BBC radio to launch Korean service

By Ko Dong-hwan

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has begun strengthening its global news coverage by launching a Korean radio service.

The international multimedia broadcaster said on its website early this week that the Korean language program would be part of the BBC World Service that reached a weekly audience of 320 million globally on platforms like shortwave, AM, FM, digital satellite and cable channels.

BBC’s Seoul Bureau is now looking for a bureau manager and for broadcast journalists to work in field and multimedia.

BBC staff here will report on “key events on the Korean Peninsula, the neighboring countries and Koreans around the world.”

Applicants must have “first-hand experience in working in broadcast media relevant to either South or North Korean current affairs.”

The service will also be broadcast on shortwave in a bid to reach a North Korean audience without the military hermit state blocking the broadcasts, according to Yonhap news agency.

The Korean program is one of 11 language services the BBC aims to broadcast, with the British government investing 289 million pounds ($359.5 million).