Smartphone Squeeze

[Anchor Lead]

California computer and smartphone giant Apple is making waves with the release of its new iPhone 6. Samsung Electronics’ dominance in the market faces a serious threat, feeling the squeeze from Apple and up-and-coming Chinese manufacturers.

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The iPhone 6 and 6+ are Apple's first big-screen smartphones. The latest iPhone models were first rolled out in ten countries on September 19, including the U.S. and the U.K. Ten million of these phones were sold over the first weekend of its release. That's a record high for an Apple device. Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics, the traditional leader of the big-screen smartphone market, is in emergency mode. The Korean tech giant has therefore pushed up its newest release, the Galaxy Note 4, from next month to tomorrow. The phones will first be sold in Korea and China. This is the first time that Samsung's strategic smartphone is marketed first in China. Apparently, Samsung is looking to take the Chinese market before the iPhone 6 makes its entry.

[Soundbite] LEE DON-JOO (President, Samsung Electronics) : "Samsung offers a wide range of smartphones, from premium versions to low and mid-priced models. We will respond proactively to market changes."

But concerns are mounting over Samsung Electronics' shaky hold on the smartphone market. Chinese mobile phone makers are quickly catching up and Apple is launching strong countermeasures.

[Soundbite] PARK WON-JAE (Researcher, KDB Daewoo Securities) : "The smartphone business is not good. Competition in the high-end product market is intensifying and Chinese phone makers are doing well with mid-to-low-priced phones."

Some pessimists predict that Samsung Electronics' third quarter profit will fall to the 3 billion U.S. dollar range. It remains to be seen whether Samsung can beat back the early onslaught by Apple's newest phones.

2. UN Address

[Anchor Lead]

In New York, President Park Geun-hye delivered an address to the UN General Assembly where she urged North Korea to abandon its nuclear program and called for intrnational action to improve human rights there. She also took a swipe at Japan over wartime sex crimes.

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In a keynote speech at the 69th UN General Assembly, President Park Geun-hye urged North Korea to scrap its nuclear program.

[Soundbite] PARK GEUN-HYE (President) : "I stress the urgency of resolving the North Korean nuclear problem, which is the biggest threat to the peace of the Korean Peninsula and North East region."

She promised to support the North's economic development with the international community if Pyongyang voluntarily gives up on its nuclear ambition. The president said that North Korea's human rights violations are a great concern for the international community. She urged countries around the world to pay more attention to North Korean escapees.

[Soundbite] "UN agencies and concerned countries should provide necessary assistance to North Korean escapees so they can choose where to go and live with their own free will."

Without directly calling Tokyo out, Park pressured Japan to take sincere measures to resolve issues stemming from its wartime sexual slavery of women from other Asian countries.

[Soundbite] "Sexual crimes against women during war are clearly an inhumane violation of human rights, no matter when and where they occurred."

The president introduced a plan to create a peace park in the heavily armed Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and to use it as the starting point for the reunification of the two Koreas. She sought the UN's active support for the project. Park also mentioned that it is abnormal that South and North Korea take up two seats at the UN. She asked the international community to help the two Koreas achieve national unification.

3. Minister Meeting

[Anchor Lead]

Also in New York, the Korean and Japanese foreign ministers are scheduled to meet tomorrow. This may lead to improved bilateral relations and even a summit, but it’s early to tell whether the meeting can live up to its promise.

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A meeting between Korea's Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida is set to take place tomorrow in New York City. The U.N. General Assembly created the opportunity for the ministerial meeting. This will be fourth meeting between the two sides so far this year. This meeting is under scrutiny because it is the first bilateral meeting immediately following an exchange of personal letters between the leaders of the two countries. Last week, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe proposed a summit and President Park Geun-hye replied that it needed thorough preparations. With expectations mounting, a government source reports that the summit will be the key agenda at tomorrow's meeting. But it's too early to be optimistic because the two countries are still wide apart on thorny issues, such as Japan's recruitment of Korean sex slaves during World War II. Seoul insists that Tokyo make sincere efforts to appease the victims of Japan's sexual slavery. A diplomatic source says whether a summit can take place depends on the South Korean and Japanese leaders' political decisions on the matter. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Abe reportedly will not mention the comfort women issue during his speech at the U.N. General Assembly tomorrow. Instead, he will emphasize the Japanese government's interest in championing women's rights.

4. Sewol Simulation

[Anchor Lead]

Now to the Sewol ferry trial, where the prosecution presented a simulation showing a far different fate for the ship’s hundreds of passengers. Had the crew properly ordered an escape, they say, all 476 passengers could have made it off the boat in just ten minutes.

