Director Bong Joon-ho and actor Song Kang-ho of Cannes-winning film "Parasite" were awarded national cultural medals for their contributions to the promotion of the Korean film industry, the South Korean government said Thursday.The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said that it gave the Eungwan Order of Cultural Merit, the second highest class of the South Korean cultural decoration, to Bong and the fourth-highest Okgwan medal to Song during a ceremony held at the National Theat

Film Dec. 19, 2019

Top star comedian and TV show emcee Yoo Jae-suk showed up in a red stage suit embroidered with a gold dragon and a matching red fedora for a press conference on Thursday, the typical costume of his alter ego, Yoo San-seul.What started as a comedy project under MBC's reality show, "Hangout with Yoo," led to Yoo's full-fledged trot music career under the stage name Yoo San-seul after the Korean name of a popular Chinese seafood dish.Yoo officially released a three-track trot album, "

Television Dec. 19, 2019

An appellate court on Thursday maintained a lower court's suspended jail sentence against a scion of SK Group, one of the country's largest conglomerates, for use of marijuana. Earlier, Chey Young-geun, a grandson of SK Group founder Chey Jong-gun, was indicted of having bought and habitually consumed some 81 grams of marijuana in the form of cookie or by using cartridges for about a year from March last year.  In early September, the Incheon District Court sentenced the 31-year-old Chey to

Social Affairs Dec. 19, 2019

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will hold a summit with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, next week when he visits China for annual trilateral talks with Chinese and Japanese leaders, Moon's office said Thursday.  The Moon-Xi summit will take place on Dec. 23 in Beijing, where the two leaders will discuss ways to promote bilateral ties and the Korea peace process, according to Cheong Wa Dae.  The meeting comes as North Korea has threatened to take a "new way"

Foreign Affairs Dec. 19, 2019

Choi Yoon-hee, a former South Korean female swimming star, was appointed as new second vice minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in a reshuffle of four vice minister-level officials conducted by President Moon Jae-in on Thursday.The president named 52-year-old Choi to succeed Roh Tae-kang as the No. 2 official at the culture and sports ministry, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said.Choi, who gained fame in the 1980s after winning five Asian Games gold medals in swimming,

Culture Dec. 19, 2019

The state manpower agency on Thursday publicly disclosed the personal information of 261 citizens who failed to comply with state orders to fulfill mandatory military service last year without due reasons. The disclosure is in accordance with the 2015 revision of the Military Service Act as part of efforts to ensure fairness in the implementation of the compulsory system, according to the Military Manpower Administration. The list of dodgers has been disclosed once a year on its website since 20

Social Affairs Dec. 19, 2019

20대 인기 인터넷 개인방송 진행자(BJ)가 공중화장실 등에서 여성들을 불법 촬영한 혐의로 경찰에 구속됐다.19일 경찰 등에 따르면 서울 강남경찰서는 BJ A(25)씨를 성폭력범죄의 처벌 등에 관한 특례법 위반(카메라 등 이용 촬영) 혐의로 구속해 기소 의견으로 검찰에 송치했다. A씨는 지난 2017년부터 올해 8월까지 약 2년간 공중화장실 등에서 여러 여성의 신체를 불법 촬영한 혐의를 받는다.A씨는 지난 8월 서울 강남구의 여자 공중화장실에 몰래 들어가 자신의 휴대전화로 동영상을 촬영하다 한 여성에게 발각됐다.이 여성은 A씨의 휴대전화에서 여자 화장실 촬영 영상과 성관계 동영상 등 불법 촬영이 의심되는 영상이 다수 저장된 사실을 확인했다.당일 112신고를 접수한 경찰은 A씨 휴대전화를 압수해 디지털포렌식으로 불법 영상을 찾아냈다.인터넷 개인방송 플랫폼과 유튜브를 함께 운영하던 A씨는 방송에서 번 돈으로 슈퍼카를 몰고 다닐 정도로 인기를 끈 BJ로 알려졌다.그는 지난 10일 자신의

