South Korea
Ex-Rep. Michelle Steel becomes 1st Korean American woman US ambassador to Seoul
The Senate confirmed former Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) as the next U.S. ambassador to South Korea on June 17, putting a Korean American woman in the post for the first time. How it happened…
Starbucks Korea ‘Tank Day’ promotion draws outrage
A marketing campaign by Starbucks Korea has ignited public anger in South Korea after promotional slogans referencing “Tank Day” appeared on the anniversary of the 1980 Gwangju uprising, one of the…
‘No Filipinos allowed’ sign in South Korea sparks debate
A TikTok video describing venues in South Korea that allegedly barred Filipinos and other Southeast Asians from entering has ignited renewed debate over discrimination in the country’s nightlife…
YouTuber sentenced to 6 months in South Korea prison over repeated livestream harassment
A South Korean court sentenced American YouTuber Johnny Somali, whose real name is Ramsey Khalid Ismael, to six months in prison after documenting a pattern of disruptive livestream stunts across…
Former South Korean president sentenced to life in prison for insurrection
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol received a life sentence Thursday following his conviction on insurrection charges stemming from a failed martial law decree he imposed in December 2024.…
Former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol gets five years in prison
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol was sentenced to five years in prison last week, the first of eight criminal verdicts stemming from his 2024 martial law crisis. Catch up: Yoon abruptly declared…
South Korea and Japan leaders end Nara summit with K-pop drum performance
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi concluded a two-day bilateral summit in Nara on Jan. 14 with a closing moment few observers would have predicted. The…
Vietnamese nationals lead record growth in South Korea’s foreign population
Vietnamese residents have become the fastest-growing foreign community in South Korea, with 270,000 living in the country. Recent official data shows that this rise contributes to a total foreign…
US and South Korea move to repair relations after Georgia raid
Washington and Seoul are taking steps to mend diplomatic and economic relations after September’s immigration raid that detained hundreds of South Korean workers at a battery plant in Georgia. State…
Korean masterworks make US debut at Smithsonian
More than 200 rare works from Korea’s most significant private art donation opened to the public on Saturday at the National Museum of Asian Art in Washington, D.C., where they will remain on view…
AI-generated images of Lee Jung-jae used to defraud woman of $350K
A woman in her 50s from Miryang, South Korea, lost about 500 million won ($350,000), after scammers used AI-generated photos of “Squid Game” star Lee Jung-jae and a forged driver’s license to pose as…
Trump claims he ‘very much opposed’ Hyundai raid amid South Korean warning
President Donald Trump said he was “very much opposed” to last month’s controversial immigration raid at a Hyundai plant in Georgia, while South Korean President Lee Jae Myung warned the incident may…
Taiwanese visitors wear badges in S. Korea to avoid anti-Chinese hostility
Taiwanese tourists visiting South Korea have begun wearing identification badges to avoid being mistaken for Chinese nationals amid escalating xenophobic incidents targeting Mandarin speakers. State…
South Korea legalizes tattoo industry after unanimous vote
Tattoo artists in South Korea will soon be able to work legally for the first time after lawmakers voted 195 to zero on Sept. 25 to pass the Tattooist Act. The measure replaces decades of criminal…
Trump admin rushes to mend ties with South Korea after Hyundai raid
The Trump administration is working to repair diplomatic relations with South Korea as the latter prepares to investigate alleged human rights violations during the detention of its nationals in a…
South Korean court clears woman who bit attacker’s tongue 61 years ago
As a teenager in 1964, Choi Mal-ja fought to survive when a man pinned her down and forced his tongue into her mouth. She bit off part of his tongue to break free, only to be convicted of aggravated…
South Korean workers return home after Georgia Hyundai raid
South Korean workers detained in last week’s immigration raid at a Hyundai manufacturing facility in Georgia returned home Thursday evening, concluding a diplomatic crisis that exposed tensions over…
ICE’s largest HSI raid ever detains mostly South Koreans at Georgia Hyundai plant
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested 475 people — most being South Korean nationals — at a Hyundai facility in Georgia last week in what officials describe as the “largest…
