Most Popular
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Qoo10 liquidity crisis sparks massive complaints, fears of wider damage
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Yoon urges municipalities to embrace foreigners
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What is happening at Hybe?
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S. Korea to consent to Japan's Sado mines gaining World Heritage status: official
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Korea unveils tax reform bill to spur economy
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Actor’s excessive airport security sparks probe into human rights violations
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Actor Yoo Ah-in accused of sexual attack
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Man who let his father die due to financial difficulties to be released on parole
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S. Korea, China shifting from tensions to cooperation: Seoul
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LG Electronics achieves record earnings in Q2
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‘Artists in companies lead to innovation solution’
The arts can be more than “condiments” such as welfare policies or marketing opportunities for businesses. They can become an engine for innovation and development in an organization, a group of academics and businessmen claimed Tuesday. They urged more Korean organizations to adopt “artistic intervention,” which involves artists at all levels, from human resources management to strategic planning and business development, at firms and organizations.“Arts can engage people with mind, emotions an
Nov. 19, 2013
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Selfie tops twerk as Oxford’s word of the year
LONDON (AFP) ― Selfie is the 2013 word of the year, Oxford Dictionaries announced Tuesday, edging out some stiff competition from twerk.Usage of the word has increased 17,000 percent over the past 12 months, said Oxford Dictionaries, which publishes the mammoth Oxford English Dictionary, styled as the definitive record of the English language.Selfie is defined as “a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website.”I
Nov. 19, 2013
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Egypt plans renovation for Cairo museum
CAIRO (AP) ― Egypt unveiled Friday a multimillion dollar renovation project for Cairo’s famed Egyptian Museum, including plans to demolish a scorched building that stands between it and the Nile, in a bid to draw tourists back and restore a sense of normalcy after more than two years of unrest.Organizers said they want to return the dusty 111-year-old museum to its former glory by painting the walls and covering the floors in their original colors and patterns.The lighting and security systems a
Nov. 17, 2013
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Three shades of ‘Carmen’
It is no wonder that a tale of fiery yet innocent romance between a young, naive soldier and a sultry gypsy touches the hearts of many Koreans. “Carmen,” the tragic love story of exotic dancer Carmen and Don Jose by Prosper Merimee, was named the most-loved opera in a National Opera survey in 2012. From November through December, the story and music will be reinterpreted on three very different stages in opera and musical forms.KNO ― Original French styleThe Korea National Opera will feature “Ca
Nov. 17, 2013
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France’s Pleyel piano maker plays final note
PARIS (AP) ― Gone are its glory days, when Chopin composed concertos on its pianos. France’s Pleyel piano maker is shutting its doors, unable to keep up with cheaper and more agile competition.Down to just 14 employees after a 206-year history that produced more than 250,000 pianos, the Pleyel piano factory in Saint Denis, north of Paris, announced this week that it’s closing “because of recurrent losses and a very low level of activity.”Like so many industries that Europe once dominated, today
Nov. 17, 2013
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National Theater Company releases English book
The National Theater Company of Korea has released a compilation of three Korean plays translated into English, titled “Three Plays.” The 150-page book features the well-loved plays Bae Sam-sik’s “March Snow,” Ko Yeon-ok’s “The Master Has Arrived,” and Park Geun-hung’s “Red Bus.” The book also contains commentaries written about the writers’ lives and works by honorary professor at Pennsylvania State University, Richard Nicole. The National Theater Company of Korea has sent copies to more than 1
Nov. 14, 2013
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Naju National Museum to open next week
The Naju National Museum, the 13th central government-funded museum under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, will open to the public on Nov. 22. Located about a 20 minutes’ drive from central Naju, South Jeolla Province, in a rural setting, the museum will be a place where the past meets the present and future of the Yeongsangang River area, said Park Jung-hwan, director of the museum.“In the past, we built national museums in city centers, but this time we are reenacting history: The
Nov. 14, 2013
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Lee Charm in hot water over allegations of receiving sexual favors
Lee Charm, CEO of the Korea Tourism Organization, is in hot water for allegedly receiving favors from a subcontractor by visiting a brothel in Japan last year. While the German-turned-Korean admits to visiting the business, he insisted that he paid for the services on his own, saying it was only a “pure massage to take away the fatigue.”According to a report by jTBC on Tuesday, the KTO CEO visited Japan during the Lunar New Year holiday in January last year with workers of a subcontract company
Nov. 13, 2013
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Cultural heritage agency faces tough scrutiny
The Cultural Heritage Administration has come under fire regarding a number of scandals suggesting internal irregularities, a lack of management skills and indifference to the country’s cultural assets. With President Park Geun-hye ordering a probe and disciplinary measures, the Daejeon-based state organization is now conducting an internal audit and formulating reform plans. Senior Presidential Secretary for Public Affairs Lee Jung-hyun on Monday briefed the press, saying President Park called
Nov. 12, 2013
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Korea promoter presents 10 things people should know about Korea
Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor of General Education at Sungshin Women’s University, well-known for his efforts for promoting Korea’s position on sovereignty over the Dokdo Islets, and has recently published a book titled, “Do you Know? 10 Things you Must Know About Korea.” Seo, who is known for his efforts to promote Korean culture, has selected a wide range of issues, historical moments and cultural aspects that he feels must be known about the peninsula including: the Dokdo Islets (listed as the
Nov. 12, 2013
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Egypt recovers 90 ancient artifacts on auction in Jerusalem
CAIRO (AFP) ― Egypt said Sunday that it has recovered 90 ancient artifacts that were put on sale by a Jerusalem auction house, and has asked Israel to find other antiquities and return them to Cairo.The ministry of antiquities said it had asked Israeli authorities to intervene after “spotting in recent weeks a sale of 110 ancient Egyptian artefacts on the website of an auction house in Jerusalem.”The auction house was unable to provide documents proving who owned the items and Israeli authoritie
Nov. 12, 2013
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Park orders probe into shoddy restorations
President Park Geun-hye ordered her staff Monday to strictly investigate cultural restoration projects, saying those found responsible for shoddy repair work should be severely punished.Park gave the order to her chief of staff Kim Ki-choon ahead of a meeting of senior presidential secretaries early in the day, citing recent revelations that the ancient Sungnyemun Gate was poorly restored, according to her senior press secretary Lee Jung-hyun.“This morning, President Park ordered a strict invest
Nov. 11, 2013
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Cambridge Univ. Press plans books on history of science in Korea
A 10-volume text on the history of Korean science will be released by the Cambridge University Press in English, the Academy of Korean Studies said Thursday. “Science and Civilization in Korea,” chronicling the history of science in Korea was originally released in 22 volumes in Korean. But through collaboration with the Needham Research Institute of the prestigious British university, they will be published in a 10-volume set in English. The first seven books will be titled “History of Science
Nov. 10, 2013
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U.S., Israel lose UNESCO voting rights
PARIS (AFP) ― The United States and Israel lost their UNESCO voting rights Friday after suspending funding to the organization in 2011 over Palestinian admission, a source from the U.N. agency told AFP.Neither the U.S. nor Israel provided documentation by Friday needed “to avoid losing their right to vote,” the source said on condition of anonymity. Both countries stopped paying their contributions to the global cultural body after the Palestinians gained membership two years ago, provoking a ma
Nov. 10, 2013
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Vatican unveils new magazine in Latin
VATICAN CITY (AFP) ― The Vatican on Friday presented a revamped version of its Latin-language journal “Latinitas” as it tries bid to make the dead language still used in the Catholic Church accessible to a wider audience.The first issue of the new twice-yearly magazine includes a preface written by Pope Francis, whose new Twitter account in Latin ― “Papa Franciscus” ― has reached more than 180,000 followers.“The aim is to highlight the glorious tradition behind us that has to be preserved and re
Nov. 10, 2013
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Veteran entertainers win cultural order
Four veteran entertainers, Cho Yong-pil, Gu Bong-seo, Ahn Sung-ki and Patti Kim, are to receive the Order of Cultural Merit from the Korean government. According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Sunday, the four entertainers have been selected to receive the silver crown medal, Korea’s second-highest cultural honor.Cho was recognized for his enormous impact on the Korean pop music scene and for remaining one of the most influential figures in the country more than 45 years after
Nov. 10, 2013
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Korean libraries embrace new, expanded roles
Some people still assume that the library is a place for bookworms and exam takers. Ask Ahn Si-young, a regular library goer, and she will give a different idea. The 55-year-old mother of two college students enjoys attending educational programs at public libraries ranging from a book club to parenthood lectures. “The public library is where I can get educational benefits either free of charge or cheaper than anywhere else, and I want to make the most out of it,” Ahn said in an interview with T
Nov. 8, 2013
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The end of libraries? Sort of
Friendly librarians mill around towering bookshelves, with the smell of newly printed books and dusty paperbacks in the air. The traditional image of a library is of a place to study, read books and hang out at a leisurely pace. With the emergence of the digital age, however, people are turning away from traditional libraries. According to Statistics Korea, a Korean household spent an average of 19,026 won a month on books in 2012, down from 20,570 won the year before. It marked the first time s
Nov. 8, 2013
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Librarians becoming ‘information mediators’: Lim
Facing the digital age, libraries are increasingly pressed to stretch beyond their traditional role to offer more user-friendly and versatile functions, said Lim Won-sun, chief executive of the National Library of Korea.“Basically, we want to run a service that actively approaches (readers). Up to now, libraries’ role had been to collect and organize information for people to seek out,” Lim told The Korea Herald. “We want to approach people and say, ‘Don’t you need this (information)? I think th
Nov. 8, 2013
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English libraries give kids access to learning
Korean parents are famously passionate aboard their children’s education. Unsurprisingly, they view English as an important subject for their kids and invest heavily in them learning the language, often pushing even toddlers to read English books.But there are not many English libraries for Korean children. Among 83 public libraries for children nationwide, only a few facilities specialize in English books. There are two English libraries for children in Yongsan-gu of northern Seoul, two in Mapo
Nov. 8, 2013