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| President Moon Jae-in congratulated The Korea Times for its 70th anniversary in a written message. |
By Do Je-hae
President Moon Jae-in praised The Korea Times for its exceptional contribution to informing the world about the country in a congratulatory message for the nation's oldest English daily, founded 70 years ago on Nov. 1, 1950 during the 1950-53 Korean War.
"The paper's accurate coverage of the Korean War allowed the relatives and neighbors of U.N. troops from around the world to check on the progress of the War and ― albeit in a limited way ― helped alleviate fears and anxieties fed by uncertainty," Moon said in the written message released at the 70th anniversary ceremony held at the Lotte Hotel Seoul, Thursday.
Some 180 dignitaries from the politics, business and cultural sectors participated in the celebration, which was carried out under the government's quarantine guidelines set to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Moon's message continued: "The support from people worldwide who aspired for liberty and peace has greatly helped Koreans achieve economic growth and democratization after overcoming the ruins of the War."
Moon noted the daily's role as a primary source of news on Korea to the outside world by providing quality stories about the country.
"As Korea's first and longest-published English-language newspaper, The Korea Times has served as a civilian ambassador ― keeping the world accurately and promptly informed about the Republic of Korea," Moon said. "Over the past 70 years, the daily has steadfastly worked beside the international community with fair and assertive news reporting; an impartial tone; and the strict, objective spirit Confucius showed when recording history. I extend my gratitude to the reporters, executives and staff of The Korea Times."
In recognition of The Korea Times' contribution to advancing Korea's diplomacy, Moon wrote, "In its inaugural editorial, The Korea Times noted the national need to promote goodwill, mutual understanding and cooperation among all nations. That piece attests to the daily's truly trail-blazing conduct."
The President assessed The Korea Times has helped disseminate Korean culture abroad, not only through its coverage of hallyu content but also by holding its own cultural events including the Modern Korean Literature Translation Awards in which Korean literary works are translated into English for global readers.
With a spirit of hope the president referenced a line of poetry quoted in the inaugural edition of the Korea Times, "Like the line 'If winter comes, can spring be far behind?' by British poet Percy Bysshe Shelley that was contained in the paper's first editorial, we will soon prevail over COVID-19 and welcome a new spring. I hope The Korea Times will always remain as committed as it has been."
During the anniversary celebration, The Korea Times and Hankook Ilbo Chairman Seung Myung-ho underlined the newspaper's contributions to promoting diplomacy as well as development in various sectors.
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| President Moon Jae-in / Korea Times file |
"The history of The Korea Times is equally the history of English newspapers in Korea," Seung said in a welcoming address.
He said the newspaper informed the U.N. troops and diplomatic mission here about the domestic situation during the war, and afterward it introduced Korea's development in all sectors, such as freedom of the press, democratization, as well as advancements in the economy, society and culture.
More importantly, Seung underlined that The Korea Times will become a compelling force in the global media landscape in the digital transformation.
"Even during difficulties from the pandemic, global interest in Korea has continued and will continue to grow as its global stature increases on the back of hallyu and antivirus quarantine measures. These circumstances provide a new opportunity as well as challenge for The Korea Times to expand our readership globally," Seung said.
Among key participants at the ceremony were National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, Yoido Full Gospel Church senior pastor Lee Young-hoon, as well as heads of diplomatic missions and foreign chambers of commerce such as U.S. Ambassador Harry Harris, Chinese Ambassador Xing Haiming, Indian Ambassador Sripriya Ranganathan and American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM) Chairman and CEO James Kim. Former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon sent a virtual congratulatory message.
