Community Broadcast
KACF Board Member Kyung Yoon

Kyung Yoon started her career in economics at the World Bank, but then turned to journalism, starting as an intern at a local television station. Working in broadcast for nearly a decade, she is currently living in New York and producing documentaries. In addition to being a member of KACF, Yoon has been involved in many organizations that help the local community. She is inspired by her two children and realizes the importance of building a strong Korean American community for them. She praises the work that has been done so far by KACF, and has an optimistic outlook for its future.

Tell us about yourself.

I was born in Korea and came to the United States when I was 6 years old. We were a diplomatic family and I grew up mainly in Washington D.C. and in Paris. I went to Wellesley College and majored in English and political science. I then received a master’s degree in international economics from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. My first job after school was at the World Bank, helping make loans to poor countries to help them finance development projects to improve the lives of people.

After a few years, I decided to make a career change to journalism and moved to New York in the late 1980s to pursue my dream of becoming a broadcast journalist. I started as an unpaid intern in the newsroom of WNYW, Channel 5 news, and worked my way up to being a news writer and producer, and finally a reporter, a job I held from 1989 to 1995. As the first Korean American broadcast reporter in New York, I covered a number of big news stories, including the African American boycott of Korean grocery stores, the Pan Am Flight 103 bombing, and the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center. In 1995, I had the opportunity to return to the World Bank, this time as executive producer of television for the World Bank Institute. I produced and hosted a documentary series called “Global Links” which examined economic and social development around the world and is broadcast in more than 60 countries.

I am married and have two sons who are 11 and 9. For the past couple years, I have been working as an independent producer of documentaries and videos, which allows me more time with my family. I am currently producing a documentary about the fight against HIV-Aids in Gambia.

What attracted you to KACF?

I was attracted to join KACF because I saw it as an opportunity to connect with other Korean Americans in a constructive way. For many years, I had volunteered with the New York Asian Women’s Center, an agency that helps victims of domestic violence in New York’s Asian communities, and have been the chair of the board for several years. Therefore, I was familiar with the work of social service agencies that provide direct services, and how much they rely on sources of funds from the community. I saw KACF as a vehicle to mobilize Korean Americans, many of whom are successful in mainstream America, and channel their funds and support to the Korean immigrant community that is very much in need.