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Kang Hyun-kyung

Korea Times Editorial Reporter

I am an editorial writer at The Korea Times, focusing on foreign policy, North Korea and domestic politics. My key areas of interest include North Korea, foreign interference in elections, election integrity, cyberattacks and human rights. Prior to joining the Editorial Board, I served as both Politics Desk editor and Culture Desk editor. During my career, I have reported on the Presidential Office under the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Assembly.

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Books

Baseball player releases fiction novel 'Uncaught Third Strike'

Kang In-kyu, an infielder of the Korea University team, walks toward the baseball field in a game against Yonsei University held at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul in this September 2017 file photo. / Courtesy of Korea UniversityBaseball player-author seeks second chance in forthcoming KBO draftBy Kang Hyun-kyung“Uncaught Third Strike: It's Ain't Over Till It's Over” is a coming-of-age novel revolving around protagonist Kang Pa-chi, a junior baseball player who rises to stardom with his ceaseless efforts to improve his performance. The baseball story published last week by Seoul-based Book Recipe publishing house has drawn attention for its rarity ― it was written by an actual baseball player. Author Kang In-kyu, 23, a senior of Korea University, said although his book is fiction, some parts are based on his personal experiences. He worked on the manuscript for the past four years, starting when he joined the Korea University baseball team. He felt compelled to write after he failed to make the cut in the 2016 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) draft when he was

Sep 16, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Baseball player releases fiction novel 'Uncaught Third Strike'
Books

Book tells stories of local breweries, premium fermented drinks

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, people in their 20s and 30s are the main consumers of traditional alcohol. Its consumption has gone up since July 2017 when independent brewers were allowed to sell their products online. Homegrown spirits are popular among young women, the ministry said. / gettyimagesbankBy Kang Hyun-kyungBaek Woong-jae's “Hanju, Homegrown Drinks” takes readers to two dozen local breweries across the country which make a variety of homegrown fermented drinks.With a note describing the taste of each product at the end of each chapter, Baek tells the stories of brewers and their products, detailing how they started their liquor businesses, how long they have produced their drinks and how their products differ from each other and from those of other producers. Baek's field trip began in Hongcheon, Gangwon Province. The author calls the eastern county the mecca for homegrown spirits. “Hongcheon is home to the best and most diverse spirits,” the book reads, saying over 10 breweries are located in the small rural cou

Sep 11, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Book tells stories of local breweries, premium fermented drinks
Trends

'I feel I don't belong there'

A gay man who asked to be named only with his initial J.W. marches at a pro-LGBT rally in Seoul in July. The sign he is holding reads “Courage for Equality.” / Courtesy of Kang JosaeSexual minorities searching for 'inclusive' church By Kang Hyun-kyungLast year, a 24-year-old community worker who asked to be named only by her first name Ju-hee, chose to leave the church she had attended for 23 years since she was born. She found a new, small but “inclusive” church in Seoul's western part of Mapogu. Her former church was a big one and she had many friends there. “But I didn't feel that I belonged there,” she told The Korea Times in a recent interview. “I felt like I was acting whenever I returned home from Sunday church services. My empty conversation with other church members kept playing in my mind… I couldn't speak about the topic that I wanted.”At her church, the topic she wanted to share with others was a forbidden one. She is a lesbian and wanted to talk about her sexual identity. There was a time when she plucked up courage

Sep 3, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
'I feel I don't belong there'
  • Homosexuality: Some church leaders call for 'flexible' biblical interpretation
Trends

Homosexuality: Some church leaders call for 'flexible' biblical interpretation

A man holds a rainbow umbrella during the 2015 Queer Festival in Seoul. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-sukDiscord in Korean churches over LGBT issuesBy Kang Hyun-kyungIn the sultry summer evening of Aug. 15, missionary and HIV patient Park Jin-kwon took to the stage for a speech at a small rally in front of the progressive minor Justice Party headquarters in Yoido, Seoul.Park, a self-claimed “ex-gay” man, shared his story about his “born-again life” after he became a heterosexual. Wearing a mask and a black T-shirt, he was panting and his voice cracked as his emotions intensified when he spoke about the wildest dream he once had as a gay man and the ensuing tribulations that traumatized him, his parents and siblings. “I dreamed of the days when same-sex marriage would be widely accepted and become a norm,” he said. “I mean, the days when people don't judge homosexuals just because they are married to same-sex people. If such days had come, it would have meant the realization of my version of utopia.” “I would think how wonderful

Sep 3, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Homosexuality: Some church leaders call for 'flexible' biblical interpretation
  • 'I feel I don't belong there'
Books

'Unprecedented Nation': Book critical of Cho Kuk storms into bestseller list

Then-Justice Minister nominee Cho Kuk is seen near a building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, in this Aug. 9 file photo. / Korea Times file'Moon fatigue' makes 'Unprecedented Nation' bestseller By Kang Hyun-kyungJust as embattled then-Justice Minister Cho Kuk polarized the nation last year, so now have two recently published books about him. “The Unprecedented Nation: How Democracy Comes to an End,” a book more commonly referred to as “The Cho Kuk Dark Book” as it deals with his and his family's “dark past,” stormed into the bestseller list Friday, three days after it went on sale online and in bookstores.On the first day of its release, all 5,000 copies sold out. The book, co-authored by five liberal experts, including lawyer Kwon Kyung-ae, medical doctor Seo Min, and popular political commentator Jin Jung-kwon, was released three weeks after “Reforming the Prosecution and Candlelit Rallies,” another book about Cho Kuk, went on sale on Aug. 5.Although the two books were written about the same person, the way they describe the former justice minis

