Spying scandal grips politics ahead of poll

A two-year-old scandal is back to haunt President Lee Myung-bak and his ruling Saenuri Party just in time for a key election that will shape the nation’s political landscape for years to come.

The 2010 scandal entailing the illegal surveillance of a businessman by officials at the Prime Minister’s Office was brought back into the spotlight by a whistleblower who claimed that the Presidential Office of Cheong Wa Dae was directly involved in the illegal operation and its cover-up.

Opposition parties are now in full-fledged attack mode against Lee and the Saenuri Party, aiming to capitalize on the scandal in the parliamentary elections next month.

“The administration of President Lee and his Saenuri Party has been blamed for so many things. But the ongoing scandal is the epitome of them all,” Rep. Kim Jin-pyo, floor leader of the main opposition Democratic United Party, said in a meeting of party leaders Wednesday.

“The April 11 parliamentary elections will be a chance to deliver the public’s verdict on Lee and Saenuri for their incompetence and corruption.”

Calling the case “President Lee’s Watergate,” the DUP demanded truth from the president and his apology.

The surveillance scandal erupted in 2010, entailing the illegal spying by officials at the PMO on a businessman who posted video clips critical of President Lee on his blog in 2008. The PMO officials destroyed their computers before investigators searched their office.

The investigation was closed with the indictment of seven officials, including Jang Jin-soo, now the whistleblower, despite speculation that officials in the presidential office were involved. Jang was sentenced to eight months in jail, suspended for two years, for destruction of evidence.

The heightened antagonism came as the prosecutors questioned Jang for a second day on Wednesday on a series of revelations that he made about the presidential office’s role in the 2008 case and its cover-up.

Jang will submit to investigators key evidence implicating three former presidential aides ― Lee Young-ho, Choi Jong-seok and Jang Seok-myeong ― his attorney said.

The attorney also said Jang has evidence implicating more senior presidential aides, but is undecided over whether to disclose it.

A day earlier, one of the three former Cheong Wa Dae officials implicated by Jang called a press conference, claiming that he was the mastermind of the scheme.

In a press conference, an excited Lee Young-ho, who in 2008 was the president’s secretary on labor affairs, bellowed, shed tears and admitted to the charges that he had been cleared of by the prosecution in the 2010 investigation.

“I ordered him (Jang) to destroy the computers. I did. And I will take all due responsibility,” he told journalists. He also admitted to having offered 20 million won to Jang, but claimed that it was purely out of sympathy and not to keep his mouth shut as claimed by Jang.

Rep. Park Jie-won, another DUP leader, raised suspicions that the president may have been aware of the illegal operation.

“Lee Young-ho claimed that he was the person behind it, but a very few would buy it,” he said. “I believe that such a scheme could not have been possible to pull off by Cheong Wa Dae officials, without directly reporting to the president.”

The politician also criticized the ruling party’s silence on the matter.

“Rep. Park Geun-hye should not try to avoid this ― a matter of grave importance ― by keeping silent,” he said, referring to the chairwoman of the Saenuri.

By Lee Sun-young (milaya@heraldm.com)

Tseng’s back-nine rally holds off Choi and Miyazato

PHOENIX (AP) ― Yani Tseng two-putted for par from 40 feet in fading light and cold to hold off Ai Miyazato and Choi Na-yeon by a stroke Sunday in the LPGA Founders Cup.

The top-ranked Taiwanese star won her 14th LPGA Tour title and second in four events this year. She closed with a 4-under 68 to finish at 18 under.

The second-ranked Choi also shot 68, and Miyazato had a 69.

Because of lightning near the Wildfire Golf Club, play was delayed three times for a total of three hours. Tseng holed her winning 2-foot putt at 6:45 p.m. ― 8 hours, 4 minutes after the leaders teed off and seven minutes after sunset.

Korea’s Choi Na-yeon (left) and Taiwan’s Yani Tseng walk up the 10th fairway at the LPGA Founders Cup on Sunday. (AFP-Yonhap News)

“I was feeling like we were going to finish tomorrow, so we were really lucky to finish today and finish in the dark the last few holes,” Tseng said. “Because of my eyes, I couldn’t see much of a distance, so I tried to keep to myself, ‘OK, just finish these few holes, just hit a good shot, good contact, play one shot at a time.’”

After temperatures in the mid-80s Thursday and Friday and high 70s Saturday, it plunged into the low 40s Sunday morning and only got up to the mid-50s.