한국어판 Dec. 19, 2019

녹화현장서 개 그림 보고 "한식당 메뉴판에 있는 품목" 발언한인단체 "한국인 미개하다는 인식 유포…NBC, 레노 퇴출해야"미국 코미디언 제이 레노가 방송 프로그램에서 '개고기 농담'을 한 사실이 뒤늦게 드러나면서 한인 비하성 인종차별로 또다시 도마 위에 올랐다.17일(현지시간) 미국 연예 매체 '버라이어티' 보도에 따르면 올해 4월 미국 NBC 방송 경연 프로그램 '아메리카 갓 탤런트'의 녹화 현장에서 '초대 심사위원'으로 나선 레노는 제작프로듀서 사이먼 코웰의 반려견 그림을 보며 "한식당 메뉴"에 있는 음식과 닮았다는 '농담'을 했다.레노의 발언은 편집돼 실제 방송되지는 않았다. 다른 심사위원으로부터 문제 제기가 있었으나 적절한 대처가 이뤄지지 않았다.녹화 현장에서 레노와 함께 심사위원을 맡은 배우 개브리엘 유니언이 레노의 발언을 방송국 인사부서에 보고하라고 제작진에 요구했지만, 녹화 세트에 있던 간부 1명에게 전달

한국어판 Dec. 19, 2019

WASHINGTON -- The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday adopted a resolution calling for accountability for gross human rights violations in North Korea.It is the 15th straight year the UN General Assembly has adopted such a document, which passed by consensus without a vote.The Assembly "condemns the long-standing and ongoing systematic, widespread and gross violations of human rights in and by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, including those that may amount to crimes agai

North Korea Dec. 19, 2019

WASHINGTON -- A bipartisan group of US senators Wednesday warned North Korea of further economic sanctions in response to any provocation, such as a long-range missile test.The four senators -- Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rob Portman (R-OH) -- led passage of a North Korea sanctions bill as part of an annual defense policy bill that passed the Senate on Tuesday.The defense bill is certain to be enacted into law as US President Donald Trump said last week h

North Korea Dec. 19, 2019

South Korean cable channel Mnet said Wednesday that it will launch no new K-pop audition shows in the future amid a widening police probe into a vote-rigging scandal involving its popular competition series "Produce X101." "We will refrain from producing audition programs," Kang Ji-hoon from Mnet said in a session of the Korea Communications Standards Commission. "We are making efforts to create content focusing more on music." The music channel has been embroi

Performance Dec. 18, 2019

The top US negotiator in defense cost-sharing talks with South Korea said Wednesday that his team is "not focused on" its initial demand for a five-fold increase to $5 billion in Seoul's financial contributions to the upkeep of American troops here.In an interview with the Korean press corps, James DeHart also pointed out that South Korea's weapons purchases from the United States are an "important consideration for us in the burden-sharing context." DeHart and his South

Foreign Affairs Dec. 18, 2019

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha has paid a courtesy call on Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud and discussed bilateral ties, her ministry said Wednesday. Kang met the king at the Saudi Royal Court in Riyadh as part of her three-day trip to the Middle Eastern nation this week, Seoul's foreign ministry said in a release. During the meeting, Kang expressed satisfaction that the bilateral relations between the two sides have further deepened into a wider range of areas, especiall

Foreign Affairs Dec. 18, 2019

South Korea's parliamentary speaker on Wednesday submitted a bill to compensate victims of Japan's wartime forced labor through contributions from firms and citizens from both nations.National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang spearheaded the writing of the bill to create a fund that would compensate 1,500 Korean victims of Tokyo's forced labor via voluntary contributions.The bill, co-authored by 13 lawmakers, has the potential to resolve bilateral diplomatic tensions sparked by Japan's protest aga

Politics Dec. 18, 2019

Unionized workers at Kia Motors Corp. on Wednesday began a partial strike for higher wages after rejecting the company's proposals last week.Kia's union said they held a four-hour strike on Wednesday and plan to walk out for eight hours on Thursday.  On Friday, 56 percent of the union's 27,050 workers voted down the deal tentatively agreed between the company and the union on Dec. 10. Under the initial agreement, Kia offered to raise workers' basic monthly wage by 40,000 won (US$34) and pro

Mobility Dec. 18, 2019