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The ill-fated Sewol ferry began to sink at 8:50 a.m. on April 16th. Experts conducted an evacuation simulation of a ship with a tilt of 30 degrees. It took five minutes and five seconds for all 476 passengers of the ship to escape and jump into the sea. At an angle of 52.2 degrees, the escape time clocks in at nine minutes and 28 seconds. After the arrival of the coast guard, the passengers would have needed six minutes and 17 seconds to escape, even though the ship listed by nearly 60 degrees. Experts say that as the ship tilted even more, it would have been easy for the passengers on the fourth floor to have escaped into the sea. The simulation was conducted based on the presumption that the 15 crew members of the ferry had ordered the passengers to leave the ship and worked to evacuate them. The time for escape was calculated while keeping in mind the walking pace of passengers.

[Soundbite] Prof. PARK HYEONG-JOO (Gachon University) : "Fifteen crew members are enough to evacuate people from a building or a ship. The maritime disaster would not have occurred if the crew members had been trained well."

However, the crew's defense counsel for the counter-claimed that other variables and conditions during the sinking were not sufficiently reflected on the simulation, such as tumbling cargo. They also insisted that the simulation should not be considered as evidence, since it failed to incorporate the distinctive features of the Sewol case. So now it falls upon the judges' to decide whether to allow the experiment as evidence or not.

5. Harassment Settlement

[Anchor Lead]

Former National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae has agreed to a settlement with a female golf caddie who accused him of sexually harassing her several times. Regardless of the settlement agreement, the police plan to continue their investigation into the charges of sexual abuse.

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Former National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae is under a police investigation for fondling a 23-year-old female caddie several times while playing golf on September 11. The police questioned the caddie who had filed charges against Park, as well as other workers at the golf course for their detailed accounts of the incident.

[Soundbite] Golf Curse Employee (Voice Modified) : "They asked me to tell them what I know about the incident."

However, Park did not appear at the police station on September 16, as he was summoned to do. Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that the caddie submitted an agreement to drop all charges against the former head of parliament.

[Soundbite] Police Official (Voice Modified) : "We got a settlement agreement. It's true that they agreed to settle."

Park said that there was nothing special to say, and that he had felt nothing was unusual during the golf match. The police, however, will continue to investigate the sexual harassment allegations against Park, regardless of the settlement. According to the laws on sex crimes, which were revised in June last year, an accused person can still be penalized even if a settlement has been reached with the accuser or when no charges have been filed. The police will reissue a summons if Park fails to appear at the police station by Friday.

6. NK Sports Celebration

[Anchor Lead]

North Korea is proudly reporting its victories at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon and Asian Football Confederation Under-16 Championship. As with other parts of the world, sports achievements are unifying the people of North Korea.

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Returning from successful sports competitions abroad, gold medal wearing North Korean football players were bombarded with flower bouquets and hugs. High-level North Korean government officials like Choe Ryong-hae and Kim Yang-gon were also there to greet the players. Outside the station, a large crowd gathered to congratulate the players on their feat.

[Soundbite] (Korean Central TV) : "We greet the players who raised our national flag on the international stage at a time when we are making great strides in building a strong country."

With a triumphant smile, the players wave their hands in a car parade. Forming an endless line, Pyongyang citizens enthusiastically welcome the football players. The players and citizens gave credit to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and the ruling Workers' Party for the victory.

[Soundbite] JANG SEONG-IL (Football Player) : "We will always win gold medals to make my mother country happy. Our dear leader! We thank you so much."

[Soundbite] (Pyongyang Citizen) : "They are the heroes who take the lead in realizing the party's plan to make North Korea a sports powerhouse."

North Korean news outlets have made headlines of the North Korean team's victories at the 2014 Asian Games in the South Korean port city of Incheon. Repeated reports are published about North Korean weightlifters' winning of gold medals and the football team's victory. A special Web site is dedicated to the sporting feats. The massive media coverage is in line with the North Korean leader's policy of emphasizing sports. They are also apparently aimed at promoting the regime's stability and social unity.

7. Senior Smugglers

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A growing number of Korean seniors, mostly retirees in their 60s and 70s, are being caught smuggling drugs for dealers. They do it to earn some extra cash but they can end up behind bars.

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This suitcase belongs to a man in his 60s who arrived from Shanghai, China back in April. The customs authorities found nine handbags in the suitcase hidden among his undergarments. Inside the handbags, the officials found four and a half kilograms of methamphetamine. Its value surpassed 12 million U.S. dollars. The man who smuggled the drugs into Korea was supposed to meet a Nigerian man, who had arrived earlier from Tokyo, and deliver the substance to him.

[Soundbite] Drug smuggler (Taped During Arrest (Voice Modified) : "Customs officials and prosecutors arrested and indicted both men. This year, four Koreans have been caught for smuggling drugs at the request of African drug dealers. Some of them were apprehended in Japan and France. All of them were men in their 60s or older."

