Gyeongnam Ilbo

Gyeongnam Ilbo (Korean: Template:Category handler) is a daily Korean-language regional newspaper published in Template:Ill, Jinju, South Korea.

The current newspaper claims to be the successor to two previous newspapers that went by the same name. The original was the first ever regional Korean-language newspaper. It was founded on October 15, 1909, although it closed in January 1915.Template:Sfn Another newspaper under that name reopened in 1946, but closed in 1980. The current newspaper opened in 1989. It is one of two regional newspapers for the province, with the other being the Changwon-based Kyongnam Shinmun.

Some of its original predecessor's early issues are available on the Korean Newspaper Archive for free.

History

First run

The Gyeongnam Ilbo was the first regional Korean-language newspaper and the first newspaper to be published in Jinju.Template:Sfn Its company was also the first publicly-owned Korean press company. It was rare at the time, as it was the first newspaper to be founded in a regional Korean city that was not Japanese.Template:Sfn By contrast, by 1909 there were around 34 Japanese newspapers across Korea in 1909,Template:Sfn and the first newspapers published in cities like Jeonju and Masan were Japanese.Template:Sfn

The Gyeongnam Ilbo Company was founded in February 1909, several months before the publication of the first issue. Its office was based out of Jinju-gun (Template:Category handler).

It printed its first issue on October 15, 1909.Template:Sfn Its first publication was praised by newspapers like The Korea Daily News and even by several in China and Japan. Its first president was Kim Hong-cho (; Template:Category handler). Its first lead writer, Template:Ill, was the former president of another Korean newspaper Hwangsŏng sinmun,Template:Sfn and former head writer of the Vladivostok-based Korean newspaper Haejo Sinmun. The newspaper initially received financial support from local provincial authorities.

The paper was founded just before the 1910 Japanese annexation of Korea.Template:Sfn Shortly after the annexation, the poet Template:Ill wrote a piece of poetry critical of the annexation entitled Chŏlmyŏngsi (; Template:Category handler), and committed suicide in anguish. The Gyeongnam Ilbo published the poem, resulting in its publication being suspended for ten days. Thereafter, because of Japanese censorship, it avoided discussing politics and mostly focused on social issues and educating the Korean people.Template:Sfn They founded a night school around November 1910, where Jang taught Classical Chinese.

The paper struggled with its finances. It initially published every day (implied by the term "Ilbo", meaning "daily"), but it struggled to do so. After its 20th issue, it began publishing every other day. Around the time of its start, it had a circulation of around 2,000. However, it struggled to increase its subscriber base and attract advertisers.Template:Sfn Jang resigned due to increasing Japanese pressure on the paper on August 30, 1913. Publication of the paper was halted in January 1915, with issue No. 887 being its final issue. The only other daily Korean-language newspaper in Korea around this time was the Maeil Sinbo, which was de facto operated by the colonial government.

Second run

The newspaper was restarted by a new staff on March 1, 1946, after the end of the colonial period. It was notably right-leaning and anti-communist. Heo Man-che (Template:Category handler) took the lead in restarting the paper. He was reportedly so passionate about it that he sold his food company to fund the paper's development.

The paper was heavily involved in the November 22, 1949 establishment of the annual Template:Ill, then known as the Yeongnam Art Festival. The festival still runs today. The newspaper funded the event until the 11th installment, and much of the work done for preparing the festival was performed by the newspaper's staff.

During the 1950–1953 Korean War, the newspaper struggled to keep running. Its headquarters and printing equipment was destroyed. The paper, which once staunchly supported first President of South Korea Syngman Rhee, began to criticize him as Rhee tightened control over the country. As a result, on July 26, 1952, armed assailants raided one of their offices and destroyed their equipment and materials. The newspaper was closed for seven weeks.

In 1961, after Park Chung Hee seized power in the May 16 coup, the military government demanded that Seol Chang-su (Template:Category handler), the president of the newspaper since 1952, resign. The paper began publishing more on local stories and culture around this time. On November 25, 1980, the newspaper was made to close after a government order was issued for there to be one newspaper per province. The Gyeongnam Ilbo was merged into the Kyongnam Shinmun.

Third run

The newspaper was restarted by a new staff in January 1989. It constructed a new office in Sangpyeong-dong. It initially used the name "Shin Gyeongnam Ilbo" (; lit. New Gyeongnam IlboTemplate:Category handler), because of legal restrictions on using the original name. It eventually acquired the rights to use the name, and began printing under it on January 1, 2000 with its No. 13691 issue. In 2003, a copy of the Template:Ill was found in an old house in Sugok-myeon, and was designated South Gyeongsang Province Tangible Cultural Heritage No. 482 on August 6, 2009.

See also

• List of newspapers in Korea – pre-1945 newspapers
• List of newspapers in South Korea
• History of newspapers in Korea

External links

• Gyeongnam Ilbo website, in Korean