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Saenuri Party Is Back. No, Not That Saenuri.
As if South Korea’s conservative faction isn’t fractured enough as is, it now has a third conservative presidential candidate. This reduces the right’s already-minimal chances of getting a sniff at power when the country goes to the polls on May 9. Meet pro-Park Geun-hye
"Gukppong": The Nationalism Meth
Picture this: South Korean Singer Psy is holding kimchi in one hand. In the other, he’s holding a Samsung phone. He wears the uniform of the L.A. Dodgers (for which a South Korean baseball player is currently playing). In the background, K-pop idol group Girls’ Generation
Don't Let Go: Those Balloons Can Kill
Earlier this month, Lotte Corporation launched thousands of balloons into the air to mark the opening of its World Tower in Seoul. It was a beautiful sight, and a typical practice at such occasions. Balloons are released into the sky all the time: at weddings, ceremonies, parties; even
Justin Lim, South Korea's Unsung LGBT Icon, Dies at 32
Though I did not know Justin Lim personally, it is difficult for anyone having ventured into the wild Itaewon gay scene to not know of Lim or his legacy. Some of the best nights out in Seoul were created thanks to Lim, a South Korean man who was open to
Is Greenwashing South Korea's New Black?
South Korea’s controversy over coal-fired power stations continues to grow, in a country with the largest coal plant in the world. Concerns about air pollution and greenhouse emissions are rapidly darkening coal’s reputation, which powers about 40 percent of the country’s energy.
The Victim Cosplay of A Former Dictator
Chun Doo-hwan, an infamous military dictator of South Korea, isn’t new to self-denial. For years, he has denied involvement in the Gwangju Democratization Movement — or Gwangju Uprising, as conservative skeptics like Chun call it. In his recent memoir, a massive trilogy spanning 2,000 pages, Chun is once
The Presidential Race Is On: Ten Minutes of Live Newstertainment
Sohn Suk-hee’s live interview with Hong Joon-pyo didn’t go the way he planned. Sohn, the president of broadcaster JTBC’s news division, is arguably South Korea’s most famous news anchor. He’s perceived as a hero in many young, progressive circles: He
Will Park Geun-hye Pay Her Lawyers?
Former president Park Geun-hye hired a total of 14 lawyers to defend her in the huge political scandal that led to her impeachment — and now incarceration. “How did Park Geun-hye manage her colossal legal fees? By not paying her lawyers,” broadcaster TV Chosun
Sim Sang-jung: A Superwoman Without Superpower
She calls herself the maid to Park Geun-hye’s princess. She’s the fringe to Park Geun-hye’s mainstream status. Park grew up in a castle: the president’s official residence that her father occupied for 18 years until his assassination in 1979, to which she returned many years later
South Koreans Compete for Government Jobs as Economy Flounders
Last Thursday, a 30-year-old man committed suicide on a mountain near Mapo district, Seoul. He was a gongsisaeng — a student preparing to take a civil service exam for officials-to-be in lower levels of management. In his hand was a piece of paper on which he had calculated his score
WHO vs. South Korea Guidelines for Air Quality
Today, two South Korean cities once again ranked in the world’s top ten for bad air quality. Seoul, the country’s capital and most populous city, was one of the two. The air pollution ranking around 2 p.m. KST. Air Quality Index (AQI) 101-150 is&
South Korea's Impossibly Mundane Superheroes
Superman, Spiderman, Wonder Woman. … Our best-loved superheroes are an unusual and flamboyant bunch. In South Korea, meanwhile, a different breed of wonder-figure is winning over the people: the Office Hero. The Office Hero doesn’t have supernatural abilities, technically speaking. He or she works in an office,