Euna Lee
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Euna Lee (; born 1972) is an American journalist. While working for
Current TV Current TV was an American television channel which broadcast from August 1, 2005, to August 20, 2013. Prior INdTV founders Al Gore and Joel Hyatt, with Ronald Burkle, each held a sizable stake in Current TV. Comcast and DirecTV each held a small ...
, Lee and fellow journalist
Laura Ling Laura Ling (born December 1, 1976) is an American journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called jou ...
were detained in North Korea after they crossed into the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...
from the People's Republic of China without a visa in March 2009. They were found guilty of illegal entry and sentenced to twelve years' hard labor in June 2009. The United States Government protested the sentences and implemented diplomatic efforts in order to secure the release of both Lee and Ling. On August 4, 2009, Lee and Ling were pardoned by the North Korean government after a special humanitarian visit by former U.S. President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
. She wrote a book on her experiences in North Korea titled ''The World Is Bigger Now: An American Journalist's Release from Captivity in North Korea ... A Remarkable Story of Faith, Family, and Forgiveness''.


Biography

Lee was born and raised in
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
, and moved to the United States in order to attend Academy of Art University, where she received a
Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students pursuing a professional education in the visual arts, Fine art, or performing arts. In some instances, it is also called a Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA). Background ...
degree in Film and Broadcasting. She graduated from the
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism sch ...
in 2012. She is married to actor Michael Saldate; they have a daughter, Hana. On August 4, 2009,
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
visited North Korea in an attempt to free Lee and fellow journalist Laura Ling. The North Korean government pardoned both Lee and Ling after meeting with Clinton that day. It was also said that the equipment and materials they used for their interviews were left behind in North Korea and that information about defectors and human rights activists who helped them in their interviews was obtained by the North Korean authorities, putting them in danger. Human rights activists in South Korea accused Lee and Ling of placing North Korean refugees in danger through their actions.


Awards and honours

In 2011, Lee and Ling received the McGill Medal for Journalistic Courage from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.


Published works

*


See also

* 2009 imprisonment of American journalists by North Korea * List of foreign nationals detained in North Korea * Han Park


References


External links


Euna Lee reunite with family

Journalist Euna Lee
at 백지연의 피플Inside {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Euna 1972 births Living people American people of Korean descent North Korea–United States relations People from Sacramento County, California American people imprisoned in North Korea South Korean journalists South Korean women journalists Current TV people Recipients of North Korean pardons Academy of Art University alumni Date of birth missing (living people) American women television journalists Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni