Most Popular
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Opposition-led Assembly unilaterally passes bill to probe Marine's death
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Inflation eases in April, continues bumpy ride
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Russia sent more than 165,000 barrels of refined petroleum to N. Korea in March: White House
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Seoul to more than double military drones by 2026 to counter NK threats
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Key suspects grilled over alleged abuse of power in Marine death inquiry
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Seoul alerts overseas missions to NK terror threats
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Over 60% of S. Koreans support W100m childbirth incentive: survey
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‘Inside Out 2’ adds four new emotions, explores teenage life
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Questions raised over fair promotion of RM, NewJeans
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[Graphic News] Number of coffee franchises in S. Korea rises 13%
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[Newsmaker] US downs Chinese balloon, drawing a threat from China
WASHINGTON -- The US military on Saturday shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the Carolina coast after it traversed sensitive military sites across North America. China insisted the flyover was an accident involving a civilian aircraft and threatened repercussions. President Joe Biden issued the order but had wanted the balloon downed even earlier, on Wednesday. He was advised that the best time for the operation would be when it was over water, US officials said. Military officials de
Foreign AffairsFeb. 5, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Free subway rides for seniors: Calls mount to raise eligible age to 70
Since 1984, turning 65 in Korea has come with one nice perk: free subway rides. It has encouraged older adults to travel more for social gatherings, hiking and other activities, helping reduce rates of suicide and depression, as well as medical fees, according to research from the Korea Transport Institution. However, as Seoul's city government pushes to raise subway and bus fares from as early as April, on top of a taxi fare hike that started Wednesday and a steep rise in gas and electricity ra
Social AffairsFeb. 3, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Why are helicopter parents tailing school trips?
For many Koreans, their most treasured memories from their student days are often of multiday trips to renowned historic or natural sites around the country. These include the UNESCO-recognized historic city of Gyeongju; the country’s wartime capital and now second-biggest city Busan; and Jeju Island, the one and only Korean entry to the World’s Seven Wonders of Nature. However, an online post purportedly written by a teacher about a field trip to Jeju has gone viral, sparking some h
Hashtag KoreaFeb. 2, 2023
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[Newsmaker] New visas, faster entries: Immigration changes in 2023
South Korea has recently rolled out a series of changes for foreign visitors and residents in the country, ranging from new visas to giving young children access to automated immigration gates at airports. The measures are intended to draw more foreigners, from tourists to long-term workers, after a period of pandemic-induced strict border controls. Introduction of new visas Two new visa types will be made available to visitors, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced last mont
Social AffairsFeb. 1, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Facebook or Twitter? Choice reflects young Koreans' politics
Liberals in their early 20s are more likely to use Twitter, while conservatives in the same age group prefer Facebook, according to a local study released Tuesday. Two out of 5 South Koreans aged between 19 and 24 are on their smartphones for more than five hours a day, according to an online poll of 2,214 people of this age group conducted in July last year by the state-funded National Youth Policy Institute. They mostly use YouTube, KakaoTalk, Instagram and Facebook and come across a lot of fa
Social AffairsJan. 31, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Why is Samsung starting a legal fight against smartphone repair shops in US?
Samsung Display has recently filed a complaint against 17 smartphone repair shops in the US over their use of “illegal” panels that it says infringed its highly sophisticated OLED patents, according to industry sources Monday. The display-making unit of Samsung Electronics is a market leader making almost 70 percent of OLED panels used in high-end mobile devices, including Samsung Galaxy and Apple iPhone smartphones. Sources say the company seems determined to offer no leniency for
IndustryJan. 30, 2023
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[Newsmaker] [Hello Hangeul] Hangeul is just a few clicks away
Ana Perez, a graduate student living in New York, was ecstatic when she got her first “golden owl” in Korean on the popular language education app Duolingo. The golden owl is a trophy given to users who complete a certain set of skills in the language of their choice. "As there are so many levels here, that took me about four months to get. I feel proud of myself, or jarang seu reo weo," said Perez, adding the word for "proud" in Korean to emphasize her language s
Hello HangeulJan. 29, 2023
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[Newsmaker] [KH Explains] Are ex-bureaucrat execs a boon or bane for banks?
