to be a successful attempt in merging broadcasting with information technology. Linking KBS with the computers of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and the National Police Agency to enable cross-search operations, the campaign to find dispersed families deployed the tools of science and increased the family reunion success rate.

As a television history maker, “Finding Dispersed Families” was a marathon broadcast (or telethon) on air for 138 days on a single theme. The work was carried out by 1,641 production staff and some 5,000 employees directly or indirectly involved across the network linking Seoul headquarters with 21 regional offices and relay stations.

6) Social/Spiritual/Community Significance