Economist correspondent works to dispel misconceptions about South Korea


On Aug. 15, as much of Korea celebrated its Liberation Day, Daniel Tudor could be found reading a Korean-language newspaper in a Gwanghwamun-area caf.

Not far from where he sat, Korean police gathered, standing guard should any one of the peaceful demonstrations taking place in the area that day devolve into something less orderly.

Demonstrations, and the accompanying police brigades, are things Korea has a long history of, but in August Tudor’s native U.K. had its own experience with demonstrations that devolved, as outrage over the shooting of a London man sparked protests that escalated into full-blown rioting, resulting in five deaths and nearly 200 injured.

“Anarchy in the UK: Britain’s riots” blared the cover of that week’s Economist magazine, Tudor’s employer. But Tudor, the magazine’s Korea correspondent, is quick to make a distinction.

“That’s just people taking advantage,” he said of the riots in his homeland. In Korea, on the other hand, demonstrations are an important part of the nation’s modern history, as citizens organizing to express their views has played a huge role in how quickly the Korea went from being a dictatorship to what it is now.

“Without (them), it might not be a democracy,” he said.

There are many comparisons Tudor makes between his adopted home and birthplace, and these days many of them favor Korea. There’s the personal warmth, which Tudor calls the “jeong” factor (more on that later) and the sense that Korea and the U.K. are going in opposite directions.

“When I visit (the U.K.), I get the feeling of a place that’s going downhill,” he said. “Which is a shame because I love it.”

Now anticipating lifelong residency in Korea, over the next couple of years Tudor plans to author a book introducing outsiders to his second home, and co-author another about hanok, its traditional housing and a distinctive part of its cultural heritage. This comes just nine years after the 29-year-old journalist’s first visit to Korea, which started with something beloved by both countries: football. 

The carnival Korea

It was 2002, and Korea was co-hosting the FIFA World Cup alongside Japan. Tudor, then a student at the University of Oxford, found himself here after a friend’s father acquired tickets the world’s most widely viewed sporting event.

They arrived here to what Tudor calls a “carnival atmosphere,” where they would carry a football with them as they traveled about, and often found themselves playing impromptu matches in the street with people Tudor could not yet communicate with verbally.

Before the end of their trip a friend of Tudor’s who came along, and who bore an uncanny resemblance to French footballer Zinedine Zidane, would succumb to a barrage of requests; there may be some locals in possession of counterfeit Zidane autographs even now.

“It was probably the best time in my life, even until now,” Tudor said.

And it was a time that stuck with the rangy Englishman, who returned to the country in 2003 after graduating from Oxford. For the subsequent 10 months he began employment here as many other foreign residents have, teaching English. Then came a stint with a short-lived equity trading firm here, followed by another short experience with Mirae Assets.

By 2007 it appeared the Korea adventure had ended, and Tudor was back in England, working on an MBA at Manchester University. However, by the time that degree was concluded, it was 2008 and the global economy was rapidly turning sour, as “nobody was getting a job,” he recalled.

Well, not quite everybody: The Economist, the London-based weekly, was looking for interns and Tudor, despite no experience in journalism, submitted a sample article. He guessed they’d be most receptive to a piece on North Korea, and apparently guessed right.

Even so, his being accepted didn’t necessarily look like a permanent change of careers at the time; his internship lasted just three months.

“At the end of it there was nothing for me because even they were cutting people at the time,” he said. It was back into the financial world, including a year spent in Switzerland, when suddenly the magazine’s Asia editor contacted him, asking if he’d be willing to return to the Economist as the Korea correspondent.

That was a little more than a year ago.

The overlooked South

Here’s how Tudor explains the “jeong” factor:

“When you get to know people there’s this great friendship, almost a brotherhood,” he said of his time among Koreans. “There’s a warmth to people.

“Also, every day here I feel I’m learning something, because it is so different to England. I don’t want to say it made me a better person because that’s really cheesy, but it made me more rounded as a human.”

Furthermore, South Korea has undergone rapid changes as a nation in the last 60 years, from one that is deeply impoverished to a thriving economy, and from a hard-line dictatorship to “the best democracy in Asia,” he said. And the changes, cultural, technological or otherwise, keep coming, which excites him as a person and challenges him as a journalist.

