''KoreAm,'' or ''KoreAm Journal,'' was a monthly print

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

dedicated to news, commentary, politics, lifestyle and culture published in the United States. It was the oldest and most widely circulated

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...

monthly magazine for the

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous peopl ...

community. The magazine has featured prominent Asian American leaders, politicians, artists, entertainers, athletes and entrepreneurs. It also covered current events related to

North 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 Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, Asian Americans,

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...

s and communities of color. The magazine ended print issue in December 2015. In 2018, the publication relaunched as ''KORE magazine''. In April 2019, ''KORE'' rebranded as '' Character Media''.

History

''KoreAm'' was founded by Jung Shig Ryu and James Ryu in 1990 in Los Angeles, California. The magazine highlighted news, stories, op-ed pieces and entertainment for the Kyopo community - aka ethnic Koreans living overseas - primarily Koreans in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The magazine highlighted

Korean American Korean Americans are Americans of Korean ancestry (mostly from South Korea). In 2015, the Korean-American community constituted about 0.56% of the United States population, or about 1.82 million people, and was the fifth-largest Asian America ...

perspectives on matters related to

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic ...

, including North Korea's nuclear program, reunification, the

six-party talks The six-party talks aimed to find a peaceful resolution to the security concerns as a result of the North Korean nuclear weapons program. There was a series of meetings with six participating states in Beijing: * China * Japan * North Korea ...

, the deaths of South Korean presidents, the globalization of South Korean

pop culture Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ...

, and peninsular tensions and conflicts. The magazine also addressed biracial and adoptee communities. ''KoreAm'' was the most widely circulated, longest-running, independent English-language publication serving the Korean American community. Two years after ''KoreAm's'' founding, the magazine became a major forum for the Korean community relating to the

1992 Los Angeles riots The 1992 Los Angeles riots, sometimes called the 1992 Los Angeles uprising and the Los Angeles Race Riots, were a series of riots and civil disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles County, California, in April and May 1992. Unrest began in So ...

. The riots caused violence, arson, looting and lawlessness. Korean-run businesses were targeted during what has been dubbed this nation's first "multiethnic riot.""Globilization of Los Angeles: The First Multiethnic Riots", ''Los Angeles Times'', May 1992. ''KoreAm'' featured prominent Korean Americans on its cover. These stories included

Margaret Cho Margaret Moran Cho (born December 5, 1968) is an American comedian, actress, LGBT social activist, and musician. She is known for her stand-up routines, through which she critiques social and political problems, especially regarding race and se ...

John Cho John Cho (born Cho Yo-Han; June 16, 1972) is an American actor known for his roles as Harold Lee in the '' Harold & Kumar'' films, and Hikaru Sulu in the ''Star Trek'' rebooted film series. Early in his career, Cho also starred in the Asian A ...

Daniel Dae Kim Daniel Dae Kim (born Kim Dae-hyun ( ko, 김대현); August 4, 1968) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Jin-Soo Kwon in ''Lost'', Chin Ho Kelly in '' Hawaii Five-0'', Gavin Park in ''Angel'', and Johnny Gat in the '' Saints Ro ...

Jane Kim Jane Kim (born July 9, 1977) is an American attorney and politician, and the first Korean American elected official in San Francisco. She represented San Francisco's District 6 on the Board of Supervisors between 2011 and 2019. She is a member o ...

, and

Michelle Rhee Michelle Ann Rhee (born December 25, 1969) is an American educator and advocate for education reform. She was Chancellor of District of Columbia Public Schools from 2007 to 2010. In late 2010, she founded StudentsFirst, a non-profit organizati ...

. Stories also included a profile on

Pinkberry Pinkberry is a franchise of frozen dessert restaurants headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. There are currently over 260 stores in 20 countries. The first store was opened in January 2005 by Hye Kyung (Shelly) Hwang and Young Lee. The restaurant ...

founder Shelly Hwang, a ground level feature on the

Virginia Tech massacre The Virginia Tech shooting was a spree shooting that occurred on April 16, 2007, comprising two attacks on the campus of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. Seung-Hui Cho, an ...

, as well as packages on health care reform, education reform, gays in the military, and Korean Americans affected by

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

. In 2003, ''KoreAm'' launched a sister publication, ''Audrey Magazine''. The magazine's official website was launched in 2009. London Trust Media acquired the magazine in 2014. The magazine ceased publication in December 2015.

Staff

Editorial Julie Ha, Editor-in-Chief
Michelle Woo, Online Editor
Jiyoon Kim, Art Director

Marketing & Advertising James Ryu, Publisher
Joyce Park, Marketing Director
Esther Kim, Operations Manager Former Editors Corina Knoll
Jimmy Lee
John Lee
Kai Ma
Larry Tazuma

Publication history

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Accolades

2000

* Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (

GLAAD GLAAD (), an acronym of Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, is an American non-governmental media monitoring organization originally founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of gay and lesbian demographics and their portrayal ...

) Media Award nominee

2002

* Outstanding Service on Behalf of the

community presented by the Korean American Bar Association of Southern California * Annual Community Service Award presented by the Korean American Coalition San Francisco Bay Area Chapter

2003

* New California Media Awards: Arts/Culture. * Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment (PACE) Setter Award

2004

* New California Media Awards: International; Youth Voice; Workplace Issues/Economy; Investigative/In-depth (runner-up); Arts, Sports & Entertainment (runner-up)

2005

Society of Professional Journalists The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), formerly known as Sigma Delta Chi, is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. It was established on April 17, 1909, at DePauw University,2009 SPJ Annual Report, letter ...

Mark of Excellence Awards, Region 5: Best Nonfiction Magazine Features.

2008

* Asian Pacific American Community Award by United States Assembly member

Ted Lieu Ted W. Lieu (; born March 29, 1969) is an American politician and Air Force Reserve Command colonel who has represented California's 33rd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015. The district includes much of wes ...

2009

* National New America Media Award in the category of Best In-Depth and Investigative Reporting for Kai Ma's “To Have and to Hold,” a feature on

Proposition 8 Proposition 8, known informally as Prop 8, was a California ballot proposition and a state constitutional amendment intended to ban same-sex marriage; it passed in the November 2008 California state elections and was later overturned in cou ...

and the Korean American vote * National New America Media Honorable Mention in the category of Arts, Sports & Entertainment for Kai Ma's “High Rollers,” a feature on high-stakes gambling. * National New America Media Award in the category of Race and Interethnic Relations for Julie Ha's “Neighborhood Watch,” a feature on the large numbers of Koreans moving into the Los Angeles neighborhood known as Little Tokyo, one of the last Japantowns left in California.

2011

* Korean Churches in Community Development (KCCD) Legacy Award

2013

* Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics (LEAP) Leadership Award

References

External links

{{Portal, United States * https://web.archive.org/web/20100708064331/http://expo.newamericamedia.org/winners/best_in_depth_investigative_english *https://web.archive.org/web/20100717162419/http://expo.newamericamedia.org/winners/race_and_interethnic_relations * KoreAm Website (iamKoreAm.com)
Asian American Ethnic Media Survives Tough Times

Online Editions (CharacterMedia.com)
Lifestyle magazines published in the United States Monthly magazines published in the United States Asian-American magazines Defunct magazines published in the United States Korean-American culture Magazines established in 1990 Magazines disestablished in 2015 Magazines published in California