Korean Broadcasters Address Plans For Live Audience Filming Amidst Fears Of Coronavirus

Updated February 2 KST:

Arirang TV’s “Simply K-Pop” announced through its official Twitter account that recording on February 3 will be carried out without a studio audience on February 3 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.

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Updated January 31 KST:

“Music Bank” announced that it will not be holding its usual pre-show arrival press photo session before the episode on January 31 for safety reasons due to coronavirus.

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Updated January 31 KST:

On January 30, “Music Core” stated that following the confirmation of additional cases of coronavirus, the February 1 episode of the show will be carried out without an audience.

“Inkigayo” has also stated that due to coronavirus, the pre-recording and live broadcast of the February 2 episode of the show will be filmed without an audience.

Six cases of coronavirus have now been confirmed in South Korea, including one that is believed to be the first case of human-to-human transmission within the country (rather than a person contracting the virus abroad).

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Updated January 30 KST:

“Music Bank” will not have a live studio audience for the January 31 broadcast.

On January 30, the program released a new statement:

Hello. This is the “Music Bank” team.

Following the confirmation of additional coronavirus cases, the broadcast tomorrow (January 31) will be carried out without a studio audience.

Those who won tickets for tomorrow broadcast will receive priority for tickets in the future for broadcasts with audiences. We ask for your understanding. Thank you.

안녕하세요. 뮤직뱅크 팀입니다.
내일(1/31) 방송은 신종 코로나 추가 확진자 발생에 따라, 부득이하게 관중 없이 진행하게 됐음을 알려드립니다.
내일 본방 티켓 당첨자 분들은 추후 방송에 다시 관중을 받게 될 경우, 우선순위로 티켓을 배부해드릴 예정입니다. 양해 부탁드립니다. 감사합니다.

— 뮤직뱅크 (Music Bank)🏦 (@KBSMusicBank) January 30, 2020

Original Article: 

With fears over the spread of the coronavirus in South Korea, broadcasters have announced their plans for shows that use live studio audiences, particularly music shows such as “Music Bank,” “Inkigayo,” “M Countdown,” and “Music Core.”

On January 28, KBS released an official statement about the issue.

This is to inform you about our live audience recording plans in light of the new coronavirus situation. This week, we plan to film with live audiences as usual. We will put up public health signs at the entrances and exits and we will prepare hand sanitizer, masks, and fever detectors. If an audience member should show signs of a problem, we will take steps to send them home. We will inform audiences in advance that they should prepare masks.

However, if the situation worsens during this week, or the government releases new guidelines, then we will proceed with the recording without the live studio audience. We will continually monitor the progress of the virus and will put safety first before everything. If anything changes, we will let you know right away.

Other KBS shows that use live studio audiences include “Open Concert,” “Immortal Songs,” “National Singing Contest,” “Gag Concert,” “Yoo Hee Yeol’s Sketchbook,” and “Gayo Stage.”

“M Countdown” stated that they will be filming with live audiences on January 30 as usual, with thorough preparations in advance. A source from Mnet told TVReport, “We will prepare cameras that can detect fever as well as hand sanitizer, and we will hand out masks to the audience members.”

Likewise, the chief producer of “Music Core” stated, “As a rule, all the staff members and audience members will be prepared with hand sanitizer and masks in advance. We also may take emergency measures at any time and we are closely monitoring the measures taken by the government and the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

A source from SBS told TVReport that they are observing the situation closely as regards to “Inkigayo” and that they are continually in discussions about the issue.

As of January 27, South Korea has reported four confirmed cases of the coronavirus.

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