“It was definitely a long day, and I’ve never seen this weather in Phoenix before,” Miyazato said. “Thank God we finished.”

Following overnight rain, play began at 8:30 a.m. It was still in the mid-40s, spitting rain and windy when the leaders teed off at 10:41. Soon after, hail fell briefly on parts of the course.

“It was a little drama out there,” Tseng said. “I didn’t play very well on the front nine. It was like hail on the first hole and it was like hail three holes. I just was really patient. We were back on and off.”

‘Korea will emerge as hub of FTAs’

FTA negotiations with China to begin within first half of this year’

This is the first of a series of interviews of top officials on FTAs as the Korea-U.S. FTA takes effect on March 15. ― Ed.


The free trade agreement with the United States, which goes into effect Thursday, is anticipated to help Korea attract foreign investment in addition to boosting exports to the world’s largest market.

“Being a country that depends heavily on trade, our competence means strong exports to the advanced economy, which accounts for 23 percent of the world’s production and has the highest consumer standards,” Trade Minister Bark Tae-ho said in an interview with The Korea Herald.

“If we do well in the U.S. market, we can do well around the world.”

The United States, which had been Korea’s largest trading partner until 2003 when it was overtaken by China, was ranked fourth largest last year after China, Japan and the European Union. Korean products’ U.S. market share also fell from more than 3 percent in 2004 to 2.6 percent last year.

To maximize the effect of the Korea-U.S. FTA, the Seoul government will continue to educate small companies on how to get origin certifications for their export items and how to make use of the preferential duties, Bark said.

The professor-turned-minister said opposition politicians’ demands for a renegotiation or scrapping of the Korea-U.S. FTA were “irresponsible, inappropriate and unacceptable,” saying that problems and disputes over the FTA can be discussed through various joint committees between the two countries.

Bark Tae-ho

“Repealing the FTA would hurt bilateral relations and undermine Korea’s international credibility. Most importantly, it would be a major loss to our national interests,” he said.

As Korea is engaging in consultations for an FTA with China, it will soon emerge as the hub of FTAs binding the three largest economies of the world including the EU and therefore one of the most attractive investment destinations in the world, Bark said.

“Foreign investors often complain about the regulatory regime and the labor relations in Korea, but they will be willing to overcome such difficulties once Korea becomes the hub of FTAs,” he said.

“Korea will serve as a gateway for American, European and Chinese investors seeking access to these enormous and dynamic markets.”

The negotiations for the Korea-China FTA are expected to begin in the first half of this year, according to Bark.

The two sides plan to issue a joint statement on the basic framework of the talks, which will consist of two stages, when they announce the beginning of the negotiations.

The first stage will be on settling the sizes of baskets for general, sensitive and ultra-sensitive items. The second stage talks will not proceed unless the two countries reach an agreement in the first stage.

“Through the FTA with China, we should achieve market dominance in the world’s fastest growing economy, where some 30 cities the size of Bundang are springing up each year,” Bark said.

“The Chinese government is shifting the focus of its policy for economic growth from exports to domestic consumption, for which they are providing subsidies.”

Most of Korea’s trade surplus with China comes from processing trade in which Korean companies in China import machinery, parts and raw materials from their parent companies in Korea. A lot of the products assembled in China are sold off to the United States or the EU, and therefore get tariff refunds.

“China doesn’t like this. They are reducing incentives for exporters, and with labor costs in China rising, many Korean companies are returning home,” Bark said.

“By sealing an FTA with China, we would no longer have to produce in China to tap into its market. Foreign companies targeting the Chinese market could come to Korea for production.”

Also, an FTA would help remove non-tariff barriers and make Beijing’s attitude more favorable toward Seoul when dealing with trade problems, according to the minister.

The former professor at Seoul National University’s Graduate School of International Studies took office as trade minister in December.

By Kim So-hyun (sophie@heraldm.com)

Oil prices rise on unexpected crude supply drop

NEW YORK (AP) ― One day after the price of benchmark crude took the biggest one-day drop this year, it headed up again.

Oil rose Wednesday after the Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. crude supplies unexpectedly dropped last week. The Energy Information Administration said supplies fell by 1.2 million barrels. Analysts expected supplies to grow by 2.1 million barrels, according to Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill.

Oil prices also got some support from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who told a congressional panel that U.S. banks are in good shape and could withstand shocks from Europe, even if the debt crisis there significantly worsened.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.20 to finish at $107.27 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, which is used by many U.S. refineries to make gasoline, rose by 8 cents to end at $124.20 per barrel in London.

