Even Getting Into the Military Is Competitive in South Korea
It’s widely known that cut-throat competition is the norm of South Korean life. There are hagwons, or private cram schools, for children even in kindergarten. So it’s not surprising that hagwons exist also for those who are about to start their mandatory military service. Young South Korean
Granddaughter’s Love Makes Grandma a Youtube Sensation
Alzheimer’s runs in Park Mak-rye’s family. Three of her older sisters were afflicted by the neuro-degenerative disease. So Park’s 26-year-old granddaughter, Kim Yoo-ra, came up with an ingenious way to prevent her grandmother from suffering the same fate: Making the 70-year-old star of her own&
"Becoming Prettier": K-pop MV Chronicles Girl Group's Plastic Surgery
Four girls in skintight pink bodysuits march into a surgery room. One of them lies down and closes her eyes, as blinding white light gleams from the surgical headlights above her. Then, a long beep and brief silence, followed by a catchy beat with these lines: “I’m
China Travel Clampdown Empties South Korea's Myeongdong
Myeongdong, a downtown Seoul shopping district typically packed with tourists, was unusually quiet on Wednesday. For the last few years, the area has drawn an unending torrent of Chinese tourists. Most street signs and signboards are written in Korean and Chinese — sometimes only
Hong Sang-soo Kim Min-hee Affair Leads to Ratings Sabotage
The film won Kim Min-hee a Silver Bear for Best Actress at Berlin International Film Festival. Foreign media loved it. But on South Korean websites, “On the Beach at Night Alone” is being slaughtered before it has even been released. At home, filmmaker Hong Sang-soo’s new work has drawn
“Fake News” Nudges Senior South Koreans Toward Social Media
Amid the nation’s political turmoil, elderly South Koreans are losing trust in conventional news. As an alternative, they are increasingly turning to social media such as popular messaging app KakaoTalk and YouTube that young people favor. But though the elderly may be using the same platforms as their younger
Only High School Using Park Geun-hye’s History Textbook Faces Rough Year
This year’s opening ceremony at Munmyeong High School in North Gyeongsang Province was cancelled. The chairs in the hall are left empty, as students and parents protested against the school’s decision to adopt a state-issued history textbook. (Source: JTBC) The only high school in South Korea to adopt
Pro-Japanese Roots Haunt South Korean Actor Kang Dong-won
Popular South Korean actor Kang Dong-won is under fire for an ancestor he has never met, about whom he talked about in passing in an interview ten years ago. In a 2007 interview with Chosun Ilbo, Kang boasted that his maternal great-grandfather, Lee Jong-man, had been a
China’s THAAD Revenge List
K-pop, Jeju Island, and Lotte candy — what do they all have in common? They’re all subject to China’s economic retaliation against South Korea over the decision to install Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), a U.S-made missile defense system. Tensions keep rising, ranging from a recent
South Korea's E-Commerce System Sucks; Moon Jae-in Agrees
South Korea may have the world’s fastest internet speed and stable 4G LTE network connection on subway lines, but its people have been suffering from the chronic inconvenience of living with an outdated online banking and ecommerce system. Moon Jae-In, the frontrunner of the upcoming presidential election, pledged to