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| Professor Lee Jae-won in a photo provided by his family / Yonhap |
Born in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, Lee studied English language and literature at Seoul National University and worked as a journalist at The Korea Times from 1963, covering education and art. After receiving a Fulbright Scholarship in 1967, he went to study journalism in the United States.
Since 1972, he taught at Cleveland State University and also served administrative roles there including assistant to the provost and director of the journalism division at the school, until he retired in 2008 and served as professor emeritus.
During the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, he taught at Yonsei University and worked at the Korea Press Center.
Based on this experience in Seoul, he played a key role in founding the Olympics Media Awards in 1996, which recognized journalists for their excellence in reporting and contribution to helping boost Olympic sports and its spirit. The awards were given out in 1997 and 1999.
He also taught journalism at the University of Botswana in 2002 and served twice as the president of the Korean American Communication Association. He received the Society of Professional Journalists Distinguished Service Award in 2011.
After his retirement, he moved from Cleveland to Korea, where he taught as a visiting professor at Hallym University Media School.
He is survived by his wife and two children. The funeral ceremony was held on March 10.