However, most outside the country are quick to think of North Korea when any reference to the area pops up. Though it helped him land his current job, he’s clearly not happy with the North’s prominence at the expense of the South; when asked what his most interesting work for the magazine has been, he’s quick to point to stories taking place south of the DMZ.

Among them are last year’s crisis of soaring kimchi costs, sexism in South Korean workplaces, and the “M-curve”: highly educated women whose careers have been derailed by childbirth, maternity leave and time spent raising their children.

One thing he’s sure of, though, is that writing for the Economist is preferable to working in the financial industry, especially post-2008.

“People treat you nicely in this job,” he said.

And an improved perception of one’s work can allow one to have a positive effect; Tudor cites a story from last year about suicide as an example.

“I love to influence things,” he said. “A story like that gets people talking.”

The impossible country

And getting more dialogue started about Korea, particularly among those who know little of it, is his next mission. Tudor recently completed the writing of his first book, entitled “Korea: The Impossible Country” which is currently going through the editing process and is scheduled to be released by Tuttle Publishing next year.

He acknowledged the provocative nature of the book’s title, but said that “impossible” is a complement in this context, referring to the nation’s accomplishments following the Korean War.

“It’s just this idea that Korea’s come from basically nowhere to become rich, and a pretty advanced democracy despite the best efforts of some of the politicians here,” he said.

Through it, he plans to provide a general introduction to many aspects of Korean society, all in a slim book that could be read during a long flight to here from, say, England. There are chapters on the nation’s religious heritage ― from Shamanism to Buddhism to Christianity ― on its cultural achievements in areas such as music and cinema, and on cultural code words like “Han” and, of course, “jeong.”

For every chapter Tudor conducted an interview, including with renowned actor Choi Min-sik, and Lee So-yeon, Korea’s first astronaut.

In his other book project, he is to supply the words that will accompany British-based photographer Michael Freeman’s visual contributions on hanok. It’ll be Freeman’s first book of photos in Korea, but far from his first on Asian architecture and design, having done so already in Japan, Southeast Asia and China.

“It’s always puzzled me how little publicity Korea receives in the West, given its cultural richness,” Freeman said via email. “As a photographer, it’s always more interesting to work on ground that hasn’t been trampled extensively by others.”

For it, Freeman is to travel here around the beginning of 2012, probably for around six weeks, where he and Tudor are to visit 25-30 traditional houses whose owners would open their doors to the duo. Tudor encourages anyone willing to have their homes photographed and written about for the project to contact him via email at danieltudor@economist.com.

Both books are set to be published through Tuttle, which specializes in books about Asia. Eric Oey, head of Tuttle’s parent company Periplus Publishing Group, said that “Korea: The Impossible Country” is set for a fall 2012 release, and the hanok book for the following year.

Oey emphasized that the company is interested in publishing books on a wide variety of subjects pertaining to Asian society.

“In particular, there is a need for more insightful books about Korea, as so little is known about this country in the West,” he said. “We found Daniel Tudor’s book proposals extremely timely and topical.”

Asked what his goals are in publishing these books, Tudor said he hoped to draw more attention to the Southern half of the Korean peninsula, to shake off a few stereotypes and encourage more people to take an interest in the place he now calls home, whether that involves visiting the country or simply renting a Korean film.

“I’m not intending to be the last word on Korea,” he said. “I want it to be a way in for people. If they find they don’t agree with something I wrote, that’s fine, at least it got them interested.” 

By Rob York (rjamesyork@heraldcorp.com)

Daniel Tudor

● 2002 ― First visit to Korea for FIFA World Cup
● 2003 ― Graduated from the University of Oxford
● 2003-04 ― Taught English in Korea
● 2004-07 ― Worked in Korean financial industry
● 2008 ― Completed MBA at Manchester University
● 2008 ― Completed internship at The Economist
● 2010-present ― Korea correspondent for The Economist
● 2012 ― Tentative date for first book, “Korea: The Impossible Country”
● 2013 ― Tentative date for second book, co-authored with Michael Freeman on Korean hanok