Most Popular
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BTS, NewJeans fandoms clash over Hybe-Min Hee-jin conflict
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N. Korea launches missiles in latest show of military, nuclear strength
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High temperatures may worsen mental health conditions: study
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Samsung chief travels to France to encourage young talents
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Korean battery makers zero in on global commercial EV market
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Yoon leaves for Prague to cement nuclear energy push
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N. Korea fires multiple short-range ballistic missiles: JCS
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[Off the Pages] German bestseller gets new twist in ‘Snow White Must Die -- Black Out’
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4th case of lumpy skin disease confirmed in S. Korea
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Main opposition to railroad multiple contentious bills after Chuseok
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[Interview] ‘It’s just a job’: Actor-turned-shaman speaks against prejudice toward shamanism
Many Koreans have a love-hate relationship with traditional shamans, or “mudangs” as they are called here. While it is not unusual to find a practitioner around the block, they are still widely frowned upon by the majority of the public. Jeong Ho-geun, a 58-year-old veteran actor better known as a shaman nowadays, has experienced such prejudice firsthand since he decided to become a shaman in 2014. His friends started dodging his calls and people left him “like the parting of t
Oct. 29, 2022
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[Newsmaker] Church finalizes punishment on pastor for blessing LGBT people
The Korean Methodist Church’s court on Thursday upheld its earlier decision to suspend a pastor from his duties for two years for blessing sexual minorities in 2019. “According to the creed of the Methodist Church, praying in front of sexual minorities can be seen as advocating or agreeing with their actions,” the court said, on why it decided to deny the appeal made by Rev. Lee Dong-hwan, the 42-year-old pastor of Glory Jeil Church in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. The decision was
Oct. 21, 2022
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[Eye Plus] Digging for answers
Chi Hye-seol was crouching down inside a pit 1 meter deep. With her face covered in dirt and one hand holding a "homi," a Korean hand plow, she was carefully digging. “I am looking for clues into the past that are deeply asleep under this dust,” said Chi, a senior student majoring in convergence archaeology at Korea National University of Cultural Heritage. When The Korea Herald met her on Sept. 30, she was working on an excavation at Hongsan-myeon, Buyeo, South Chungcheong
Oct. 8, 2022
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Methodist pastor fights against punishment after blessing LGBT people
Behind doors closed to the press, the Korean Methodist Church’s court heard an appeals case brought by one pastor to reverse the church's decision to suspend him from his duty for two years at its headquarters in Seoul on Thursday. His sin? Blessing gay people at the Incheon Queer Culture Festival in 2019. “From September 2019 until now, (my action) has been reviewed for three years and we are now finally waiting for the ruling. What I wanted to do from the very beginning was to
Oct. 7, 2022
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Global volunteer group Rotary holds workshop at Jeju Island
Rotary, an international volunteer organization with 70,000 participants in Korea and 1.4 million members around the world, is holding 2022 Rotary training session at the Maison Glad Hotel in Jeju City on Sept. 26-29. The workshop will be a venue for learning and exchange for leaders who lead Korean Rotary. About 500 people will attend, including Rotary’s President Jennifer E. Jones and Trustee chair Ian Riseley. Jones is the first female president in Rotary's 117-year history, a memb
Sept. 26, 2022
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[Eye Plus] The song must go on, says gayageum byeongchang specialist
It was somewhat natural for Gi Yoo-jeong, a 30-year-old gayageum player, to turn to the Korean traditional twelve-string instrument. "My mom was a gayageum player, and I grew up listening to her playing it at home all the time. And naturally, I became one too,” she said. “My mom didn’t say a word about my career. It was solely at my will to play gayageum,” said Gi, as she played the instrument at her home. When she began to play gayageum, her first child Ji-an sat be
Sept. 24, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Miss Bhutan shares story of coming out, self-love
Tashi Choden, a Bhutanese social media influencer who was crowned this year’s Miss Bhutan, was 15 when she first realized she was "different." “I first came out as a bisexual person to my friends, but soon realized that my affection tilted more towards women,” Choden, now 23, told The Korea Herald in an exclusive interview. “After doing some research on gender identities, I found out that I was a genderfluid lesbian.” Being gender-fluid means that one&rs
Sept. 19, 2022
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Ahn Sook-sun named Intangible Cultural Heritage holder of 'Chunhyangga' pansori
Veteran gugak musician Ahn Sook-sun, 73, has been recognized as the National Intangible Cultural Heritage holder of "Chunhyangga" pansori, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced Tuesday. "Chunhyangga" is the best-known among the pansori genre, depicting a love tale between a daughter of an entertainer and the son of a magistrate. Ahn surrenders the "Gayageum Sanjo and Byeongchang" holder's qualification, since the CHA states that a single person should not
Sept. 6, 2022
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[Newsmaker] Archbishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik becomes S. Korea’s fourth cardinal
Archbishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik became the fourth South Korean cardinal in an appointment ceremony at the Vatican on Saturday. You, 70, was sworn in at St. Peter’s Basilica at 4 p.m. as one of 20 new cardinals appointed by Pope Francis. The appointment was announced in May. He was also among 16 cardinal electors under 80 years old, who are eligible to vote for the next pontiff in a secret conclave. You became the fourth Korean cardinal after the late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, th
