EPT[edit] now 2/3 translated
[edit2] DONE, sorry if some parts don't make sense, it was so long
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/EwRcX.jpg)
The ladies of the e-sports business. From left: Samsung Khan's manager Kim Ga-Eul, OGN PD Lim Na-Hye, STX Seo Ji-Soo, OGN's caster Jung So-Lim, MBC Game Special Forces coach Lim Soo-Ra.
How much social power do women hold in Korea? Women make up half of the people that pass judicial, administration and foreign affairs examinations and a female has recently graduated from a military academy with top honors, therefore it is not a huge overstatement to say that Korea is moved by the "woman power". More women are striving in new social positions and they currently stand shoulder-to-shoulder with other men.
Even though more and more women are taking up these social roles, e-sport is not the case. 99% of progamers are males and Kim Ga-Eul is the only female manager among the professional team managers. Including commentators and casters, female broadcasting presence is nearly non-existent. There are a few female PD's that produce game-related programs, but in reality, barely any of them represent the league. Unlike the recent trend of more women taking up expanded social positions, it feels like the door for women in e-sports is has become smaller.
For Daily E-Sport's 2 year anniversary, we invited very special ladies. We had a talk with the women that proudly work in a field that is 99% male filled. OGN broadcasting team's only female Jung So-Lim, Dungeon And Fighter league PD Lim Na-Hye, Samsung Khan's manager Kim Ga-Eul, MBC Game Special Forces team's coach Lim Soo-Ra and STX progamer Seo Ji-Soo gathered in one place. DES' lone female reporter Lee So-Ra hosted the interview.
Now let's hear the stories of these women that are active in the e-sports scene.
Lee So-Ra: We are wrapping up what has been an eventful year for the e-sports scene. We wanted to hear the episodes of joys and sorrows from the women of e-sports as a part of DES's 2 year anniversary special. Thank you for making the time to come out here.
Jung So-Lim: Thank you for calling me. I'm sorry that we had to meet at noon instead of at night due to my schedule, I have to record "High-Five League" tonight.
Lee So-Ra: Don't say such things, it looks good that you are so busy. Have you ever thought 'I wish I was born a man'?
Jung So-Lim: I wish that I would be born a man in my next life every time I wake up in the morning. Be it an e-sports career or not, Korea's social system makes me want to live as a man.
Lee So-Ra: Can you give us an example? If you gave an example in a daily situation or in an e-sports related event, I think it would touch us all.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/x75WW.jpg)
OGN's caster Jung So-Lim.
Jung So-Lim: I frequently think that things would be different if I was a male when I broadcast. My voice can't hold it whenever I try to increase my volume during moments of climax. Especially during important events such as the finals, I need to scream my lungs out, but I still can't express that tone males have that makes it exciting. People rated me "not an exciting caster" when I first started as my voice couldn't explode.
Men's drinking culture is taking a huge role in our society. For an example, women tend to have small talks in coffee shops, but men tend to become friends while having drinks. First of all, men don't like to include women in those situations. Even when they do, they tell the girls to return home past midnight. Eventually, women become excluded as they become a hassle. Compared to men that expand their relationships with alcohol, women are left to feel limited and they can't do anything about it. The Korean society doesn't even think that it's right for women to be in those drinking events too.
Lim Na-Hye: Actually, I'm one that usually leads the drinking occasions. We sometimes have drinks while preparing for Dungeon And Fighter leagues, but I plan them according to my schedule. We tend to finish late at night or not too long after midnight (laughs). I'm worried how I need to adjust this schedule for when I get married. As far as I know, I'm the only e-sports related PD, so I guess I stepped into the men's world earlier than normal. Still, it worries me that there isn't a single female PD that's married in OGN. Now that I'm thinking about the future, this isn't a job that's easy to hold for a woman.
Lee So-Ra: There isn't a married female reporter in the e-sports scene either. I'm getting up there in age too. Let's hear Kim Ga-Eul's story as she is married.
Kim Ga-Eul: Honestly, I've never had to worry about being a female. I didn't like to lose to other men as a progamer, and when I became a manager, I wanted to be a manager that had potential, rather than just a female manager. Back when I had to worry about marriage, I just treated my job as a part of my life, and I never had to worry about giving birth or my child. However, I'm seriously reconsidering things right now. I don't think I can keep up after I have a child, so naturally, I recently became interested in child related welfare policies.
Jung So-Lim: My child is currently attending elementary school. If Kim Ga-Eul is at an age to focus on birth related policies, I'm at a level where I need to focus on education policies. Women compete with men at school and again compete later for the same jobs, but women reach a point where they can't entirely focus on their careers after marriage. Like Coach Kim said, we need to take care of giving births and raising the children, and we also need to be aware of education and welfare policies. Women have to make radical changes after marriage.
