YouTuber offers $2.7m home as giveaway in $0.67 membership push

A South Korean YouTuber with more than 17 million subscribers is offering an apartment, purportedly worth 3.57 billion won ($2.4 million), as a giveaway to promote his paid membership, which costs 990 won per month. The 38-year-old YouTuber Bokyem revealed the plan in a recent video on his channel Bokyem TV, saying the roughly 165-square-meter unit to be awarded to one subscriber is fully renovated and furnished. It comes equipped with a 100-inch television, a high-end gaming computer setup, air

March 12, 2026

Canadian PM supports removing Andrew from royal line of succession

TOKYO (AFP) -- Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Saturday that former prince Andrew should be removed from the line of royal succession over his "deplorable" behavior. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is being investigated for alleged misconduct in public office following revelations about his dealings with the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He was arrested and released in February on suspicion of having passed confidential information to Epstein during his 2001-2011 role as a UK trad

March 8, 2026

Polar scientist calls for Korea to boost Arctic activities

This is one of a series of interviews in which Kim Hoo-ran, editor-at-large at The Korea Herald, speaks with leaders, trailblazers, unsung heroes, and both well- and lesser-known figures who share the stories of their lives and their visions for a better world — Ed. If you felt the weather this winter was erratic — unseasonably warm days followed by deep freeze — you would not be wrong. While the average temperature in January was minus 1.6 degrees Celsius, the coldest average January temperatur

March 4, 2026

New Egyptian envoy eyes stronger economic diplomacy with Korea

Egypt’s newly appointed Ambassador to South Korea, Hazem Zaki, aims to deepen economic and people-to-people ties with South Korea. South Korea and Egypt are fast-tracking a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement to boost trade, investment and cooperation in supply chains, digital technology and energy. Seoul views Egypt as a gateway to Europe, Africa and the Middle East, offering new opportunities for Korean firms, while President Lee Jae Myung pledged $10 million to the Red Crescent, a hu

Feb. 10, 2026

Namira weaves Korean folk into EDM on debut EP ‘California Fever’

For Namira, being Korean American wasn’t a tidy blend of two cultural identities — it was a constant lived experience of being in between. “I grew up in a place where my family was the only Korean family for miles around,” said Namira, a Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter and DJ, during a Zoom interview with The Korea Herald. “You’re not American-American the way everyone around you is. But at the same time, you are American, but you also have this connection to this (Korean) culture.” That in-

Feb. 10, 2026

Honoring heroes, healing with words

For the Rev. So Kang-suk, the senior pastor of The Sae Eden Presbyterian Church in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, a sermon is not merely a speech; it is a meticulous act of spiritual craftsmanship. Also a poet, So believes that a message delivered without "soul" or "sincerity" cannot move the human spirit. This philosophy is evident in his preparation: he often rewrites his sermon manuscripts more than 20 times. "If there is no soul or sincerity in the words, how can they move the souls of the peopl

Feb. 9, 2026

Yeom Da-yeon and five other Korean ballet dancers honored at 54th Prix de Lausanne

South Korean ballerina Yeom Da-yeon, 17, has claimed second prize at the prestigious Prix de Lausanne 2026, leading a remarkable showing for young Korean dancers at the young dancer competition. At the finals held Saturday at the Beaulieu Theatre in Lausanne, Switzerland, Yeom was awarded the "Bourse Jeune Etoile" (Young Star Scholarship) and also took home the audience favorite award. William Gyves from the United States won the first prize. Rather than attending a specialized arts high school

Feb. 8, 2026

Booyoung gives 36 babies W100m bonus

Families of Booyoung Group employees attend the company’s event marking their reception of childbirth support incentives of 100 million won ($68,299) per child at the group's head office in Jung-gu, Seoul, Thursday. A total of 36 babies born to Booyoung employees received the one-time cash stipend. To date, the company’s cumulative childbirth incentive payouts have reached 13.4 billion won. During the event, Lee Joong-keun, chairman of the construction-centered business group, emphasized his pla

