Fifth MERS Case

[Anchor Lead]

A fifth case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome or MERS has been confirmed just six days after the deadly virus was diagnosed in Korea for the first time. Three other suspected patients have fortunately tested negative.

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Just a day after the 4th confirmed patient of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome or MERS, another case has been confirmed. The latest patient is a doctor who treated the first patient who contracted the virus in the Middle East. Since treating the first MERS patient on May 17, the doctor developed fever and diarrhea from two days ago.

[Soundbite] Kim Yeong-taek (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention) : "The doctor conducted normal treatment procedures such as using the stethoscope. He treated the patient within the range of contracting droplet infections."

A nurse also suspected to carry the virus, however, has tested negative. Two other suspected patients - a doctor who treated the first patient and a man who shared the same hospital room with the third patient - are also found to be safe from the virus. But health authorities remain cautious, saying they will continue to monitor symptoms of the three cleared patients and continue their quarantine.

2. PM Nomination

[Anchor Lead]

A motion to appoint Hwang Kyo-ahn as Korea's next premier has been submitted to the National Assembly. The opposition camp is gearing up to verify his moral standards at the hearing, while the ruling party plans to focus on his qualifications.

[Pkg]

President Park Geun-hye submitted a motion to appoint nominee Hwang Kyo-ahn as the nation's next prime minister. The president noted in the request for a hearing that Hwang is deemed to possess the ability and character to encourage communication with the public and social integration, as well as to lead reforms. Meanwhile, Hwang has reported his personal assets, including an apartment in the affluent Seocho District in Seoul. The total value of his reported assets exceeds two million U.S. dollars, which is about 270,000 dollars less than the total reported for his previous hearing as Minister of Justice. Hwang was exempted from military service due to chronic hives. The opposition party plans to grill the nominee on whether he carried out his donation pledges and how he was exempted from military duty. The ruling party, on the other hand, will focus on verifying his qualifications.

[Soundbite] Rep. Lee Jong-kul (Floor Leader, NPAD) : "We will thoroughly verify the nominee's qualifications from the public's point of view."

[Soundbite] Rep. Kwon Eun-hee (Spokeswoman, Saenuri Party) : "It's important to verify whether he can carry out economic rejuvenation and other key government tasks."

Hwang came to work at the Ministry of Justice building on Tuesday morning, and went to prepare for the hearing in the afternoon.

3. Island Bunker

[Anchor Lead]

Inter-Korean tensions are rising as North Korea is believed to have completed building a bunker-style military facility on Gal Island, an uninhabited islet near South Korea's Yeongpyeong Island on the Yellow Sea.

[Pkg]

Gal Island, which sits just north of South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island, is located even closer to the two Koreas' maritime border than North Korea's Jangjae Island that is home to a front line unit. Starting in March, North Korea is believed to have broke ground on Gal Island, which is just 4.5 kilometers away from Yeonpyeong Island. And in recent days, at least five bunker-style military camps are believed to have finished construction. The South Korean military speculates that multiple rocket launchers, or MRLs, will be installed at the camps. North Korea's 122-millimeter MRLs have a range of about 20 kilometers. That covers a South Korean Marine Corps unit stationed on Yeonpyeong Island as well as South Korean warships conducting surveillance and patrol operations in waters south of Yeongpyeong. If the North launches provocations using long range artillery, the South plans to strike the origin of the attack using Spike missiles deployed on its five northwestern border islands. Military tensions are escalating around the western border islands due to North Korea's provocative actions this year, including conducting exercises targeting South Korean islands and nighttime shooting drills near the Northern Limit Line as well as erecting the multiple rocket launcher base on Gal Island.

4. Product Safety

[Anchor Lead]

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety tested all products supposedly containing Cynanchum wilfordii, better known as baeksuo in Korean, and found only 5% of the tested products contained the real medicinal herb.

[Pkg]

Only ten out of 207 products purportedly containing the medicinal herb baeksuo were found to have real baeksuo and not the similar-looking Cynanchum auriculatum Royal. That accounts for only 5% of the tested products. But authorities were unable to confirm whether real baeksuo was used in 76% of the tested products, because its DNA had been destroyed during production. However, some products were found to contain the cheaper Cynanchum auriculatum Royal.

[Soundbite] Jang Gi-yoon (Director, MFDS) : "We will take into account the mixing of Cynanchum auriculatum Royal and inadequate management of ingredient suppliers, and let producers voluntarily recall all products."

The baeksuo look-alike was also found in three drugs, including Neurex pills and Mangyeongdan, known to contain baeksuo. The cheaper herb was found in 19 baeksuo-containing agricultural products on the market. The adulterated products have been discarded. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety plans to allow the sales of only the products that have been confirmed not to contain Cynanchum auriculatum Royal.

5. Subway Graffiti

[Anchor Lead]

Police say the Korean subway system’s security was compromised by two foreigners, who found their way onto the tracks through a ventilation hole and covered a number of train cars with graffiti. A search for the perpetrators came up empty handed as the two have already left the country.

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Two foreigners are spotted on the subway tracks which are a strictly restricted area. Half an hour later, they quickly return through the way they first came, after covering trains with graffiti. The suspects are a Greek and German national. They arrived in Korea on May 7, purchased spray bottles in Seoul, and committed the crimes in Incheon on May 8 and in Daegu on the tenth. After surveying the stations a day before, they tore off a ventilation fan where no surveillance camera was installed, climbed down an iron ladder and broke into underground tunnels some ten meters below. Graffiti found in Seoul in March is also suspected to be their work, but they have already left the country.

[Soundbite] Supt. Ahn Jae-kyung (Daegu Suseong Police Station) : "We issued arrest warrants to place suspects on the wanted list and asked for Interpol's cooperation in the investigation."