On Tuesday, WTI tumbled by $2.49, or 2.3 percent, to $106.07. It was pushed down by a pledge from Saudi Arabia to pump more oil to cover supply shortages and stabilize prices. There were also more signs that China’s economy is slowing. China is the world’s second biggest consumer of oil behind the U.S.

Including Wednesday’s gain, WTI is up more than 8 percent this year while Brent is up about 16 percent. That’s the biggest reason for rising pump prices. The national average jumped by nearly 2 cents to $3.864 per gallon ($1.02 a liter) on Wednesday. That’s the highest ever for this time of year in the U.S., as energy has become a driving issue in the presidential election campaign.

The drop in crude supplies in the EIA report doesn’t mean Americans are using more gasoline and other fuels. It mainly reflects a decline in imports to refineries that have slowed operations for seasonal maintenance. Gasoline demand at the wholesale level is down nearly 8 percent from the same time last year. A report Tuesday from the private research firm MasterCard SpendingPulse showed that Americans has bought less gasoline in each of the past 52 weeks, when compared with the same period a year earlier.

In other energy trading, heating oil fell 2 cents to finish at $3.22 per gallon. Gasoline futures lost less than a penny to end at $3.36 per gallon. Natural gas rose 2.5 cents to finish at $2.36 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Apple’s new iPad runs hotter than earlier model

Apple Inc.’s new iPad runs “significantly hotter” than the earlier model when conducting processor-intensive tasks such as playing graphics-heavy games, according to Consumer Reports, which tested the device.

The newest version of the market-leading tablet computer ran as hot as 47 degrees Celsius, the magazine said on its website. Consumer Reports, published by the consumer-watchdog group Consumers Union, used a thermal-imaging camera to record the temperature while playing the action game “Infinity Blade II.”

A customer browses Apple Inc.`s new iPad tablet computer at the company`s store in Covent Garden in London, U.K., on Friday, March 16, 2012. Apple Inc. started selling its new iPad today, betting on a sharper screen and faster chip to extend its lead over Google Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. in the growing market for tablet computers. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg Apple Inc.’s new iPad tablet computer. (Bloomberg)

Even with the increased temperature, Consumer Reports said the device wasn’t uncomfortable to hold.

“When it was at its hottest, it felt very warm but not especially uncomfortable if held for a brief period,” the magazine said on its website.

Consumer Reports isn’t the only reviewer to note the heating issue. Websites such as Engadget have cited a study by Dutch site Tweakers.net, which found the tablet runs hotter by 10 degrees Fahrenheit. Some consumers in online discussions have cited high temperatures with the iPad.

The new device operates “well within our thermal specifications,” Trudy Muller, a spokeswoman for Cupertino, California-based Apple, said in a statement. “If customers have any concerns they should contact AppleCare.”

Consumer Reports didn’t notice the higher temperature in its initial examination of the new iPad, a process that included testing with games such as “Infinity Blade II.” In the March 16 review, the magazine praised the device, saying it was “shaping up to be the best tablet we’ve ever tested.”

Consumer Reports didn’t say whether the heating issue would determine whether it would recommend the device. When Apple released the iPhone 4, the magazine declined to recommend it, saying it dropped calls when gripped a certain way. After initially playing down the matter, which became known as “Antennagate,” Apple gave out free cases and issued a software update designed to fix the glitch.

(Bloomberg)

