The Korea Times' History Goes With Nation's Fortune
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War and also the foundation of The Korea Times.
The shared anniversary is symbolic indeed, considering the nation's first English daily was born in the midst of the first and biggest crisis the Republic of Korea has confronted, in order to make the adversity the young nation was undergoing better known to the world.
It is only natural that The Korea Times has served as the most faithful eyewitness and recorder of Korea's ashes-to-riches history over the past six decades, during which time this country has accomplished both democracy and industrialization.
This does not mean, however, we have served for those in power, as the truth is just the opposite. Although born by the need and with the help of the government, it took less than two years for this paper to start criticizing the authoritarian Syngman Rhee administration and be forced to stand on its own financially. It is ironic that this paper's undaunted pursuit of true journalism gave birth to its pro-government rival, the Korean Republic, the predecessor of the Korea Herald, three years later. The latter could be privatized only after an additional 30 years.
It is a small surprise then that the democracy fighter-turned-President Kim Dae-jung honed his self-taught English using The Korea Times, setting an early ― and landmark ― example of the use of English Newspaper In Education, or ENIE.
Uncompromising Journalism
Just as Korea has fought against a lack of money, know-how and experience over the course of its breakneck industrialization, The Korea Times has struggled with a high language barrier here, one of the most barren soils for English journalism in the whole world, and to maintain a strong sense of mission to meet journalism's fundamental duty despite an adverse environment. The death of former Managing Editor Choi Byeong-woo while covering the Taiwan Strait crisis in the 1950s, and the torture of another ex-managing editor, Hong Soon-il, by the state spy agency in the early 1970s in relation to a foreigner's contribution are but a few cases that demonstrate this paper's uncompromising practice of what journalism should be.
Being critical of undemocratic governments never kept this paper from serving for the country and people whenever occasion required it to, most notably by playing the role of an official newspaper in almost all major international events the nation has hosted, including the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup Finals and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in 2005. Given the enthusiasm and experiences this paper has shown in the past, we are both hopeful and confident to have a similar opportunity again this November, when the top leaders of 20 major economies will fly into Seoul for the epochal G20 summit.
This country now stands at a crucial juncture for another takeoff, not just economically but also diplomatically and culturally. Its emergence as the world's 14th-largest economy over the course of only a half century has earned this country the admiration of the international community, but Seoul will need to develop its ``soft power" ― culture, mainstream awareness and global citizenship ― to turn the awe into respect and drastically improve the nation's ``brand power," or national dignity.
The Lee Myung-bak administration, after racking its brains over how to give part of the great favors Korea has received back to the international community, namely, our less developed neighbors, has decided ― quite rightly ― to sharply increase its contribution to global peace, development and the environment by, specifically: expanding its presence in global peacekeeping operations (PKO), jacking up its donations of official development aid (ODA) and taking the lead in climate change cooperation. As we have often witnessed, however, even good intentions can go awry if the methods and processes are less than perfect.
Confident but Not Complacent
This paper will be keeping a close watch on the government's performance to see that both the Korean people, as givers, and their foreign friends, as receivers, end up winners. In other words, The Korea Times will continue to be criticizers, but not cavilers, to encourage the Korean government and people alike to remain confident but not complacent. It will step up efforts to serve as a ``bridge within the bridge," by linking the world to Korea, a country trying to connect the developed world with developing ones. Nothing illustrates such efforts better than this paper's time-honored tradition of Modern Literature Translation Awards, and Thoughts of The Times, a two-way forum for giving voice to the voiceless.
Today's world is hard to survive in for old industries, harder for old media outlets that are bearing the brunt of rapid technological and social changes, and hardest for newspapers trying to maintain both journalistic and financial integrity.
The Korea Times will spare no efforts for following that tortuous path through ceaseless self-transformation but with an unchanging sense of mission to serve the widest scope of citizens possible, with the confidence that our readers will recognize and support such a struggle, as they have done in the past.
In Oriental philosophy, the 60th birthday carries a peculiar significance of returning to the very year one was born after passing a full sexagenarian cycle. This means the time has come for this newspaper to be born again as a more mature, respected but modest guardian and watchman of this society.
With our readers' unswerving support, we will surely succeed in these efforts.
