The JoongAng Ilbo (중앙일보), meaning “Central Daily” (中央日報), is one of South Korea’s three largest newspapers and a newspaper of record founded on September 22, 1965, by Samsung Group founder Lee Byung-chul. Originally owned by Samsung until 1999, the Seoul-based daily pioneered horizontal copy layout, topical sections, and specialist investigative reporting teams in Korean journalism. The paper publishes an English edition, Korea JoongAng Daily, and operates international editions across the Americas. As part of JoongAng Group, it owns broadcast station JTBC and cinema chain Megabox. Critics have classified the outlet as conservative, citing its editorial stance.