Lee So-Ra: I started thinking about marriage after my 30th birthday. Then I started to imagine myself going to live events, talking to players while being in late periods of pregnancy with a full stomach. I couldn't really do it. It may be because no one has done it before.
Lim Soo-Ra: As a coach, I don't get to have weekends. Special Forces proleague games are on Friday and Saturday, and I'm dead tired after the games on Saturdays. Resting on Sundays have never felt like actual rests. When I was a player myself, I just had to take care of my own business, but I need to overlook everyone's practice until 5AM as a coach. My responsibilities are huge as the only coach of the team. I'm too young to think about marriage, but I don't even have the time to think about it.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/ePLim.jpg)
Samsung Khan's manager Kim Ga-Eul.
Kim Ga-Eul: For me, I sleep in the team house with other players the night before the game. Once it gets late, the players set up the bed for me. It's been like that before I was married too. Since the age gap is very big, the players don't seem to be interested that I'm of the opposite gender.
Lim Soo-Ra: I'm like that as well. I don't think they see me as a woman. I've never thought of them as men either, they've been just Special Forces players to me.
Seo Ji-Soo: Being a progamer, it was disappointing for me to lack stamina and emotion control. Since I lack physical stamina, I can't practice for long hours. Then the skill gap becomes bigger, and I start to lose games. I have the desire to win and compete, but I can't control my emotions since I lose all the time. After losing so many games, I become depressed and wonder if this is really worth doing anymore. I have to deal with these emotions myself, so it becomes very difficult at times.
Lee So-Ra: It's very similar for reporters too, especially in emotion related situations. Male reporters can easily shake off criticism, but I can't do that. Even though I may treat it like it's alright, I find myself locking myself in the washroom and crying. I try hard to not get behind to male reporters, but it really is disappointing that I can't control some emotions like they can.
Lim Na-Hye: I think our will to compete is unusually big, because we specially hold these spots as women. We tend to become really stubborn too.
Jung So-Lim: The will to compete makes things more difficult. Since I've been working in this field for 10 years, my goal has somewhat changed. I've decided to compete against myself instead of other men. It feels like a burden to fight against other men, but it's more comfortable thinking that I'm simply fighting against myself. Not that I'm giving up or anything, it just feels like I'm improving whenever I give it my all.
Original article in Korean (http://esports.dailygame.co.kr/news/view.daily?idx=37159&page=2)
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The first topic was 'were there any instances where you wanted to be a male'. The panel fully agreed that the society had flaws which made women feel that they were a hassle to be dealt with. That leads us to the next topic, shouldn't there be cases where being a woman has been an advantage? Let's continue on with their stories.
Lee So-Ra: Were there any cases where you felt it was good that you were born a female, or where you had an advantage of being a female?
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OGN Dungeon And Fighter league PD Lim Na-Hye.
Lim Na-Hye: I have an unique episode to share. About 3 years ago, I had an interview in which I lied about my age. Being a PD, there are many occasions where I need to meet with other people, and I was so young back then. Most men start working in their late 20's after their military service is done, but compared to them, I was able to work just after graduation. Also, having a high pitched voice helps in this career. We have to send different signs during programs and other people tell me that 'it's easy to listen to what you're saying even if you speak quietly'. Knowing that they can clearly hear what I have to say is a big advantage.
Kim Ga-Eul: I don't think I've had any moments where I felt being a female was advantageous. Since I was interested in machinery, I majored in engineering. I took care of repairing all the broken electronics and installing new machines at home. After I did that a couple of times, my mom depended on me from that point on. I think growing up like that played a huge role in my life.
Jung So-Lim: I recently started to care about my appearances. Since I'm not particularly pretty, I'm becoming more and more aware of these things as I become more experienced. Some people say that I've been able to keep this job in the world lead by younger generations due to taking good care of myself, but I think it's because I'm a woman. I think I would have given up by now if this was a field with many other female casters. Maybe I'm still broadcasting because there are no other female casters to take over my job. Now that I'm talking about it, it's kind of sad (laughs).
Seo Ji-Soo: I think it's because you've been able to capture the fans of e-sports. It can't be because there is no competition. Don't ever think like that.
Jung So-Lim: Thank you for looking at it that way.
Kim Ga-Eul: I used to think like her once. I wondered if I was called for the job since I was one of the few female progamers. I didn't want to be picked because I was a female with no skill. That's why I tried so hard to be just as good as other male managers. I focused on growing new talent and motivating the players the moment I got the job to prove that I was capable of being a manager.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/Bgf7n.jpg)
STX Soul's Seo Ji-Soo.
