Most Popular
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[Exclusive] Korean adoptee sisters meet for the first time in 39 years
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Signs point to N. Korean troops in Russia-Ukraine combat zone
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Yoon calls for measures to protect Koreans amid escalating Iran-Israel conflicts
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Rose's 'Apt.' redefines K-pop's global appeal
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Civil servant’s death linked to workplace bullying
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Two years on, thousands mourn Itaewon tragedy, calling for accountability
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[Weekender] Walk around Korea to really get to know the country
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N. Korea slams Seoul-Washington joint air exercise
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[Herald Interview] K-pop’s 'best years are ahead of us': Spotify’s general manager for Asia Pacific
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[Herald Interview] Love for K-drama, food defines 'Secret Ingredient'
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[Newsmaker] High court okays 34-year prison term for university student in sexual blackmail case
DAEGU -- An appellate court on Thursday upheld an imprisonment of 34 years for a key member of an online sexual blackmail ring indicted on 12 criminal charges, including the violation of laws on protecting minors from sexual abuse. The Daegu High Court in this southeastern city approved the hefty prison term after convicting Moon Hyung-wook, a 24-year-old university student, of coercing 21 women and girls into sharing nearly 3,800 sexually explicit videos of themselves for distribution on a Tel
Social AffairsAug. 19, 2021
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[Newsmaker] BTS producer Pdogg beats chaebol chiefs in pay
In another sign of the rise of the “new rich” in Korea Inc., the producer behind K-pop juggernaut BTS topped the list of highest-paid executives in the first half of this year, beating the country’s far more prominent tycoons running conglomerates like Samsung, Hyundai and LG. According to regulatory filings by listed companies on Wednesday, senior song producer Kang Hyo-won took home the biggest sum during the first six months of this year, receiving a total of 40.07 billi
IndustryAug. 18, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Main opposition in leadership fracas
A day after canceling a planned debate because a leading presidential contender was unhappy about it, the main opposition party on Wednesday was wrangling over its leader’s comments in a private conversation. Won Hee-ryong, former Jeju governor and a preliminary presidential candidate of the People Power Party, claimed that party leader Lee Jun-seok told him on the phone that Yoon Seok-youl, the ex-prosecutor general and the party’s most popular presidential hopeful, “will be
PoliticsAug. 18, 2021
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[Newsmaker] DP chief calls for swift OPCON transfer as lesson from Afghan crisis
The chief of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) on Wednesday called for speeding up South Korea's envisioned takeover of wartime operational control (OPCON) of its forces from the United States in reflection of the recent crisis in Afghanistan. "We need OPCON transfer to further strengthen our will and capability of self-defense against the backdrop of the Afghanistan crisis," Rep. Song Young-gil said in his Facebook post. Song wrote the post as a direct rebuttal to a claim recently ma
PoliticsAug. 18, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Last remaining Koreans evacuate Afghanistan
The last remaining South Koreans, including the country’s ambassador, were evacuated from Afghanistan on Tuesday, following the Taliban’s abrupt takeover of the country. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said four Korean nationals -- three diplomats and one civilian -- left the Kabul airport at around 9 a.m. Seoul time, and safely arrived in a third country in the Middle East. The three embassy personnel, including Ambassador Choi Tae-ho, had remained in Afghani
Foreign AffairsAug. 17, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Five-term lawmaker Hong Joon-pyo announces 2nd presidential bid
Rep. Hong Joon-pyo, a five-term lawmaker of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), officially announced Tuesday he will run in the presidential election slated for March. Hong, who lost the 2017 election against President Moon Jae-in, held an online press conference announcing his second bid for the presidency, in which he pledged to "correct the nation heading in the wrong direction." The former prosecutor-turned-politician presented a vision in which South Korea wins respect
PoliticsAug. 17, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Blame game intensifies over Mergepoint fiasco
The blame game between financial authorities and discount app operator Mergeplus intensified Monday, leaving customers who bought coupons uncertain as to whether they would lose their money. Mergeplus launched Mergepoint, an electronic payment service, in 2018. Consumers can buy Mergepoints for 20 percent less than their face value, and use them in local retail franchises, convenience stores and coffee shops. The substantial discounts on offer have helped the service attract about 1 million u
MarketAug. 16, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Moon orders all-out efforts for safe evacuation of Koreans from Afghanistan
President Moon Jae-in instructed his government Monday to do its best for the safe evacuation of South Korea's diplomatic officials and residents in Afghanistan. He told relevant authorities to make all-out efforts so that every single South Korean national there can be evacuated to safety, according to Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Park Kyung-mee. The president has been receiving real-time reports on recent security situations in the nation, where the Taliban has taken control, she added. Moon
Foreign AffairsAug. 16, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Ruling party forges ahead with “fake news” law despite opposition
South Korea’s ruling Democratic Party is poised to push ahead with the revision of the Act on Press Arbitration, despite resistance from opposition parties and the media. The Act on Press Arbitration aims to mediate disputes over media reports that infringe on people’s rights, interests or reputations. The ruling party recently proposed a revised bill that would further toughen consequences for false reports, including the introduction of punitive damages. Under the revised law