The bid by a former head of the country’s top financial regulator for the chairmanship of Woori Financial Group has stoked controversy and rekindled concerns of bureaucratic involvement in the highly regulated banking industry. Lim Jong-ryong was chairman of the Financial Services Commission from 2015 to 2017 under the Park Geun-hye administration. He also served as chairman of NongHyup Financial Group from back in 2013 to 2015. On Wednesday, Woori Financial Group’s union held
IndustryJan. 26, 2023
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[Newsmaker] No more 'Narco-Saints' busts as drugs trade goes digital
The Korea Herald is running a series of feature stories and interviews on the evolution and rise of drug crimes, insufficient support systems and young addicts’ stories in South Korea. This is the fourth installment. -- Ed. Former South Korean prosecutor Kim Hee-jun led a joint operation with the nation's spy agency for years in the late 2000s to capture a South Korean-Surinamese drug kingpin, serving as the basis for the popular Netflix series "Narco-Saints." Similar to t
Social AffairsJan. 25, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Jealousy possible motive in Lunar New Year shooting
MONTEREY PARK, California -- Detectives probing why an elderly Asian immigrant shot dead 11 people as they celebrated Lunar New Year at a dance hall in California are examining whether jealousy or a personal dispute was behind the tragedy, a report said Monday. Huu Can Tran, 72, used a semiautomatic pistol in a rampage in the Los Angeles suburb of Monterey Park on Saturday night, killing men and women in their 50s, 60s and 70s. One person was shot in the parking lot. He then drove to another dan
World NewsJan. 24, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Inha University student sentenced to 20 years prison for rape resulting in death
A court sentenced 20 years to the perpetrator charged with raping and causing the death of schoolmate at a university campus in July last year, Thursday. Instead of murder, a charge of "quasi-rape" resulting in death was applied, implying that the court judged that the perpetrator did not intentionally cause the victim’s death. Article 299 of the Criminal Act defines quasi-rape as sexual intercourse or an indecent act "by taking advantage of the other's condition of unconsci
Social AffairsJan. 20, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Google Earth offers clear views of where Kim Jong-un works, lives
Commercial satellite imagery can clearly capture North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s office, residence and other key facilities of Pyongyang, US state-owned broadcaster Voice of America reported Wednesday, as it released Google Earth images of those locations. Last month, North Korea disclosed photos of downtown Seoul including the area around President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office and the Incheon port, claiming they were taken by a prototype of its reconnaissance satellite under developme
North KoreaJan. 19, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Yoon touts ties with Switzerland
ZURICH, Switzerland/DUBAI -- President Yoon Suk Yeol, who arrived in Switzerland on Tuesday evening, met with Koreans living in Zurich, vowing to make greater efforts for a new 60 years with Switzerland based on the trust and cooperation the two nations have built, before leaving for Davos. Upon arriving in the city, Yoon and first lady Kim had dinner with around 80 Korean residents in a hotel. An estimated 4,000 Koreans live in Switzerland. In an opening speech, Yoon said South Korea “sol
PoliticsJan. 18, 2023
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[Newsmaker] ‘Swallow thumb drives if you get caught': Suspected NK spies reportedly under probe
South Korean authorities are investigating suspected operatives working for North Korea on Jeju Island and in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, who told each other to “swallow thumb drives” if they get caught, a vernacular newspaper reported Monday. The purported spies, mostly in their 50s and 60s, received orders from Kim Myong-song, an agent of the Cultural Exchange Bureau of the North’s Workers’ Party of Korea, to engage in anti-US campaigns, “infiltrate&rdquo
Social AffairsJan. 17, 2023
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[Newsmaker] [Herald Interview] Hangeul as more than just a hobby: KSIF chief
The following series is part of The Korea Herald’s “Hello Hangeul” project of interviews, in-depth analyses, videos and various other forms of content that shed light on the stories of people who are learning the Korean language and the correlation between Korea’s soft power and the rise of the language within the league of world languages. – Ed. The ever-growing popularity of Korean content has sparked a boom in Korean language learning worldwide. Standing at the v
CultureJan. 16, 2023
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[Newsmaker] [Hello Hangeul] 'Hangeul education is basic right for multicultural students'
Publicly offered Korean language education for children from immigrant and foreign families is necessary because they are entitled to learn the language as part of their human rights, said Seoul City's education chief, stressing the need to expand quality high-level classes currently limited to adults. “Students of multicultural backgrounds should be given a chance to learn the Korean language as a basic human right that they are entitled to,” said Cho Hee-yeon, superintendent
Social AffairsJan. 15, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Stop-motion animation 'Mother Land' stays away from 3D effect for story about nature
“Mother Land,” South Korea’s first major stop-motion animated film in 45 years, did not use 3D effects in the film to better portray the mother nature story, the film’s director Park Jae-beom told reporters Tuesday. “When I first thought about the storyline of ‘Mother Land,’ it was obvious for me to turn it into a stop-motion animation. Not only because I’m a huge fan of stop-motion animation, but because I wanted to portray a story of mother natur
FilmJan. 13, 2023
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[Newsmaker] Fallen ancient Buddha statue to be put upright by 2025
A 1,300-year-old rock-carved Buddha statue in Gyeongju’s Namsan, discovered with its face down a mere 5 centimeters away from a giant rock, is to be reerected, the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism announced Wednesday. The Jogye Order announced the Maaebul restoration project during its New Year’s press conference held at the Korean Buddhism History and Culture Memorial Hall in Jongno, central Seoul, on Wednesday. "The Buddha (statue) spent a thousand years lying face down, to bear
CultureJan. 12, 2023
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[Newsmaker] After 'giant' interest rate hikes, are savers better off?
When a small provincial branch of NongHyup Bank offered an online-exclusive installment savings plan with an annual interest of 8.2 percent in November last year, the news spread like wildfire among savvy savers. It sold like lottery tickets. Within hours, the bank sold 900 billion won ($707.8 million) of saving products, which was more than five times the size of the branch's total assets of 167 billion won. The problem was that the rural bank just wanted to attract just 10 billion won of fu
MarketJan. 11, 2023
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[Newsmaker] South Korea’s most infamous serial killers
Recently, the possibility police discovered a new serial killer sent shock waves across South Korea. Lee Ki-young, who was arrested late last month for the murder of a taxi driver and his ex-girlfriend, will undergo an extensive investigation into additional DNA found inside his home. Looking back, South Korea’s history of serial killers is still considered for its hateful brutality and aggression. Here are three of Korea’s most notorious serial killers: 1. Lee Choon-jae, the &l
Social AffairsJan. 10, 2023