The Korea Herald

South Korean right-center

Background

The Korea Herald was founded on August 15, 1953, as The Korean Republic, a four-page English-language tabloid created at the direction of President Syngman Rhee through the state-run Korean Information Service, with the explicit goal of presenting South Korea's perspective to international audiences during postwar reconstruction. The paper was renamed The Korea Herald in August 1965. In 1978, the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) acquired it, and majority control later passed to Dainong Corp., marking the paper's first transfer to private-sector management; it was formally privatized in 1989. In 2019, Jungheung Group — a major South Korean construction conglomerate — purchased a 47.8% stake in Herald Corporation, becoming its largest shareholder. The Korea Herald today commands more than 50% of South Korea's English-language newspaper market and is the country's only member of the Asia News Network (ANN). Media Bias/Fact Check rates it right-center and mostly factual; Biasly places it near center. Its editorial orientation tends to reflect South Korea's business establishment and generally supports the U.S.-South Korea security alliance, though since early 2025 it has reported critically on the economic harm of Trump administration tariffs — particularly the 25% tariff threat and subsequent 15% rate imposed on Korean exports — covering those developments primarily through the lens of South Korean national interest.

Sources

1. The Korea Herald – Wikipedia
2. Herald Corporation – Wikipedia
3. Korea Herald – Bias and Credibility – Media Bias/Fact Check
4. The Korea Herald Media Bias – AllSides
5. The Korea Herald – Bias and Reliability – Biasly
6. Jungheung Group becomes largest shareholder of Herald Corp. – The Korea Herald
7. Allies under fire: Why do Trump tariffs target Korea, Japan first? – The Korea Herald
8. 70 years and growing: Korea Herald's legacy and beyond – The Korea Herald
9. From voice of newborn republic to heralding a developed nation – The Korea Herald

Profile compiled 2026-07-10; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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