Seo Ji-Soo: I don't know too much about when Kim Ga-Eul used to be a progamer, but when I was active, it was when all the booming female leagues started to disappear. When I first entered a tournament, I was still in high school, and fans loved the fact that there was a young female progamer on screen.
Lim Na-Hye: I have something to say about looks as well. My superiors talk about me as "OGN's top 3 hottest PD", but really, there are barely any female PD's in the company. It feels good that they consider me beautiful, but it's sad that they have to talk about me like that when there are so few others for them to compare me to.
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MBC Game Hero Plus' coach Lim Soo-Ra.
Lim Soo-Ra: This is what I felt when I was a Special Forces progamer. Since it's a game and all, there are tons of males that have good talents. The fact that I was a female progamer spread around quickly and my popularity exploded afterwards. People thought highly of me as they considered me a 'female progamer that was just as good as other males'. People think it's normal that men are good at games and that women are slightly behind in skill. It's definitely an advantage.
Jung So-Lim: FPS is a male's gaming category. People will naturally support you if a female progamer does well and congratulate you twice as much as they would had a male progamer got the same result. Of course people will recognize you in a male only category.
Seo Ji-Soo: I think I became popular, even though I've never made an appearance in proleague, because I'm a woman. I only did well in female leagues, but that was good enough to get me popular.
All 6 females gathered here have been recognized in their respective fields, because they are females, but it's clearly apparent that they had their know-how's to survive in this men's world. Let's hear about their 'methods of survival'.
Jung So-Lim: When I first started broadcasting e-sports, there were no role models. I just followed what other male casters did. Since I had to scream a lot, people criticized me for increasing my volume even though I had a high toned voice. They said that it hurt their ears and that I was screaming like a duck, so I decided to use a sexism strategy. I normally took care of lower leagues such as the challenge league and the dual tournament, and the climatic scenes are much rarer there. So I decided to deliver comfortably with a softer voice. I forced other caster to talk more and I only acted as the bridge between them. I lowered the level to fit the viewers that are viewing for the first time, and divided the workload between the other casters as the bridge. I was able to make a new style as I ditched the hardcore style to make things easier.
Kim Ga-Eul: When I started as the manager, people focused on the fact that I was a female manager. I hated the fact that people were only interested because I was a female progamer. Different places asked for interviews and all they would ask was 'how are you overcoming sexism as a woman'. I told them each time to focus on the fact that I was a manager with progaming backgroud, and not just a woman. Even in 2004, there were no managers that were ex-progamers. I wanted to be judged as 'a manager with progaming experience that happened to be a woman' instead of simply a woman.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/hHCJg.jpg)
OGN caster Jung So-Lim.
Jung So-Lim: I've had to do a couple interviews myself and all the topics are fixed to 'a female caster that broadcasts e-sports'. It's not like they're monthly women magazines, but they kept asking if it was hard working while taking care of the house and the kids, how do you cope with your husband, or is your kid doing well and things like that. I personally wanted them to ask e-sports related questions, so it was disappointing that they had to focus on such issues.
Kim Ga-Eul: That's right. Whenever the team does well, people comment that 'the female manager must have been running the team pretty tight', but I'm more carefree than most men. As an example, I don't know anyone's birthday on our team. We take care of things, not because we're women, but because the society forces us to. We have to get rid of these stereotypes in order to expand female roles in the community.
Lee So-Ra: I don't think that can't be helped for the media that especially like the words 'first' and 'only'. Being a woman is an issue that the media likes, but people have fixed opinions about how we live, because they focus on the fact that we're women instead of members of the society.
Kim Ga-Eul: Sometimes, I'm sorry to the players that I'm a female manager. Managers can talk to the players about their problems over a drink, but I can't drink at all. So I look for ways to talk about their problems while being sober. Players thought that it was strange for me to do so, but they changed to discuss things with me at bright sunlight. It's also weird to mesh with the players during workshops. I'm the only female on the team, so I can't exactly play with them in the pool in my swimsuits.
Original article in Korean (http://esports.dailygame.co.kr/news/view.daily?idx=37160&page=1)
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The e-sports business has been hit with a few issues recently. The players that were involved in the match-fixing incident have been dealt with in the court and Blizzard is currently in court asking for proper property rights. Besides these, there are tons of other problems such as growth of Korean e-sports categories and expansion of smaller games into the e-sports scene. What do the women in e-sports think about these topics?
Kim Ga-Eul: In e-sports, to be blunt, StarCraft has been at the stake each year. There was always some kind of a problem every season. This means that e-sports is still very much in progress, rather than being a finished product. We need to make some changes as it's still getting a lot bigger. There are many people involved in the scene, but their opinions are ignored in most cases, so we need to improve communication within the system. Even though people might have different opinions, I'm sure everyone ultimately wants things to go well. I myself try to represent the team and its players, but we need to gather the minds of all of e-sports. At this point, I don't think we're making the best possible decisions, but rather just reasonable decisions. It has greatly improved from when I used to be a progamer, but we need a better system in order to achieve perfection.
