記者
기자
記 (to record) + 者 (person)
📖 Origin of the Hanja
The hanja "記" depicts capturing words (言) in one's own (己) hand — recording. 記者 = "the recording person". Korea's first newspaper 「Tongnip Sinmun」 (1896) introduced the term. Seo Jae-pil said "a reporter is society's mirror". In Eastern tradition, recording was power — historians (史官) noted even kings' deeds.
"記者 is society's mirror — what is recorded does not vanish."
