KBS, MBC, SBS wrap up 2023 with entertainment awards

South Korea's three major terrestrial television networks -- Korean Broadcasting System, Munhwa Broadcasting Corp. and Seoul Broadcasting System -- celebrated their yearly achievements with their own entertainment awards.

During the 2023 MBC Entertainment Awards held on Friday, 39-year-old comic writer and TV personality Kim Hee-min, also well-known by his nickname Kian84, was given the grand prize for his performance in hit TV show "Home Alone" and "Adventure By Accident."

Kim was the first person whose initial profession was not a comedian, singer or actor to be bestowed upon with the grand prize in the MBC Entertainment Awards.

Singer-actor Tak Jae-hoon was awarded with the grand prize at the 2023 SBS Entertainment Awards held on Saturday for his performance on "My Little Old Boy," a reality show featuring commentary from mothers of celebrities on their children's daily activities, and "Dolsing Fourmen," a spinoff variety show of "My Little Old Boy." The last grand prize he received was at the KBS Entertainment Awards in 2007.

During the 2023 KBS Entertainment Awards held on Dec. 23, KBS gave the top honors to television show “2 Days & 1 Night," a Sunday night TV mainstay for 16 years.

The grand prize was given to starring members of “2 Days & 1 Night" as a group, including actor Yeon Jung-hoon, singer Kim Jong-min, comedian Moon Se-yoon, rapper DinDin, actor Na In-woo and actor Yoo Seon-ho.

The show, which centers around six celebrities exploring various locales in Korea, was awarded for its contribution to popularizing diverse sites across the nation and providing entertaining content through the outstanding chemistry between the six.

Meanwhile, Yoo Jae-suk, arguably one of the most prominent television celebrities in Korea, went home empty-handed. Yoo has a total of 19 grand prizes in the entertainment sector, including those from the Baeksang Arts Awards, one of Korea's most prestigious entertainment award shows which recognizes individuals who showed great performance in fields of TV, film and theater.

Some have pointed to the declining popularity of SBS hit entertainment show "Running Man" and MBC entertainment show "Hangout With Yoo," both of which he is the main cast, as one of the reasons for the upset.

Others said it could be because Yoo emphasized on enlarging his presence on streaming platforms last year, instead of terrestrial television shows.

In November 2022, Yoo's entertainment agency, Antenna opened the YouTube channel DdeunDdeun, in which Yoo holds talk sessions with fellow celebrities. The channel, as of Monday, currently holds 1.6 million subscribers.