PoliticsAug. 15, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Anti-feminism website singled out celebs, lists RM from BTS as ‘verified feminist’
A website claiming to “verify” feminist celebrities and high profile figures was deleted hours after launch Friday, highlighting once again how feminism faces backlash from anti-feminist groups and how deepened gender conflict has become in the country. The website, dubbed “Check Femi,” had several dozens of figures analyzed by 11 a.m. Friday, categorizing them to three groups of “suspected,” “verified” and “vanguard” in their associat
Social AffairsAug. 13, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Gyeonggi governor announces in-province universal COVID-19 relief handouts
Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung on Friday announced his decision to provide universal COVID-19 relief funds to all provincial residents, contrary to the central government's policy of selective relief payments. Lee, the front-running presidential contender for the ruling Democratic Party, vowed to ensure that all 14 million residents in the province, which surrounds Seoul, will benefit from the government's upcoming emergency disaster relief handouts. In late July, the National Assembly p
PoliticsAug. 13, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Internal strife continues to weigh on PPP
Main opposition party leader Lee Jun-seok continued to bicker with his own party members supporting former prosecutor general and presidential hopeful Yoon Seok-youl despite concerns that internal fighting will not help the party win next year’s election. The People Power Party plans to hold a debate between the party’s preliminary presidential candidates on Aug. 18, which members of Yoon’s camp have expressed discontent with, saying everyone will attack Yoon, the leading can
PoliticsAug. 12, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon widens lead over Gyeonggi gov. in hypothetical 2-way presidential race: poll
Ex-Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, the leading opposition presidential contender, widened his lead over his rival from the ruling bloc, Gyeonggi Province Gov. Lee Jae-myung, in a hypothetical two-way presidential race, the latest poll showed Thursday. According to the poll conducted by Realmeter on 2,031 voters nationwide from Sunday-Monday, 42.1 percent of the respondents said they will vote for Yoon of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) in a hypothetical two-horse race against Gy
PoliticsAug. 12, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Internal feud deepens at PPP ahead of primary
The main opposition party has set its primary schedule, but is hit by an internal feud, as some presidential contenders expressed discontent over how it’s going to be done. Former prosecutor general and currently the People Power Party’s strongest presidential hopeful Yoon Seok-youl is unwilling to take part in the first debate among preliminary candidates on Aug. 18. Yoon, who has not yet registered as a preliminary presidential candidate in the party, did not attend events organi
PoliticsAug. 11, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Juvenile drug cases on the rise
Drug cases are on the rise in South Korea, with a marked surge in the number of juveniles arrested on drug charges, officials said Tuesday. According to government data, 7,565 people were arrested on drug charges and 1,138 people were imprisoned for drug offenses between January and June. Drug arrests rose 8.6 percent from the same period last year. The number of drug arrests stood at 12,613 in 2018, 16,044 in 2019 and 18,050 in 2020. The crackdown was carried out by the Ministry of Food a
Social AffairsAug. 10, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Lee still faces court fight in two separate cases
Now granted parole, Samsung Group’s de facto leader Lee Jae-yong will be released from the Seoul Detention Center at 10 a.m. Friday. His freedom, however, could be short-lived, as he is fighting two more criminal trials -- one on alleged accounting fraud and other offenses during a merger of two Samsung affiliates and another for his alleged use of the anesthetic propofol without a prescription. He was behind bars for his conviction for bribing former President Park Geun-hye as part of
TechnologyAug. 9, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Is sun setting on Hanhwa heir’s solar dream?
Kim Dong-kwan, the eldest son and apparent heir of Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-youn, has proved his mettle by taking the helm of the group’s money-bleeding solar business in 2011 and turning it into the world’s No. 6 solar energy player, Hanwha Q Cells. Poised to succeed his father to lead the country’s seventh-largest conglomerate, the 38-year-old now oversees Hanwha Solutions, launched last year after the merger of Q Cells and two other Hanwha companies, and is also s
IndustryAug. 9, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Half of S. Koreans opposed to delaying allied military drills with US: Realmeter
Slightly more than half of all South Koreans do not support the idea of postponing the regular joint summertime military drills between Seoul and Washington, a poll showed Monday. In the poll of 500 people aged 18 and older nationwide conducted by Realmeter last Friday, 50.4 percent of the respondents said they do not agree with calls for delaying the allied military drills. Meanwhile, 45.3 percent said they do. Talk of delaying or scaling down the annual joint military exercise set to take pl
DefenseAug. 9, 2021
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[Newsmaker] Samsung chief’s parole to be decided
Every summer around this time, South Korea releases hundreds of prisoners either on parole or pardons, in celebration of Liberation Day on Aug. 15. This year, the traditional practice of clemency has drawn particular attention as it could include one of the richest men in the country: Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the de-facto chief of Samsung Group. Come Monday, a parole committee within the Ministry of Justice will convene for a final review of candidates, which will det
TechnologyAug. 8, 2021
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[Newsmaker] [Tokyo Olympics] Moon applauds women's volleyball team for 'touching' Olympic match
President Moon Jae-in applauded the South Korean women's volleyball team Sunday, praising its unsuccessful but "extraordinarily touching" bid to win a medal at the Tokyo Summer Olympics. "The team extraordinarily touched (the hearts of Koreans)," Moon wrote on social media after the women's team ended its Olympic competition in fourth place. In the bronze medal match held earlier in the day at Ariake Arena in Tokyo, the South Korean women's team lost to Serbia 0-3, fallin
Olympic GamesAug. 8, 2021