Lifestyle - The Korea Times

Estee Lauder accused of racism in product switch for Asian customers

Notes sent to customers who purchased foundations online from an Estee Lauder store in Seoul explained that they received different purchases that are better for Asian complexions, sparking controversy. / Captured from online community webpageEstee Lauder expresses regret over controversial message that fails to align with its brand valuesBy Park Han-sol“Estee Lauder gave us racism as a birthday present.”Global cosmetics manufacturer Estee Lauder has been embroiled in controversy over alleged racial discrimination after a consumer complained in an online community late Friday about the cosmetic giant's inappropriate handling of an online purchase.The writer of the post said she purchased a foundation set online shipped from an Estee Lauder store in a department store in Seoul, adding it was for her younger sister's birthday. She claimed she received a product completely different from her original order along with the store's note explaining that they sent a different item because the color she chose “does not suit Asians.”“The product you selected, shel

Nov 9, 2020By Park Han-sol

Estee Lauder accused of racism in product switch for Asian customers

Fun-loving Koreans: 1980s-style TV show captivates viewers

Eight middle-aged women, who performed as a team for the 2019 National Song Contest held in Seoul, pose with their colorful stage costumes. / Courtesy of Byun Soon-choelPhotographer captures local stars who competed in touring song contest By Kang Hyun-kyung The National Song Contest, starring amateur singers, is a rare TV show as it has enjoyed steady popularity over the past four decades since its first episode aired on KBS on Nov. 9, 1980. Without much modification from the original format and very little change to the original set, the old-fashioned TV show has been surviving the digital revolution which has hit the media industry and forced both print and broadcasting media to undergo radical restructuring. In each episode, 15 teams from all age groups compete in the show. Their backgrounds are diverse. Soldiers take advantage of their leave of absence from the military to compete in the touring show held in their hometown. Farmers, housewives, retirees, and children show off their singing and performance skills. Some contestants try self-deprecating humor or use physical comedy

Nov 5, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung

Fun-loving Koreans: 1980s-style TV show captivates viewers

Childbirths in Korea drop further in August

GettyimagesbankThe number of babies born in South Korea slipped 7.8 percent in August from a year earlier, data showed Wednesday, in the latest sign underscoring the low birthrate that has plagued the nation for more than a decade.The data compiled by Statistics Korea showed that 22,472 babies were born in August, compared with 24,371 tallied in the same month of 2019. It marks the lowest number of newborns for any July since the statistics agency started compiling monthly data on newborns in 1981.In the first eight months of this year, 188,202 babies were born in South Korea, down 9.5 percent from a year ago.South Korea's total fertility rate hit an all-time low in 2019, a clear sign of its imminent population decline.The country's total fertility rate, which refers to the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime, came to 0.92 last year, down from 0.98 a year earlier. Last year marked the second consecutive year for the rate to fall below 1. South Korea was the only member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development that had a total fertility rate be

Oct 28, 2020

Childbirths in Korea drop further in August

ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL Newspaper industry to fully rely on digitization in the future

By Kim Hyun-binThe Korea Times marks its 70th anniversary on Nov. 1, having made substantial contributions in the field of journalism over the years. The paper was founded five months into the 1950-53 Korean War, and started its publication by delivering news on the latest developments in the war and the situation surrounding the Korean Peninsula to U.S. troops who were stationed here. Now, not only is The Korea Times the oldest, continuously published English daily in the country but also it has become a prominent newspaper on the global stage. The paper has made a name for itself over the past 70 years but can it, or indeed any other newspaper publishing company for that matter, find success for the next 70 years?That is the question that has been rising over the years as rapid digitization and fast-paced lifestyle changes have become the norm.In bygone days, newspapers were the main source of information for the public to become aware of social issues as well as political news, but with the emergence of the internet people no longer have to wait until the morning to get their late

Oct 28, 2020By Kim Hyun-bin

[ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL] Newspaper industry to fully rely on digitization in the future

ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL News industry urged to adopt ICT to fully go digital

ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL Significance of 70

By Kwon Mee-yooThe Korea Times celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, reaching this milestone number, which was traditionally considered the benchmark age of longevity in Korea.The number has various meanings. It is a symbolic number of longevity, with big celebrations held in honor of those turning 70. In Korea, the number also relates to the 1970s, a crucial moment in the country's turbulent modern history. Being 70 years oldTraditionally a person turning 70 years old was called "gohui" in Korean, or the “Rare Age of the Olden Times,” as written in Chinese poet Du Fu's poem "Meandering River." In the poem, Du Fu wrote, "It has ever been rare for man to live to 70.""Confucius also mentioned being 70 in The Analects, saying 'At 70, I could follow what my heart desired, without transgressing the boundaries of right,'" said Lee Bae-yong, the chairperson of the Seowon Conservation and Management Foundation. "As you see being 70 is the age you get everything balanced and what you do does not overstep the line. However, it was the standard of the past and we might need som