Foreign cell phone users often ignored

Foreign cell phone users often ignored

Carriers inconvenience foreigners By Yoon Ja-young Navid Firouzbakhsh, an Austrian manager at an IT company in Seoul, feels he isn’t treated fairly by mobile carriers. “I am used to using services in the United Kingdom, the United States and other areas of Europe. “There foreigners get mileage points, and they have so many offers such as free upgrades, free handsets. Here we have little information about anything,” he said. In Korea, he said that he is often left behind about tips about how to get bonus points and accompanying benefits. It’s not clear whether the carriers intentionally neglect their duty of better informing foreign clients, at an additional cost, or not. The number of foreigners in the country stood at 1.41 million as of last September, nearing 3 percent of the total population, and many of them are using mobile services. They are, however, facing many inconveniences in the country that boasts of a high penetration for mobile services. Li Chunhua who is from China and studying in Korea must use a mobile service subscribed to by her Korean friend. “I tried to subscribe on my own, but I gave up after visiting a shop. The inconvenience made me think they are forcing foreigners to borrow names of Korean friends instead of subscribing on their own.” The first hurdle comes when they try to get a mobile phone. Besides the language problem, foreigners are perplexed when mobile shops reject them. While locals would be welcome at any mobile shop found on every corner in the country, some of them won’t serve foreigners. Firouzbakhsh, who wanted to get an Apple iPhone, for instance, had to go to KT headquarters in Gwanghwamun to subscribe to the service as the mobile shop near his home in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, told him to go there. “Foreign consumers can subscribe to services at any of our mobile shops around the country, but it seems that the employee of that shop had a problem serving a foreign customer,” said a spokeswoman for KT. She explained that KT strengthened its services for foreign customers from 2010, running Twitter and blogs, and simplifying the subscription process to that for locals. It also has some special shops dedicated to foreigners, including one in Itaewon. However, having to search for bigger agents can be a nuisance. Sometimes, foreigners must have more qualifications than locals. SK Telecom, for instance, require a security deposit from some foreigners between 50,000 won and 200,000 won, depending on their type of visa. Foreigners also complain of the lack of contracts in English or other languages. Mobile carriers say they do have contracts in English and sometimes Chinese, but they aren’t available at many shops. The inconvenience continues after subscription. While locals can immediately contact a call center by pressing 114 whenever they have any inquiry or problem using the service, this is useless for foreigners due to the language barrier. When contacted, mobile carriers said they do have call centers for foreigners. “When a foreign user calls the call center, he or she gets automatically connected to our staff in charge of foreign consumers,” an LG Uplus spokesperson said. KT operates a call center for foreigners at (02) 2190-1180, where services are available in English, Chinese and Japanese. The number for SK Telecom’s foreign call center is 080-252-5011 to access English and Japanese services. They also operate websites for foreigners. However, most of the foreigners don’t even know that foreign call centers in English exist. While local users are offered diverse services such as paying bills or sending text messages directly using the website, the pages for foreigners are usually limited to just an introduction of the company and its services.

Magnates to fight key battle in Jongno

This is the first in a series introducing the key inter-party battle fields in the upcoming April 11 general elections. ― Ed.

Jongno is one of the oldest districts in Seoul and also a complex area which embraces the affluent neighborhoods around Cheong Wa Dae and the low-income ones around Dongdaemun.

The constituency is thus recognized as a general election bellwether and it is where two leading party big shots will test their luck next month in the next parliamentary term and that of their respective parties ahead of the presidential race at the end of the year.

The main opposition Democratic United Party has fielded former Democratic Party chairman and fourth-term lawmaker Rep. Chung Sye-kyun. In response, veteran lawmaker Rep. Hong Sa-duk is running against Chung for the ruling Saenuri Party.

Chung, also regarded as one of the left-wing’s leading presidential potentials, left his longtime constituency in the southeastern province of North Jeolla with a pledge to win Jongno back from the ruling party.

The opposition lawmaker has largely focused on canvassing the folksy areas, such as Changsin-dong and Sungin-dong, and met with residents who requested the annulment of the city’s redevelopment project in the area and the promotion of the local textile factories.

Rivals in Seoul’s Jongno constituency register their candidacy for the April 11 parliamentary elections at a branch office of the National Election Commission in Seoul on Thursday. Seen in the left photo is Rep. Hong Sa-duk of the Saenuri Party and in the right photo Rep. Chung Sye-kyun of the opposition Democratic United Party. (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea Herald)

“The Jongno people are disappointed with the poor achievements of the right-wing party candidate in recent years,” Chung said.

For the past three terms, ruling party member Rep. Park Jin has been elected to represent the constituency.

“I have been promoting the opposition camp’s image since late last year and am more closely connected with the local community,” Chung said.

Six-term lawmaker Hong, tapped by the ruling Saenuri Party for the crucial race, is a formidable rival for Chung.

A leading supporter of ruling party emergency council chair Park Geun-hye, Hong started by acquainting himself with the local organizations, including religious centers such as the Buddhist temple Jogyesa.

He has also spent a great deal of time campaigning on the streets in Samcheong-dong and Myeongnyun-dong, the relatively affluent areas in Jongno-gu.

The candidate, while greeting citizens, displayed the slogan “honest sixth-term” to emphasize that he has never been involved in irregularity scandals over his long political career.

The Saenuri runner was mostly accompanied by fellow lawmaker Park Jin, who earlier gave up his candidacy in the area and took the post as Hong’s election campaign manager.

“Rep. Hong also has top potential to be the next parliamentary speaker, should he be reelected,” said Park.