This marks a serious compromise to the security of the subway system used by hundreds of thousands of people every day.

6. Hallyu Contents Market

[Anchor Lead]

A hallyu contents export market is underway in Seoul. Buyers from China, Eastern Europe, and even Africa are taking part in the event to show their interest in Korean cultural content.

[Pkg]

This family in Kenya is watching a Korean animated show. But most of the viewers in Kenya watch Korean shows on the internet, not on TV. The wave of Korean pop culture is sweeping the continent, but hallyu has failed to materialize as exports of contents. The cultural contents market worldwide amounts to roughly 1.8 trillion U.S. dollars, but export of Korean cultural contents stands at 5.4 billion dollars, accounting for only 0.3% of the total market. Meanwhile, a large-scale export market is underway in Seoul to promote the export of Korean cultural contents. 130 businesses from 24 countries took part in the event to negotiate deals with their Korean counterparts. A purchasing manager from the Nation Media Group, Kenya's largest media mogul, came personally to Korea to bring hallyu contents to Kenyan terrestrial channels.

[Soundbite] Elizabeth Kyengo (Kenya's Nation Media Group) : "Alibaba China also plans to purchase hallyu contents as well as character merchandise. Korean pop culture contents may provide a new breakthrough needed to re-energize the nation's struggling exports."

7. Poet's Dedication

[Anchor Lead]

The oldest poet in Korea, at 98-years-old, is soon to publish his 40th collection of poems. Here's more about this passionate poet who has dedicated his life to his writing.

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Welcome the new year With a clean soul You will hate no one, trust others like heaven And love without greed. This poet has turned 98 this year, but deep inside his heart he's still in the spring of his life. His eyesight is not as good as it was when he was young and his hands keep shaking, but he never stopped writing poems even for one day.

[Soundbite] Hwang Geum-chan (Poet) : "I believe that poems must not be written for fun or for money. Poetry is my eternal partner."

Poet Hwang Geum-chan has earned high recognition over the past six decades for his innocent and lyrical poems. So far he has published 39 collections of more than 8,000 poems. Fellow poets have erected a memorial stone with his poems to express their admiration for his talent. A literary award named after him was established to celebrate his poetical spirit and literary achievements. Hwang says he never once accepted awards that can be bought with money. He continues to write poems each day, letter by letter, in order to publish his 40th collection of poems this coming fall.

8. Entertainment News

[Anchor Lead]

LP music has almost disappeared with the advent of digital music, but recently it's gradually making a comeback with the retro boom. Here's more from the world of culture.

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This LP music cafe plays nostalgic songs that were popular many years ago. To people who enjoyed LP music when they were young, even the sound of the needle is like part of the music.

[Soundbite] Lee Sang-bok (Owner, Music Café) : "Unlike digital music, LP music is comforting even when you listen to it all day long."

To the generation more used to MP3 players, LP music offers a newfound charm.

[Soundbite] Jeong Ji-won (Visitor) : "High-quality music is available on CDs and YouTube, but the uneven noise of LP music makes it more charming."

LP music contains unedited recorded performances of multiple instruments played together in one place in a single session. That's why many middle-aged and even idol singers have been releasing LP albums as of late.

[Soundbite] Jeon In-kwon (Singer) : "Analog music is more natural. It's more three-dimensional and sounds better."

In a digital era, the charm and profound depth of LP music is setting a new trend in the world of pop music.

9. Refreshing Tips

[Anchor Lead]

Sometimes it seems the best medicine for fatigue and drowsiness caused by warmer temperatures is fruits and vegetables rich in vitamins and minerals. Today we'll show you some herbs with exotic flavors and fragrances to shake you out of your early summer lull.

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Hongcheon in Gangwon Province is known for its pristine, unpolluted natural environment. There we meet a group of farmers busy harvesting unfamiliar leaf-like vegetables.

[Soundbite] Kim Yeon-seon (Farmer) : "This herb is called "nungaeseungma." It tastes like three things - fatsia shoots, ginseng, and meat."

Also sometimes called ginseng that sprouted out of the snow, nungaeseungma or Aruncus dioicus kamtschaticus is a herbaceous perrenial plant in the rose family. Its young shoots are known to be delicious and higher in nutrition.

[Soundbite] Choi Jin-ryeong (Oriental Medicine Doctor) : "Nungaeseungma" can re-energize people and relieve early cold symptoms like sore throat, cough and phlegm."

Wash the nungaeseungma and then blanch in boiling water and immediately rinse in cold water to make it more meaty in texture. The blanched nungaeseung is cut and mixed thoroughly with a spicy seasoning. The herb also makes stew or soup more flavorful. In particular, it can substitute for bracken in spicy beef soup to upgrade the texture and flavors of the other ingredients. Nungaeseungma is also known to have a meaty texture, so you can enjoy it wrapped in leafy vegetables like you would with grilled beef or pork.

[Soundbite] Kim Yeon-seon (Consumer) : "It's meaty and I feel like I've eaten some health food."

This is a farm in Okcheon, North Chungcheong Province. A farmer is picking something off of the branches, not out of the ground.

[Soundbite] Lee Myeong-ja (Lacquer Tree Shoot Harvester) : "These are the first shoots of a lacquer tree."

Lacquer shoots can be harvested for only three days after the first buds sprout. Some people seek out these baby shoots around this time of the year, because they contain less urushiol, a substance which can cause allergic reactions, and more elements that boost immunity and suppress inflammation. Combine the wild perilla seed oil and bean paste with the blanched lacquer shoots to enjoy the tender and uniquely sweet vegetable. The lacquer shoots are especially effective when eaten together with chicken to boost energy levels and relieve fatigue. Charge your body with the energy of nature's best medicine.