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Integrity, humanity hailed as prominent publishers, politicians celebrate Newspaper Day

Published: 07 Apr. 2026, 21:38

Park Chang-hee, president of the Korean Association of Newspapers, left, Woo Won-shik, speaker of the National Assembly, center, and Lee Tae-gyu, president of the Korea News Editors' Association, cut a celebratory cake at an event marking the 70th Newspaper Day at the Korea Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul, on April 7. [NEWS1]

A ceremony marking the 70th Newspaper Day, jointly hosted by the Korean Association of Newspapers, the Korea News Editors' Association and the Journalists Association of Korea, was held on Tuesday at the Korea Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul.

“Artificial intelligence produces answers instantly based on vast amounts of data, but biased claims spread as if they were facts through algorithms on various platforms,” said Park Chang-hee, president of the Korean Association of Newspapers, in his opening remarks. “Machines cannot question themselves or empathize with the values of the times and the suffering of others.”

“Asking good questions and creating new perspectives through public discourse are both the responsibility and the right of newspapers,” Park, also CEO of the JoongAng Ilbo and publisher of the Korea JoongAng Daily, continued. “It is an endless journey for high-quality journalism based on facts and balanced perspectives.”

Park Chang-hee, president of the Korean Association of Newspapers, delivers opening remarks at an event marking the 70th Newspaper Day at the Korea Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul, on April 7. [NEWS1]

“As this year’s Newspaper Day slogan — ‘Beyond Algorithms, Reading the Real World’ — suggests, we must dig into truths that computation cannot reach and continue down the path of newspapers to foster unity and public discourse.”

The Korean Association of Newspapers Awards were presented to 54 recipients, including Han Yong-soo, head of the backend development team in the IT Service Division under the mobile services unit at the JoongAng Ilbo.

Participants toast at the 70th Newspaper Day event held at Korea Press Center in Jung District, central Seoul, on April 7. [YONHAP]

More than 300 figures from across sectors attended a reception following the ceremony, including National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik; Rep. Jung Chung-rae, leader of the Democratic Party; Rep. Jang Dong-hyeok, leader of the People Power Party; Oh Se-hoon, mayor of Seoul; and Lee Kyu-youn, senior presidential secretary for public communications at the Blue House.

Newspaper Day in Korea is observed annually on April 7 to commemorate the publication of the first modern private newspaper, the Dongnip Sinmun — or The Independent — on April 7, 1896.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY HA NAM-HYUN [[email protected]]