| Founded | June 2009 |
|---|---|
| Country | South Korea |
| Based in | Busan |
| Language | English and Korean |
| Website |
www.hapskorea.com
 |
Haps Magazine, also known as "HAPS", is an English online magazine located in Busan, South Korea that focuses on lifestyle, entertainment and expat life on the Korean peninsula. It was founded in 2009 and has become one of Korea's most popular English resources for news and information.
While the focus of the magazine is mostly on events and happenings around the Busan and southeastern areas of Korea, the magazine has claimed some international fame for some of its articles. Editor-in-Chief Bobby McGill's report on K-pop singer Psy 's past anti-American actions [1] saw numerous international media outlets including TIME, The Washington Post and the New York Post help break the story which made the " Gangnam Style" legend [2] apologize for his actions.
HAPS also received more international attention when a report about South Korean baseball player Kim Tae-kyun [3] made insensitive remarks towards African-American pitcher Shane Youman. The report helped contribute to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea demanding sensitivity training education [4] to prevent similar racial discrimination remarks among sports professionals in Korea.
History
HAPS was established in June 2009 in the Haeundae District in Busan. The print publication ceased to exist in November, 2016 and now focuses only on online content, including adding a Korean language section.
The site changed from busanhaps.com to its new domain at hapskorea.com [5] in May, 2017.
Awards
HAPS was voted the "Best City Magazine" in Korea at the 2014 K-blog awards [6] held by the Korean Observer.
References
- ^ "Gangnam Rile: Psy's Past Anti-American Performances Stir Controversy | TIME.com". Newsfeed.time.com. 2012-12-08. Retrieved 2015-10-07.
- ^ "'Gangnam Style' Rapper Psy Apologizes For Lyrics About Killing Americans - Speakeasy - WSJ". Blogs.wsj.com. 2012-12-07. Retrieved 2015-10-07.
- ^ Yoo Jee-ho (2013-06-11). "KBO slugger Kim Tae-kyun apologizes for insensitive remarks on African-American pitcher". GlobalPost. Retrieved 2015-10-07.
- ^ "South Korean Human Rights Monitor | Baseball Player Kim Tae Kyun Apologizes for his Discriminatory Remarks - South Korean Human Rights Monitor". Humanrightskorea.org. Retrieved 2015-10-07.
- ^ "Update: We've Changed Our Web Address". Haps Magazine. 2017-05-08. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
- ^ "Winners and Finalists of the 2014 K-Blog Awards - K-Blog Awards - Discover the Best Blogs of the Year". Koreaobserver.com. 2014-07-21. Retrieved 2015-10-07.