“Jongno has been the political home to several former presidents and for President Lee Myung-bak as well, and the voters here hope to be once again represented by an influential figure.”

He also stressed that the constituency has always been in favor of conservative politicians, except for the victory of liberal former President Roh Moo-hyun in the 1988 by-election.

Both Chung and Hong registered their candidacy with the National Election Commission on Thursday. The official electoral campaign period is to kick off next Thursday until midnight, April 10.

By Bae Hyun-jung (tellme@heraldm.com) 

81% of Koreans discontent with life

81% of Koreans discontent with life

By Lee Hyo-sik More than eight out of 10 Koreans are dissatisfied with their life, an international research firm said Wednesday. In an online survey of 19,216 adults ― including 1,000 Koreans ― residing in 24 countries, Ipsos said 81 percent of Korean respondents disagreed with the statement: ``My life is fine the way it is and I don’t need to live better.’’ Hungary was the only nation that recorded a higher ratio of dissatisfaction than Korea at 89 percent, meaning Koreans feel unhappier about their life than most other nationals. Worldwide, only 64 percent of global citizens said they needed to live better. When asked about whether they wish they had a plan for living better, 90 percent of Korean respondents said they do. About 81 percent of Koreans either strongly or somewhat agreed to the statement that living better is more difficult than ever before. The survey also found 85 percent think living is no longer just about physical or mental health, indicating Koreans increasingly put greater weight on leisure and other activities that can improve their quality of life. ``About 90 percent of Koreans said living better requires a plan, while the remainder said living better just happens and is not something they can do anything about,’’ Ipsos said. “Asked about whether a strong national economy is important to individuals in improving their own personal wellbeing, 82 percent said it was.” Improving living conditions (84 percent) and strengthening family relations (83 percent) were also cited as prerequisites for having a better life, it said. Respondents were allowed to give multiple answers. About 74 percent also said learning something new or finding a new challenge was crucial for enjoying a better life, followed by more exercise (69 percent) and more or better sleep (64 percent) and eating better (62 percent). Among 24 countries, Saudi Arabia was found to be the happiest nation as 64 percent of its citizens said they are very or somewhat content with the way their lives are. India came in second at 60 percent, followed by Sweden at 57 percent, Germany at 48 percent, Canada at 46 percent, Australia at 44 percent and Britain at 42 percent.

leehs@koreatimes.co.kr

Survey: Most Koreans unhappy with their lives

An alarming percentage of Korean people are unhappy with their lives, according to a survey by a market research company.

The Ipsos survey of some 1,000 Koreans released Wednesday found that 81 percent considered themselves somewhat unhappy with their lives.

The survey was part of a larger global study of 19,216 people in 24 different countries.

When asked if they were happy with their current lives, only two percent of Koreans between 16 and 64 years of age answered “very much so,” while 17 percent answered “somewhat.”

The larger global study found that 61 percent said they “need to live better.”

Koreans were also asked if having a plan to achieve happiness would help, to which 90 percent answered yes. However 81 percent said that it is more difficult to change their lives now than in the past.

Worldwide, nearly three-quarters believed that they could achieve happiness through a plan.

Locals were also quick to point their fingers at the country, with 82 percent somewhat agreeing that should Korea’s economy improve, so would their lives. But the number was lower than the global percentage where 89 percent said a better economy was at least somewhat important to their happiness.


By Robert Lee
(robert@heraldm.com)

Opposition alliance announces unified candidates for 69 districts

Some of those denied candidacy move to run as independents


The main opposition Democratic United Party and far-left Unified Progressive Party announced their unified set of candidates for the upcoming general elections on Monday, stepping up their moves to secure a parliamentary majority.

UPP co-leader Rep. Lee Jung-hee and In Jae-keun, widow of former DUP adviser Kim Geun-tae, were included in the list of unified candidates for 69 constituencies, who were picked through an opinion poll contest over the weekend.

The announcement came about a week after the major opposition parties agreed to forge a strategic alliance, which analysts say would pose a formidable challenge to the ruling Saenuri Party and brighten the opposition camp’s electoral prospects.

“People and our history will remember these candidates who made a decision of compromise and sacrifice in accordance with the public’s order to deliver judgment on the administration led by President Lee Myung-bak and his Saenuri Party,” DUP leader Han Myeong-sook told a press conference.

“The DUP will achieve a victory against the current administration through this opposition alliance that was forged by the people.”

The announcement was immediately met with strong resistance from a series of DUP members denied candidacy. They indicated they would run as independents, a move that could undermine the alliance and divide the opposition vote.