Aug. 28, 2022
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Iron Museum founding director Chang In-kyung appointed vice president of International Museums Council
The International Council of Museums named Chang In-kyung, former head of the ICOM Korea Committee and founding director of the Iron Museum in Eumseong, North Chungcheong Province, as co-vice president of ICOM headquarters, on Thursday. The announcement was made after the 37th ICOM General Assembly held in Prague, on Thursday. Emma Nardi, professor in University Rome Tre’s Experimental Pedagogy studies department, was elected president, and Terry Simioti, assistant curator of Ichthyology
Aug. 26, 2022
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[Herald Interview] The masks of perfection, humility in Korean psyche
Everyone puts on a mask. Sometimes it is a persona of a good son, a model parent, a dependable co-worker, a trusted friend, or a combination of these. Or perhaps even all of them. But what if the mask gets stuck and you feel your life is a masquerade and a fraud? Lisa Son, professor of psychology at Barnard College of Columbia University, points out the risks of what is known as “impostor syndrome,” a feeling of constant self-doubt and perceived fraudulence, particularly in high-ac
July 21, 2022
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[Herald Interview] How Pungwoldang, old-school classical music store, survived nearly 2 decades
In a corner of Sinsa-dong in Seoul’s Gangnam district, there’s a nearly two-decade-old record store dedicated to classical music. With a collection of more than 200,000 CDs and vinyl records as well as some 3,000 books on the world’s greatest musicians and music history, the shop – Pungwoldang – is not an ordinary shop. It is a salon, school and publishing house for classical music aficionados and musicians. But above all, owner Park Jong-ho, 62, wants it to be
July 16, 2022
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Actor Nam Joo-hyuk denies new school bullying rumors
Actor Nam Joo-hyuk has denied another round of bullying allegations raised against him. Management Soop, Nam’s agency, said Wednesday that they had sought to verify the facts through various channels after the rumors were raised and found that such allegations were “not true.” The controversy erupted on Tuesday last week when a local media outlet ran a report alleging that Nam had bullied a classmate in high school. The article was based on a tip-off from an anonymous pers
July 7, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Tailoring dance steps to idols: Kasper says it’s essential in K-pop
The name Kasper may sound familiar to many K-pop fans. His demo videos of popular choreography have made him a hit among lovers of Korean music. Kasper, whose real name is Kim Tae-woo, is a choreographer with 15 years of experience working with elite groups from S.M. Entertainment. He received praise for composing the moves for Exo’s “Ko Ko Bop” and Shinee’s “Don’t Call Me.” Wearing in his signature look of sneakers and earrings, and with his right a
July 6, 2022
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Kang Ji-young reveals teaser image for her new single ‘Lucid Dream’
The teaser image for singer and actress Kang Ji-young‘s new single, “Lucid Dream,” was released on Monday. Kang, who co-wrote the lyrics of the melodic blues-inspired song about missing a loved one, expressed excitement about her first release in four years. She also launched the YouTube channel “My Name is Jiyoung Kang ” last Tuesday and released a video about her new single. “Lucid Dream” is a collaborative project between Kang and Unda, a shampoo
July 4, 2022
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Pianist Chang Hyoung-joon appointed new president of Seoul Arts Center
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on Wednesday said that it has appointed pianist and professor Chang Hyoung-joon as the new president of the Seoul Arts Center. Starting Friday, Chang will lead the country’s top art complex for the next three years. Born in 1962, Chang received his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees from the Manhattan School of Music. He has been teaching piano at Seoul National University since 1995. He has collaborated with world-reno
June 16, 2022
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[Eye] ‘Kids need values, not grades’
Behind the shining successes in economy, education, public security and the health care system, Korea is a country with an extremely low birth rate and the highest suicide rate among OECD member nations. Now, the country stands at a crossroad to choose its path forward. “It is between whether we place a high value on mental state or continue to focus on extrinsic values,” said Ji Na-young, an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Extrinsic
June 16, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Illusionist Lee Eun-gyeol explores new possibilities of magic
With his eye-catching gestures, comical facial expressions and mischievous voices, illusionist Lee Eun-gyeol turned even a small studio into a grand stage for his stage performances. “Which version of Lee Eun-gyeol do you want to see today? I don’t think the performer from MBC is available today,” Lee playfully told The Korea Herald during a recent interview. The zany persona that made him so well-loved on MBC’s “My Little Television” might have been absen
June 8, 2022
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[Herald Interview] Man launches personal crusade against ‘bad fathers’
Koo Bon-chang, a 59-year-old retiree, is a man who has had numerous run-ins with legal authorities. So far, he has been sued 28 times, undergone police investigation, been indicted and been sentenced to fines multiple times for disclosing personal information on the internet of those who refuse to pay child support after divorce. “Some call it vigilantism. But when you think of the #MeToo movement, it starts with the victims alerting (society) of how they were victimized,” Koo tol
May 30, 2022
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Navy SEAL-turned-YouTuber Rhee Keun plans to return from Ukraine
Former South Korean Navy special warfare officer Rhee Keun, who has reportedly been injured while leading a recent mission in Ukraine, may return home. According to a post by the International Legion of Defense of Ukraine on Thursday, Rhee, also known as Ken Rhee, was treated at a military hospital in Ukraine and will return to South Korea for rehabilitation. “He will soon resume his service and once again defend the Ukrainian people as soon as possible. We wish Ken a speedy recovery an
May 20, 2022