Ifang Bremer

The role-play chatbot that has millions of teenagers hooked Young people in South Korea and Japan are becoming characters in their own stories with AI fiction apps but experts warn of addiction

Late at night in South Korea and Japan, millions of young people are talking to AI characters.

For @theobserveruk.bsky.social I reported on Zeta, a role-play chatbot that’s blurring the line between fiction and reality, and why experts are worried about it.

observer.co.uk/news/interna...

Miari Texas — Seoul’s last red-light district — faces forced demolition.

Sex workers resisting eviction say state aid requires them to register as trafficking victims.

Ifang Bremer examines the policy gap behind the standoff: cstu.io/b1593e

Sex workers barricade against demolition in Seoul’s last red-light district - Korea Pro Editor’s note: The names of the women working in Miari interviewed for this article have been changed to protect their privacy and safety. In a narrow alley in northern Seoul, plywood boards cover the...

The women working in Miari have few options. Meanwhile, the landlords and brothel owners have received cash payouts.

Read my full story at @koreapro.bsky.social

koreapro.org/2025/10/sex-...

But the local government wants them out. Quick. However, it hasn't offered the workers relocation options. Just vocational training, and for that, the workers have to declare themselves “victims of trafficking.” Many reject this condition as stigmatizing or untrue.

In the face of forced evictions to make space for new apartment blocks, they’re not asking for much: just a room of their own, and the chance to live safely with their families and pets.

Behind the barricades I met women cooking and living together. Their workplace has become both shelter and trap—offering warmth and companionship, but also confining them to a place with no future.

I spent time in Miari Texas, Seoul’s last red-light district, where sex workers have welded steel over their doors to resist eviction. Their fight isn’t only about survival, but about dignity and the right to a home.

Ifang Bremer Investigative reporter and photographer

🚀 I’ve launched my new website. Social media come and go, so I wanted a space to share and update my work consistently. It’s a selection of stories + images that mean the most to me—and a way to connect as I look ahead to new opportunities. Take a look and reach out anytime 👉 ifangbremer.com

How South Korea bankrolls US lawmaker trips to Seoul to promote its policy goals - Korea Pro Editor’s note: This article is the second in a two-part investigation into the Korea Foundation’s operations in the U.S. Part one covered the organization’s funding for U.S. think tanks. A congression...

🇰🇷🇺🇸 U.S. lawmakers take luxury trips to Seoul. On paper, it’s all funded by a U.S. nonprofit.

But I found that a South Korean gov’t-related foundation appears to be funding these trips, acting on orders from parliament.

My latest for @koreapro.bsky.social:

koreapro.org/2025/07/how-...

INVESTIGATION: The Korea Foundation funneled at least $9.4M to U.S. think tanks from 2019-2023 - making it one of the top global funders of American policy research in the world - while avoiding foreign agent registration requirements.

w/ @IfangBremer:

koreapro.org/2025/07/how...

‘I really believe it's the martial-law effect from these shows (…) I think it's a real case of art influencing people. I'm absolutely convinced. I don't think it can be explained any other way.’

I admire his confidence

He claims that in recent Korean zombie series, the ROK government usually imposes martial law, which is often worse than the zombie outbreak.

I just got an email from a University of Kansas professor who claims ‘South Korean zombie dramas helped stop the coup.’

*Martial law* of course. We have all made that typo a hundred times by now. I will continue the streak.

My shot of Yoon leaving the presidential residence to move back to his private apartment after being impeached. He wore a Make Korea Great Again hat. Today, he’s scheduled to attend his criminal trial over his marital law declaration.

Licensable via Alamy News www.alamy.com/president-yo...

Yoon Suk Yeol will soon move out of the presidential residence. His supporters have gathered. A few hundred people can come close to him to greet him. They’re asked to show ID and go through metal detectors. Press not allowed near. Some elderly pro-Yooners are saying to let young people in first.

Watching police fit their riot gear, and simply taking in the sheer size of the law enforcement operation, I can’t say I’m not nervous to be on the ground. Authorities are preparing for a worst-case scenario in terms of potential riots. I hope that no matter the outcome, there won’t be violence.

Scouted the terrain around the Constitutional Court one last time ahead of the ruling tomorrow. I’ll be covering the scenes unfolding outside the court as the judges decide over Yoon Suk Yeol’s fate.

A pro-Yoon sit in complied with police to pack up their protest right in front of the court

Police is creating a “vacuum” zone around the court. Inside, it’s quiet.

Lots of police buses now arriving at the court and traffic is being restricted around Anguk Station. Officers are inspecting their riot gear. So far it’s peaceful.

I’m in Andong to cover the South Korea forest fires. This man showed me the place where his centuries-old family home used to stand. The wildfires have turned it to ashes. The destruction is just immense.

Police stopped a tractor of pro-impeachment protesters. Progressive groups resisted. Pro-Yoon protesters then came to the site, leading to physical clashes. The pro-impeachment supporters are now blocking a key road in downtown Seoul leading to Gwanghwamun while police continues to guard the tractor

Breaking: Constitutional Court dismisses impeachment of Prime Minister Han. Outside court things are quiet.

But whatever doubts there may be about the future of the US-ROK alliance, the military leaders at Thursday’s drill insisted that their “ironclad” forces are “ready to fight tonight.”

Read on at @nknewsorg.bsky.social

www.nknews.org/2025/03/us-r...

Trump has also called North Korea a nuclear state and has expressed a willingness to engage DPRK leader Kim Jong Un again. Meanwhile, one of his nominees for a top defense position has called for Seoul to do more for its own defense.

📷/Ifang Bremer

Since Trump took office, US allies around the world have questioned whether Washington is still a reliable military partner, particularly after he temporarily suspended military support for Ukraine.

📷/Ifang Bremer

But on the same day, US media reported that the Pentagon is weighing halting regional expansion.

bsky.app/profile/myhl...

I asked US Army Lt. Col. Brent Kenney, who oversaw Thursday's drill, whether 🇰🇷's martial law crisis threatens the alliance.

'I can’t speak to the political situation. But regardless of politics, when asked, the soldiers stand side by side ready to support the alliance,' he said.

📷/Ifang Bremer

Thread: I attended the finale of this year's US-ROK springtime exercise. While held annually, this year’s Freedom Shield drill took place amid a leadership crisis in South Korea and questions about US President Donald Trump’s commitment to Seoul’s defense.

📷/Ifang Bremer