Feb. 5, 2026

New Sri Lankan envoy aims to boost ties with South Korea

Pathma Naathan, Sri Lanka’s newly appointed ambassador to South Korea, expressed strong hopes of strengthening Sri Lanka-Korea relations during a courtesy visit to the Herald Media Group on Wednesday. Highlighting the history of diplomatic engagement between the two nations, Ambassador Naathan said, “Next year, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and Sri Lanka.” The two countries officially established diplomatic ties on November 14, 1977. Naathan e

Jan. 29, 2026

He sold $0.7 burgers for 20 years near campus. Now university honors him with scholarship

Korea University is launching a fundraiser for a planned 500 million won ($350,000) scholarship to honor Lee Young-chul, who sold burgers for just 1,000 won ($0.7) outside the campus for more than two decades. Lee died late last year. “For the past 25 years, Lee stood closest to students and walked alongside Korea University in the warmest way possible,” Korea University President Kim Dong-won said Tuesday during a ceremony unveiling a commemorative plaque of Lee at a student cafeteria on its ma

Jan. 28, 2026

Kim Kang-tae wins third prize at Liszt Utrecht Piano Competition

South Korean pianist Kim Kang-tae won third prize at the Liszt Utrecht Piano Competition 2026, which concluded on Saturday in Utrecht, the Netherlands. First prize went to Alexander Kashpurin of Russia, with Thomas Kelly of the UK taking second place. Born in 1997, Kim received a prize of 8,000 euros ($9,460), along with an extensive package of career support awarded to all three laureates, including professional coaching and mentorship, the creation of a personal website, and an opportunity to

Jan. 25, 2026

Woman who cared for sick dad for years dies, saves 3 lives with organ donation

The Korea Organ Donation Agency on Thursday shared the story of their recent notable donor, a 68-year-old woman who posthumously donated critical organs to three people. Ji Jeong-sun passed away on Nov. 14 at the Korea University Guro Hospital after suffering brain death. She collapsed on Nov. 3 at her home while doing the dishes, and never recovered from her fatal brain injuries. Her liver and both kidneys were donated to help three patients. According to Ji's family, the deceased had been a pe

Jan. 22, 2026

Teenage authors talk about finding their voices early, sharing their success

Most children naturally begin drawing and trying to write, but few achieve success before adulthood. Not so Jeon Isoo and Baek Eun-byul, two 16-year-olds whose stars have risen high enough to be invited as speakers on the same program at the Busan International Children's Book Fair last month. Jeon Isoo, a teenage painter and children's book writer, has been publishing books since he was 8. Baek Eun-byul is a comparative late bloomer, breaking through at the ripe age of 14 with her debut novel “

Jan. 14, 2026

Son Jong-won's good vibes and unsparing reading list

Son Jong-won has been building a following through his appearances on JTBC cooking variety show "Chef & My Fridge," but his recent turn on the second season of Netflix's megahit "Culinary Class Wars" propelled him into full-fledged stardom. A member of the show's "white spoon" team of established chefs, the 41-year-old is the executive chef behind two Michelin-starred restaurants: Eatanic Garden and L'Amant Secret. Well-mannered and neatly styled, with a composed demeanor and an unshowy confiden

Jan. 13, 2026

Asian singers win roles at 77th AsLiCo opera competition

Three young Asian performers who previously were awarded in the Asian edition of the AsLiCo International Competition for Young Opera Singers secured major roles at the competition’s 77th edition, held Tuesday at Teatro Sociale di Como in northern Italy. Bass Kim Jae-yul, baritone Choi Jun-young and soprano Ye Yua each earned opportunities to perform in professional opera productions across Europe and beyond. Kim, 25 and from Korea, claimed the role of Mustafa in Rossini’s “L’Italiana in Algeri

Jan. 8, 2026