Korea 24 - 2022.07.19

Korea24 &ndash; 2022.07.19. (Tuesday)<br /> <br /> News Briefing: South Korea reported 73,582 new COVID-19 cases, nearly doubling from a week ago, with the BA.5 omicron subvariant on the verge of becoming the dominant strain in the country. (Jenny NA)<br /> <br /> In-Depth News Analysis: Starting this month, the Seoul city government began granting pregnant women transportation cost subsidies worth 700,000won (approx. US$540). However, this voucher program has come under fire, as it is limited to Korean nationals only, with no foreign nationals eligible. To learn more about this program and the controversy surrounding it, we speak to Esther Chung, a reporter for the Korea JoongAng Daily. <br /> <br /> Korea Trending with Jenny Suh:<br /> 1. High jumper Woo Sang-hyeok has become the first South Korean to win a silver medal at the World Athletics Championships. (높이뛰기 우상혁, 한국 육상 첫 세계선수권 &#039;은메달&#039;)<br /> 2. Traveler complaints have been growing due to canceled flights, as airlines struggle to meet demand after eased COVID-19 measures. (항공편 취소 속출에 여행객 피해 급증) <br /> 3. South Korea finished second at this year&rsquo;s International Physics Olympiad. (한국, 국제물리올림피아드 종합 2위)<br /> <br /> Touch Base In Seoul: In May this year, &lsquo;Richiman and Groove Nice&rsquo;, a band from South Korea, made it to the top five of the International Blues Challenge, an annual blues music competition in Memphis, Tennessee. The lead singer and guitarist, Richiman, joins us in the studio to tell us about that experience, how he got into blues music and the scene in Korea.<br /> <br /> Morning Edition Preview with Richard Larkin:<br /> - In tomorrow&rsquo;s Korea Herald, Kim Hae-yeon reports that the 2022 World Heritage Festival on Jeju Island is looking for applicants for their expedition teams.<br /> - Tomorrow&rsquo;s Korea Times features an interview by Lee Hae-rin with Son Woong-jung, the father of star footballer Son Heung-min, about the future of South Korea football.