Oct 27, 2020By Kwon Mee-yoo

[ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL] Significance of 70

Magician Ed Kwon performs at Singaporean Ambassador's residence

Back row, from left, are Joseph Young, former President of AG&P Engineering; Hwang Hae-lyung, CEO and Chairman of Lutronic; Didier Beltoise, President of Cs; Eric Teo, Singaporean Ambassador; and Nicolas Sitbon, CEO of Bluebell Korea. Front row, from left, are magician Ed Kwon; Go Young-ha, CEO of AMC Asia; Emily Cho, Chief Marketing Officer of Hanjin KAL; Kim Min-jae, wife of the Singaporean Ambassador; Choi Jung-wha, President of CICI; Park So-yoon, Representing Researcher of Lemonade&Co.; and Chafik Rachadi, Moroccan Ambassador. Courtesy of CICIBy Dong Sun-hwaEd Kwon, a Korean magician based in the United States, had a special show Tuesday at the residence of Singapore's envoy to Seoul.Kwon, 24, who has a Ph.D in magical performance art, put on a fantastic show in front of Singapore's Ambassador to South Korea Eric Teo, Moroccan Ambassador Chafik Rachadi and other guests. The event was organized by ― and part of ― the Corea Image Communication Institute's (CICI) Korea CQ forum.Kwon, whose performance has been praised by prominent magician David Copperfield, is one of the c

Oct 21, 2020By Dong Sun-hwa

Magician Ed Kwon performs at Singaporean Ambassador's residence

Eatery owner cancels franchise plan after caught copying recipes

gettyimagesbankBy Kang Hyun-kyungA Seoul-based restaurant owner, who copied rice porridge recipes developed by a Pohang-based chef and tried to use them to start a franchise business, publicly apologized for his actions. In a statement released on Monday, the owner of Seoul-based restaurant Dubjuk Dubjuk said he “plagiarized” the rice porridge, called “dubjuk,” and promoted it using deceptive marketing phrases while pushing for a franchise business, which could have misled customers to believe that his and the Pohang-based eateries are related. “I am deeply sorry for hurting (the Pohang-based chef) who developed the recipes through her months-long endeavor to offer new recipes for her customers,” it reads. “I went all the way down to Pohang on Oct. 11 to apologize to the chef in person. But I couldn't meet her because she didn't want to see me. So I chose to release a statement to deliver my regret to her.”The Dubjuk Dubjuk owner said he regretted what he had done and vowed to cancel his plan to start a rice porridge franchise business,

Oct 12, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung

Eatery owner cancels franchise plan after caught copying recipes

Young people' growing demand for imported cars reflects changing values, tough reality

GettyimagesbankThis summer, Jeong Hong-woo, a 33-year-old architect, opted for a Mercedes-Benz sedan as his first car, an unexpected choice for him as he had long considered the brand as suited to successful middle-aged men. "Many of my colleagues and friends have chosen foreign brands recently, and I came to be interested in them," he said. "This is a bit expensive, but I wanted something special, and it really is worth the money. It gives me extra satisfaction."Jeong added he can afford it as he has no plan to get married within the next few years and buying a house is not his priority. He was able to secure a down payment "easily," as he was forced to cancel a planned trip to Europe this year due to the new coronavirus.Related data shows his purchase fits a consumption pattern among young customers of late.According to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA), people in their 30s accounted for 33 percent, or the largest share, of the foreign vehicle market last year, followed by those in their 40s at 31.7 percent and those in their 50s at 19.6 percent. T

Oct 9, 2020

Young people' growing demand for imported cars reflects changing values, tough reality

Teens buy luxury brands to 'flex' on social media

Singer's dress code ignites speculation

On the cover of Na Hoon-a's new album, “A Tale of Nine Stories,” the singer in black clothes holds a black umbrella on rocks near an unspecified lagoon. Some conservative YouTubers claim that dressing in black reminds them of the “Black Protests” during which activists claim the April 15 National Assembly elections were fraudulent. Culture critics deny the allegation and say Na is not affiliated with any political party.Na Hoon-a craze continues, this time attention on his political orientationBy Kang Hyun-kyungThe Na Hoon-a craze, which enthralled the nation during the Chuseok holidays, shows no sign of abating. Talk about the singer has not waned in the days since the holiday as speculation has mushroomed about the trot singer's motives behind his rare open criticisms of KBS and partisan politics. His new songs performed during the show have gone viral and the way he presented his music has sparked people's imagination about his political orientation.Among others, “Brother 'Tes!” was the most popular among nine songs on his new album, “A Ta

Oct 7, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung

Teens buy luxury brands to 'flex' on social media

GettyimagesbankBy Lee Hyo-jin “Eighteen-year-old high school student's shopping haul at Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Thom Browne!” “Fifteen-year-old girl unboxing cosmetics from Dior and Prada bags.” These are just two video titles among hundreds posted on YouTube in which teenagers “flex” their newly bought luxury items worth millions of won. Other social media channels such as Instagram or TikTok are also flooded with similar posts.“Flex,” a term widely used among teenagers to boast outwardly about one's extravagant lifestyle by showing off expensive clothing, cars or homes, has settled as a trend. Videos and photos of teens showing off their fashion and beauty products of high-end brands gain thousands of likes. “There are some students in my school wearing expensive sneakers from Gucci or Balenciaga, which I think their parents must have bought them,” said a 15-year-old student surnamed Park.“I don't see a problem in them buying what they want with their own pocket money or the money earned through part-time jobs,&

Oct 7, 2020By Lee Hyo-jin

Teens buy luxury brands to 'flex' on social media

Young people' growing demand for imported cars reflects changing values, tough reality

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