Taehan Sinmun

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Taehan Sinmun
Cover of one of the editions
Founder(s)Lee Wan-yong, Yi In-jik [ko]
EditorSin Kwang-hŭi [ko]
Founded1907 (1907)
Political alignmentPro–Empire of Japan
LanguageKorean (mixed script)
Ceased publicationSeptember 1, 1910 (September 1, 1910)
CitySeoul
CountryKorean Empire

Taehan Sinmun (Korean대한신문; Hanja大韓新聞; RRDaehan Sinmun; lit. Great Korean Newspaper), or The Daihan Press, was a Korean-language newspaper published in the Korean Empire from 1907 to 1910.[1]

The paper was the successor to the previous 1906–1907 newspaper Mansebo.[1][2] Mansebo was a newspaper affiliated with the Cheondoism religious movement. It and Chendoism were critical of Japan's encroachments into Korean sovereignty; reportedly even the Korean Emperor Gojong was fond of the paper. However, it eventually shut down on June 29, 1907, due to financial difficulties.[2]

Prominent pro-Japanese Korean minister Lee Wan-yong wanted to establish a paper that supporting his leanings, and arranged for the former head writer of Mansebo, Yi In-jik [ko], to purchase the former paper and its facilities.[1] It was then converted into the pro-Japanese Taehan Sinmun.[1][2]

The paper was headquartered in what is today Hoehyeon-dong, Seoul. It had a budget of 20,000 won.[1] Its president was Yi In-jik, editor Sin Kwang-hŭi [ko], and head writer Ch'oe Yŏng-su (최영수; 崔永秀).[1] It promoted the agendas of Lee and his organization Iljinhoe. According to a Daehan Maeil Sinbo report, the newspaper received around 500 won per month from the government's Ministry of Finance, and even received a 1,000 won donation from Lee in November 1909 to support the acquisition of movable type printing presses.[1]

The paper was firmly pro-Japanese until its end. After the assassination of former Japanese Resident-General of Korea Itō Hirobumi by Korean independence activist An Jung-geun, the paper joined other pro-Japanese papers such as Kungmin Sinbo [ko] in a memorial ceremony to Itō.[1]

Shortly after Korea's formal annexation into the Empire of Japan in 1910, the newspaper had to change its name. It briefly changed to Hanyang Sinmun (한양신문; 漢陽新聞), but was discontinued and merged into other pro-Japanese Korean newspaper Maeil Sinbo on September 1, 1910.[1]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "대한신문 (大韓新聞)" [Taehan Sinmun]. Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean). Retrieved 2024-02-03.
  2. ^ a b c "만세보 (萬歲報)" [Mansebo]. Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean). Retrieved 2024-02-02.