For Gwanak-B district in southern Seoul, UPP co-head Rep. Lee beat Kim Hee-chull, a DUP lawmaker currently representing the district, in the opinion poll contest. In Jae-keun of the DUP won the unified ticket in a contest against the UPP’s Lee Baek-man, the former senior public affairs secretary for late President Roh Moo-hyun.

Including Rep. Lee, most of the big-name UPP politicians gained candidacy for the April 11 elections.

UPP co-head Shim Sang-jung, its co-spokesperson Roh Hoi-chan and Cheon Ho-sun, spokesperson for President Roh, secured unified candidacy for Deokyang-gap in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province; Nowon-byeong in Seoul; and Eunpyeong-eul, respectively.

In an upset, however, UPP Rep. Cho Seung-soo lost to his DUP rival Sim Kyu-myeong in the race for the Namgu-gap district in the UPP’s traditional stronghold of Ulsan on the southeastern coast.

DUP’s presidential aspirants, Reps. Chung Sye-kyun and Chung Dong-young also gained their party’s tickets for the Jongno and Gangnam-eul districts, both in Seoul.

For Jongno, dubbed the country’s No.1 political avenue, Chung will vie against his rival Hong Sa-duk, six-term ruling Saenuri lawmaker. For the affluent Gangnam district, Chung will fight against former Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon.

Under the strategic alliance, the two parties have agreed to unify their candidacy for 78 constituencies. In Monday’s announcement, 69 unified candidates were unveiled with the remaining nine to be selected before the end of the two-day candidate registration period on Friday.

Though the candidate nomination process is getting closer to its tail end, the repercussions are still resonating in a series of districts where those denied candidacy argue that their competitors employed inappropriate measures to win the nomination contest.

Particularly in the DUP’s stronghold of the southwestern Honam region, many of those denied candidacy are preparing to run as independents, specifically in four of the eight districts in Gwangju.

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldm.com)

Showing new ways for people to appreciate Korea

Showing new ways for people to appreciate Korea

Michael Aronson NY native touts Seoul subway through music This is the sixth in a series of interviews that feature individuals who help promote Korean culture overseas. ― ED. By Jane Han NEW YORK — There’s no doubt people like Seoul’s convenient subway system but one man went so far as to write a song about it. Titled “Seoul Subway Song,” the rap tune has garnered more than half a million clicks on YouTube. “I’ve always loved the subway system and I always thought that it had a lot of potential for drama, so to speak,” Michael Aronson, a New York native and creator of the subway song, said in an interview with The Korea Times. He does put a dramatic spin on the everyday subway scene of Seoul through his three-minute ode. Taking viewers from Chungmuro to Suseo, Aronson covers all the main subway lines, highlighting the advantages of each route — all as part of an addictive melodic rap. “From start to finish, the song took about six weeks,” says Aronson. “I went from Sinnonhyeon to Oksu, walked across the bridge and down to Hak-dong, transferred at Konkuk University Station and went to Jamsil.” “I wanted this one to be very much outdoors — well, in the subways and their stations. I filmed on four or five different days in different parts of Seoul,” said the 29-year-old, who knew exactly what he wanted this time. After all, he has already made over 300 videos — almost all about Korea — since 2006. With titles such as “Why is there no deodorant in Korea?” and “How many members does a K-pop group need?” his non-musical clips attempt to answer random questions about Korea. But among the collection, the most memorable for Aronson is “The Kim Yuna Song,” which he is currently filming a third version of in New York City. His creative work continues even while he’s on vacation back at home, away from his full-time job at a publishing company in Seoul. So who is he investing all this time for? “Honestly, I am my main audience,” says Aronson, who studied East Asian Studies at New York University. “If I don’t enjoy the product, then I feel it’s not worth it.” He says K-pop and Korean dramas paint “a very unrealistic view of Korean life.” “I’m making videos about what I think Korean life is really like, from my perspective,” said Aronson. “I don’t think Koreans identify with K-pop... and it’s definitely not representative of Korea.” “I feel bad when the Korean media and government really push K-pop because I don’t think it will create lasting interest in Korea. I think the K-pop bubble will burst in a couple of years,” he said, “and I’m afraid of what attractions Korea will still have.” Just like the way he brought attention to what can be a mundane commute, Aronson hopes to continue shedding light on things in Korea people take for granted. “I feel my goal in making videos is to show new ways for people to appreciate Korea and to explore its possibilities and potentials,” he said.