Kim Ju-ha is a well-known anchorwoman in Korea. She is known as a highly influential female journalist and Korea's first solo anchorwoman. She didn't hesitate to make bold challenges for the future. When she was a sophomore, she retook the college entrance exam in order to enter Ewha Womans University, which was famous for producing many female announcers. Also, she changed her occupation from an announcer to a reporter. She once played various roles as a reporter, an anchor, a graduate student, and a mother although those tasks were formidable for a Korean woman due to gender discrimination at that time. She has become a role model because of her image as a strong and professional woman. -Ed
Kim Ju-ha gave a strong impression with her masculine voice and her beautiful and slender appearance. During the interview, she overwhelmed the CBT reporter with her gentle and fierce eyes and her way of speaking which was brief and direct, like an anchorwoman.
Anchor Kim Ju-ha became a reporter
The CBT reporter asked her the reason why she changed her occupation. She said, "I couldn't make a voice in news at all. I just read news scripts which writers and reporters wrote. I wanted to become a powerful anchor who could affect viewers. Meanwhile, many people think that announcers and anchors belong to different occupational categories, so they wonder about the differences between announcers and anchors. Kim Ju-ha explained, "Anchors are people who give news. When an announcer gives news, the announcer is called an anchor. When a reporter gives news, the reporter is also called an anchor. If an announcer conducts a radio broadcast with music, the announcer is called a DJ. If an announcer hosts a talk show, the announcer is called an MC.
Kim Ju-ha started to feel an interest in news
She was a member of a newspaper club, called 'Mirror', in high school. The club activity made her fall into the world of news. She chose proper themes for writing articles and covered the themes. Also, she wrote and reviewed articles, so she had less time to study than other students. It happened frequently that she went around to take pictures for newspapers though she had an examination the next day. She said, "Actually, I hoped to join a broadcast club, but I was late for the date of the entrance exam. A teacher of the club recommended the newspaper club to me because the teacher felt sorry for me to miss that chance. Looking back on it now, it was lucky that I didn't join the broadcast club. I'm happy for who I am now and it all happens thanks to entering the newspaper club."
College of Education & Graduate school
Kim Ju-ha retook the college entrance exam after hearing the news that most anchorwomen graduated from Ewha Womans University. After all, she entered Ewha Womans University College of Education. The CBT reporter asked why she joined the College of Education. She said, "I was going to become a teacher because my parents wanted me to be a teacher in the future if I failed to enter a broadcasting company. It was a kind of plan B." She added, "My mother persuaded me why I should be a teacher. The reason was that female teachers didn't need to make coffee for male teachers. I realized that sexism was deeply entrenched in our society at that time due to my mother's words." She finished graduate school last year. She said, "When I was in college, I didn't major in journalism. Later, I entered graduate school to study journalism."
Kim Ju-ha's initiative
Kim Ju-ha has made difficult decisions, such as quitting a college which she had attended for the first time, retaking the college entrance exam, and changing her occupation. She said, "Of course, lots of people around me tried to dissuade me from deciding to do such things. However, I didn't hesitate at all. I think people have many regrets about things that they didn't try. It is very unfortunate to say, "I should have done it at that time." Rather than having regrets, it is better to say, "I shouldn't have done it at that time." The CBT reporter asked her about her future plans. She said, "I wish to do a talk show with those who are in the field of news, such as newsmakers."
While taking pictures of her after the interview, she was absorbed in reading news scripts for her upcoming news program. Although the shutter of the camera was clicking continuously with a lot of noise, she didn't pay attention to the noise at all and continued to prepare for her news program. When the CBT reporter requested her to turn her head toward the camera, she looked at the camera with a smiling face. There wasn't much time to take pictures, but the CBT reporter was easily able to capture her professional figure during that time.