South Korean president thanks Korean Americans
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung opened his first official U.S. visit on Sunday evening at a hotel in downtown Washington, D.C., with a dinner attended by around 200 Korean American community…
South Korea may soon legalize tattooing by non-medical professionals
South Korea may soon lift its decades-old prohibition on tattooing by non-medical professionals as lawmakers prepare to debate a key bill that would bring the underground practice into legal…
Video of bound migrant worker being lifted by forklift roils South Korea
A video published on July 25 showing a Sri Lankan migrant worker at a brick factory in Naju, South Korea, being bound in plastic wrap, tied to bricks and lifted by a forklift has sparked national…
Pilots shut off wrong engine in South Korea crash that killed 179, report finds
South Korea’s Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board revealed on July 19 that the pilots of Jeju Air Flight 2216 shut down the wrong engine during an emergency after a bird strike, leading…
Chinese K-pop idol told to ‘go back’ after pushing One China policy on fans
Xinyu, a Chinese vocalist of the 24-member K-pop girl group tripleS, is facing backlash after echoing her support for Beijing’s “One China” policy. The controversy erupted on fan platform Fromm,…
Former NCT member sentenced for sexual assault
Taeil, a former member of K-pop boy group NCT, was slapped with a three-and-a-half-year prison sentence on Thursday following his conviction for sexually assaulting an intoxicated Chinese woman in…
South Korean students warned to clean up their socials amid US visa crackdown
South Korean students, the third-largest group of international students in the U.S., are being urged to carefully manage their online presence amid heightened visa scrutiny by the Trump…
Ador asserts contract validity as NewJeans decides to exit label
Ador, the management agency of NewJeans, has rejected the group’s abrupt announcement of contract termination, asserting that their exclusive agreement remains valid until July 31, 2029. The K-pop…
South Korean man convicted for evading military service through weight gain
A Seoul court convicted a 26-year-old South Korean man of violating the Military Service Act by intentionally gaining weight to avoid mandatory military service. Despite initially qualifying for…
Watch: BTS’s Jin reacts to being named ‘world’s most handsome man’
BTS’s Jin recently had fans in stitches with his hilarious reaction to being named the “most handsome man” multiple times. While promoting his debut solo album “Happy” on Lee Mujin’s talk show…
Student protests at women’s university in Seoul sparks anti-feminist backlash
Students at Dongduk Women’s University in Seoul have been occupying the main building and boycotting classes in a series of protests against the university’s potential transition to a co-educational…
Korean women react to 4B movement’s spread to the US
As the 4B movement gains traction in the U.S. following recent political events, Korean women who initiated the movement – which stands for “no marriage, no childbirth, no dating, and no sex with…
South Korean actor Song Jae-lim found dead at 39
South Korean actor Song Jae-lim, known for his role in “Moon Embracing the Sun” and the reality show “We Got Married,” was found dead at his Seoul home on Tuesday at the age of 39, police confirmed.…
This is the best K-pop song of 2024, according to industry experts
Aespa’s “Supernova” has been named the best K-pop song of 2024, securing 93 out of 200 votes from industry professionals in a JoyNews24 survey celebrating the publication’s 20th anniversary. The…
No childbirth, no sex: Trump’s win sparks interest in Korean feminist 4B movement
Interest in the 4B movement — a feminist-driven protest in South Korea against traditional male-dominated relationships — has surged among young American women in the wake of Donald Trump’s recent…
South Korean students ban Rosé’s ‘APT.’ as college entrance exams near
South Korean students have decided to “ban” Rosé’s “APT.” among themselves as they prepare for the nation’s College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) to avoid being distracted. The exam, locally known…
K-pop idol leaves group hours after return over backlash for smoking, kissing a woman
Amid fan outrage over leaked photos, Seunghan departed Riize on Oct. 13, about 48 hours after Wizard Production, the SM Entertainment production team that handles the group, announced his…
Hybe CEO apologizes for leaked internal doc trashing Blackpink, other K-pop idols
Hybe CEO Lee Jae-sang publicly apologized on Tuesday after an internal document containing disparaging remarks about multiple K-pop artists was disclosed at a National Assembly audit on Oct. 24. The…