Aug 28, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
'Unprecedented Nation': Book critical of Cho Kuk storms into bestseller list
Books

Book review: Historian uncovers lesser-told stories of samurai

GettyimagesbankBy Kang Hyun-kyungThe samurai have long been portrayed as the epitome of Japanese warriors' courage and unwavering loyalty to their masters. They are a cultural icon of the valor of Japan. The now disappeared warriors are well-known for committing ritual suicide with their own sword in the event they were defeated on the battlefield, rather than pleading with their enemies for their lives.According to Japanese historian Masaaki Takahashi, however, the samurai were not all about heroics, bravery and loyalty. Like all people, the samurai were humans with their own needs and desires and they tried to meet their needs, not always sacrificing themselves for the cause. Some misused their skills and military training to make personal gains. Some played hitman-like roles by killing their masters' enemies. Unlike popular portrayals of the samurai as being faithful only to their masters, the samurai during the medieval days of Japan were like “nomads” wandering from one master to another searching for better working conditions. In his 2018 book “Bushi No Nihons

Aug 26, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Book review: Historian uncovers lesser-told stories of samurai
Health

Who's to blame for virus spread: defiant churches or reckless gov't?

Rev. Jun Kwang-hoon appears on a screen set up near Dongwha Duty Free Shop in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul on Aug. 15. The pastor of the Seoul-based Sarang Jeil Church delivered a speech at the crowded anti-government rally. Later he tested positive for the coronavirus. / YonhapA blame game in full swing as virus spreads out of control By Kang Hyun-kyungSome Protestant church leaders have been simmering with anger as the Moon Jae-in government tries to hold the churches accountable for the sudden rise of COVID-19 patients starting Aug. 14. They allege the government is ultimately responsible for the current wave of the COVID-19 pandemic as it eased social distancing rules hastily in July by encouraging the public to visit museums, watch baseball games in stadiums and explore crowded tourist hot spots in the name of revitalizing the economy.But, they claim, government officials are demonizing and scapegoating the churches to save face at a time when infection cases show few signs of falling, an allegation the government denies. The second wave of COVID-19 has pitted the government again

Aug 24, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Who's to blame for virus spread: defiant churches or reckless gov't?
Health

Busan-based churches, local government at odds over mass gathering ban

Two screens set up on both sides of the cross at Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul on Sunday read online church services will be continued until Aug. 30. / YonhapBy Kang Hyun-kyungBusan-based Protestant churches and the local government clashed Sunday as the former pushed for physical Sunday worship services, amid a heightened alert on the spread of COVID-19 following a new wave of infection clusters. The city government warned of punitive measures to defiant churches that didn't follow guidelines for social distancing imposed Friday. On Saturday, the Christian Council of Busan (BCC) sent letters to 1,800 Busan-based churches, encouraging them to go ahead with physical church services, as opposed to online streaming services, despite the public gathering ban. BCC members met to discuss the city government's executive order, which told the local churches to move to online services and to cooperate with the local government to help cope with the spread of the coronavirus.They agreed to push for the physical church services Sunday, claiming the local government's decision to ban them br

Aug 23, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Busan-based churches, local government at odds over mass gathering ban
  • Churches in Seoul hold online services on first Sunday under strict distancing guidelines
  • Virus crisis escalates on soaring infections across nation
Politics

Where's donation envelope? Forgetful DPK leader embarrassed on TV

Ruling Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Hae-chan, right, rummages through the pockets of his suit jacket during KBS 1's “Let's Overcome Flood Damage Together” donation drive in Seoul, Friday. YonhapBy Kang Hyun-kyungLee Hae-chan, chairman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), had to reappear on KBS 1's “Let's Overcome Flood Damage Together” donation drive as his first attempt to find the donation envelope in the pocket of his suit jacket failed. “We had a great tradition of helping each other when times are tough,” he said during the special TV program aiming to collect donations for the evacuees and other flood victims, Friday. “Our party will work closely together with the government to help the nation overcome these devastating floods.”He then rummaged through the pockets of his suit jacket to find the prepared donation envelope. He pulled out his smartphone but failed to find the envelope. After searching continued unsuccessfully for 15 seconds, the TV host kindly asked him to leave the set and take time to find it, whi

Aug 14, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Where's donation envelope? Forgetful DPK leader embarrassed on TV
Books

Novelist quits social media after bickering with actress

Novelist Gong Ji-young appears at the Press Center in central Seoul for her book “Harry” in this July 2018 file photo. / Korea Times fileActress apologizes, saying she was immatureBy Kang Hyun-kyungNovelist Gong Ji-young deactivated her Twitter account on Thursday, days after exchanging nasty comments with actress Kim Boo-sun about the latter's alleged affair with Gong's ex-husband.In a Facebook post on Friday, Gong, 57, reportedly wrote that she would quit social media and focus on writing novels, adding she would “meet” her readers through her books, not social media. The message is no longer available because her Facebook account was also deactivated after the statement. “I am leaving Facebook, and other social media, too,” she wrote. “The past 10 years of being active on social media were full of traumatic experiences. I'm sorry if I hurt others with my social media posts. Please forget me. I will meet my readers through my books. I realized living a decent life in this ferocious and rugged world is almost impossible.”Her abrupt ann

Aug 14, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Novelist quits social media after bickering with actress
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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.