[Soundbite] PYO DONG-SAM (Official, Incheon Int'l Airport Customs) : "In the past drug dealers mostly hired young people to smuggle narcotics, but as control has been tightened, they now try to lure older people starting this year."

Customs authorities assume that foreign drug dealers recruit Korean senior citizens to smuggle narcotics out of the country for them because Korean seniors arriving from Incheon International Airport are not as thoroughly checked at customs at their foreign destination as others would be.

[Soundbite] KIM GI-JAE (Director, Incheon Int'l Airport Customs) ; "Elderly people should take extra caution when someone contacts them via phone or email promising a large sum of money for transporting something for them."

Through August of this year, authorities seized more than 11 kilograms of illegal drugs that were smuggled into the country, more than three times the figure from the same period last year.

8. Eco-Park Overpass

[Anchor Lead]

The Seoul City government has decided to transform an old overpass at Seoul Station into an eco-park instead of demolishing it. Seoul City says it will take cues from High Line Park in New York, which was once a rail line but now serves as one of the city's major landmarks.

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The 2.5-kilometer-long High Line Park in New York hovers nine meters above the ground. The park was created on an old railway that was used to transport freight along America's East Coast. The rail line was preserved in its original form, but it harmonizes perfectly with the surrounding architecture, drawing four million tourists annually.

[Soundbite] ANNIE SHEPHERD (New York Resident) : "At first the New York City government wanted to demolish the railway and build a shopping mall on its site, but it scrapped its plan in the face of strong opposition from civic groups that wanted to create a park. New York citizens raised funds to personally choose the designer and collected opinions from all walks of life to build this eco-friendly park. The New York City government only provided the construction costs."

[Soundbite] PETER MULLAN (Vice President, "Friends of the High Line") : "The Seoul City government has decided to take cues from High Line Park to transform an old overpass at Seoul Station into an eco-park."

[Soundbite] PARK WON-SOON (Seoul Mayor) : "We will use this industrial heritage to build a park that includes a space for pedestrians and a green area to serve the needs of modern-day people."

However, some say the project is just for show because the construction costs surpass 36 million U.S. dollars. The Seoul City government plans to benchmark the example of High Line Park, which was created at the initiative of civic groups. Seoul City says it will create the eco-park based on the opinions of Seoul residents and will even hold an international contest to come up with the best ideas.

9. Making Vinegar

[Anchor Lead]

Vinegar is a versatile and indispensable item in the kitchen. Its acidity perks up the appetite and even prevents food from spoiling. Today we'll show you how to make vinegar at home and how to use it.

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This homemaker claims that she's seen some terrific results from drinking vinegar. She quenches her thirst with a healthy mixture of vinegar and water while working in the pear orchard. She says she drinks at least a bottle of it every day.

[Soundbite] "This is vinegar made with medicinal herbs."

All sorts of fruits, grains, and vegetables can be ingredients for vinegar. Let's find out how to make pear vinegar. Just add a little bit of sugar and the vinegar starter made from fermented makgeolli. This batch will keep for more than three years. A month later you will see a film form over the vinegar. What prompted her to make her own vinegar?

[Soundbite] KIM SA-RANG (Homemaker) : "I was in severe pain after my knee surgery. So I decided to lose weight. I lost 20kg after I started drinking vinegar."

So does vinegar really help with weight loss?

[Soundbite] Prof. LEE JONG-IM (Hanyang University) : "Vinegar contains a substance that prevents fat formation. It therefore slows down fat formation, blocks body fat accumulation, and helps flush out toxins. So a steady intake of vinegar could help with weight loss."

Then is vinegar really an effective washing agent? A computer mouse is known to have more than five times the number of bacteria on a toilet. This mouse registered 139 on a germ reader. A cotton pad soaked in vinegar was used to clean the mouse surface. Amazingly, the bacteria count fell to zero, proving vinegar's exceptional antibacterial property. Then how can we steadily consume vinegar in our daily diet? Here are some simple recipes that call for vinegar.

[Soundbite] KIM YEONG-BIN (Culinary Researcher) : "If too much vinegar is ingested on an empty stomach, it could hurt your stomach. It's better to consume it with cabbage known to aid digestion. It is a good combination to make pickle with cabbage and vinegar."

Boil vinegar and sugar and just pour the solution over bite-sized chunks of cabbage and other vegetables. It's even better when left to sit for a day. Let's make some banana vinegar known to ease swelling. Just mix one part banana with one part vinegar. Add some banana vinegar to ice and water, and you have a refreshing drink. When refrigerated for about a week, the vinegar absorbs the sweetness of the banana and become tastier. These vinegar-based dishes are great for easing fatigue as well. It only takes about 20 minutes to make them, so try these recipes at home. These dishes will help restore your energy and perk up your appetite with the vinegar's health-boosting properties.