Synopsis: Every first Friday of the month, The Straits Times' foreign editor Bhagyashree Garekar chats with ST’s correspondents in the Asia-Pacific, the US and Europe. They talk about life as it goes on, amid the screaming headlines and bubbling crises.

In this episode, she chats with ST's South Korea correspondent Chang May Choon. 

Drinks after work are part of daily Korean life but their growing presence in drama serials and variety shows, especially the less regulated streaming platforms, has been raising concern.

Highlights (click/tap above):

01:45 Why does soju make star appearances in Korean dramas?

04:13 Alcohol-related crimes are rising

7:05 Do drinking scenes romanticise alcohol, prompt the viewer to drink?

08:37 Tolerance is dropping for use of drunkenness as defence in crime

12:53 South Korea’s new President Yoon has plans to curb drink-related crime

Read Chang May Choon's article here: https://str.sg/waED

Produced by: Bhagyashree Garekar ([email protected]), Ernest Luis, Teo Tong Kai & Penelope Lee

Edited by: Hadyu Rahim

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