Korean Fact of the Day: PSY is No. 2

PSY's newest single, Gentleman, shattered the record by surpassing 100 million Youtube views in just four days. But in Korea, PSY is already old and busted. The new hotness? The legendary Jo Yong-pil [조용필]. Jo's Bounce, the title song from his newest album Hello, just took the number 1 spot on one of the Korean music charts (Bugs Real Time Chart) away from Gentleman.By the way, Jo Yong-pil is 63 years...

When Korea's E-Sports was at the Brink of Death

Dear Korean,I heard there was a huge scandal regarding E-sports about 2-3 years ago. From what I've heard, the scale of the scandal was so big that it almost put an end to the E-Sports itself. Would you be willing to explain what exactly happened back then? How did the Koreans react to the scandal?Avid gamerIt has been more...

Korean Statistic of the Day: Reusable Paper

According to Statistics Korea, 81.3% of Korean office workers re-use the paper so that both sides would be printed. While this is a desirable practice overall as a matter of conservation, re-using the paper is sometimes known to cause public disclosure of sensitive information printed previously.Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.c...

Legalized Pot-Stepping

Dear Korean,I've recently been getting into Korean dramas and picked The Moon Embracing the Sun as my first. In an early episode, they try to find an eligible girl for the prince to marry. In one scene they have a line of young girls entering through the palace gates and stepping on this wooden or stone thing with their right...

Can North Korea Back Out Now?

Dear Korean,Are things so dire in North Korea that war is the only way out?Paul R.Normally, the Korean only accepts questions via email and not through Twitter, Facebook or other channels. But this question, sent via Twitter, was just so spot-on that the Korean could not resist. (If you have a problem with this, please...

Korea Fact of the Day: Gaeseong Industrial Complex

Gaeseong Industrial Complex (GIC) is an industrial complex in Gaeseong, North Korea, which is developed jointly by the two Koreas:  South Korea supplies the corporations and capital equipments, and North Korea supplies the workers and the land. Every day, hundreds of South Korean workers--usually middle- and senior-managers--enter and exit North Korea to oversee the operations at the GIC.As a...

"Anonymous" Hacking of NK Website Leads to McCarthyian Witch Hunt in SK

The "hacktivist" group "Anonymous" made news by hacking into North Korea's propaganda websites, and seizing control of North Korean propaganda machine's Twitter and Flickr accounts. (One important note here: regardless of what they claim, it is extremely unlikely that Anonymous hacked into North Korea, as North Korea's propaganda sites are based out China.) Anonymous demands that Kim Jong-un...

Thoughts on NYT Article about the Oikos Shooting

Dear Korean,Am I the only Korean American that thinks some of this article is patently ridiculous? Yes, 'han' is uniquely a Korean word, and even we Koreans like to pretend that it's a uniquely Korean thing. And I see that the writer is trying to be somewhat balanced in his treatment of the issue. Still, I can't help but think that whenever 'han' or 'jeong' is brought up to explain how Koreans act,...