Dark Side of Seoul Podcast digs up city's secrets

Korea has always been conscious of its own image, even as K-content exports and inbound tourism numbers continue to break records. But that global spotlight comes with an unspoken condition: show the shiny face, and sweep the unpolished parts under the rug. From outside, the country is often viewed through rose-tinted glasses, a tidy utopia of cute cafes and picture-perfect K-drama lifestyles. The Dark Side of Seoul Podcast offers something that doesn't fit on a postcard: an unvarnished look at Korean history and culture, aimed at the genuinely curious rather than the credulous, equally comfortable with the country's dark folklore as with its murders, crimes and political purges, distant and not so distant. The show is hosted by Joe McPherson and Shawn Morrissey, who have both lived in Korea for more than two decades and together lead The Dark Side of Seoul Ghost Walk. To be clear, this isn't a foreigner-complaint fest where the hosts look down on Korean culture. It respects the culture and its listeners enough to give the fuller picture, with a dark sense of humor that labels certain