Lee So-Ra: I'm sure there's a lot of politics behind all this. It's disappointing that everyone looks at things from their own perspectives instead of taking the objective perspective and being the third person. I think it's because the men are making all the decisions.
Jung So-Lim: There are things that men can't talk about comfortably. I get this when I broadcast, but you know how there is a caster between the 2 commentators, sometimes they would have arguments on who is right and who is wrong. They both say that they are correct, but this makes everything go downhill. They stop talking to each other, and I can't really talk about the game when I don't know much about it, and they don't make up afterwards. Men are sometimes that narrow-minded. It's not exactly pride, and I end up leading them to resolve the issue over a drink. I think it's a similar situation in the property infringement lawsuit. I don't know every detail, but I think they're just fighting for their pride, because the opposite side crossed their line of property. In my opinion, they just have a unique way of communicating.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/b4uXu.jpg)
OGN PD Lim Na-Hye.
Lim Na-Hye: StarCraft is usually the main category when talking about e-sports, so what I do is a little distanced away. I think having a broad range of categories is very important, but I don't think it can be done just because someone decides to do it one day. Only the games that viewers call entertaining can be considered true e-sports, and StarCraft is already at that level. There are a couple of other games behind, and I'm proud to say that I'm responsible for one of those leagues. I'm not too sure about the recent changes, but the fact that there are no other female PD's already makes the league stereotypical. People say that every sport is a man's possession, as most sports PD's are males, including the ones in e-sports. I don't think we should approach this issue lightly. I guess you could say that it is a very serious topic. When I'm in charge of the Dungeon And Fighter leagues, I ask for strange ceremonies. The players hate it, but it gets the viewers interest. Some people tell me 'you must be asking these just because you're a woman, but don't you think these orders are questionable', but I believe that we need to carve a unique path if we want to succeed.
Jung So-Lim: Sports are supposed to have entertainment values, so I think e-sports too should strive to be entertaining for the viewers. If there was a difference, sports players have far more skill than the normal person, but e-sports progamers don't have that big of a skill gap between the general public. As an example, if you compared the skills of Park Ji-Sung from Manchester United and some player from beer league, the skill gap is huge. In comparison, I don't think there is that big of a skill gap between Jaedong and the winner of a local PC bang tournament. That's where things are separated. You only watch games, because you enjoy the games yourself. The Korean e-sports categories such as Dungeon And Fighter and Special Forces are unique in the way that they started as users had fun playing the games. The leagues started to become broadcasted and more contents were created. It's normal that e-sports tournaments originate from users simply enjoying the game, but I'm saying that it will become a big deal if viewers turn into users after watching these e-sports games.
Lim Soo-Ra: Special Forces used to be criticized no matter what we did, so we're hesitant to try anything new. We tried to wear huge sunglasses and have weird costumes, but all the reaction we got was 'just go shoot well'. Even if we had an epic game, people were 'sympathetic' that not a lot of people cared. However, I'm still trying very hard even though I took a lot of criticism in my career. I hope everyone can see that we're trying for the best.
Jung So-Lim: StarCraft has always been hot, but no one ever cared about Special Forces. Whenever we broadcast or make new programs, people are like 'why are you trying to make a failed category into a league, you should broadcast another StarCraft match in that time'. There are countless comments saying 'I don't understand why there is a proleague'. I heard that Special Forces players take a lot of criticism, but it's true that their lives were extended by the existence of proleague. It was once a very popular game, and it would've been better had there been a proleague back then, but it's still not too late. It has become a better game already through the league and if we slowly expand the fanbase, we can improve that much more when Special Forces 2 is released.
Lim Na-Hye: People have very strong opinions about Dungeon And Fighter. We're broadcasting the 9th season this Friday at 6PM, which used to be when StarCraft was on. We're taking a lot of criticism for broadcasting Dungeon And Fighter instead of broadcasting Starleague qualifications. The editorial team set the schedule, but the players took all the insults. OGN's live comments went out of control saying 'they're playing Dungeon And Fighter instead of Starleague qualifications'. Players are hurt by those comments and reactions. They're trying their best to show good games, playing the game that they love, but StarCraft fans are obnoxious of that fact. I'm trying to protect these players by replying myself on the live broadcast window. This motivated hidden Dungeon And Fighters fans to show support and that's made things a little better.
Lee So-Ra: Comments related to e-sports have unbelievable power. I feel this every time I browse the community, but it's almost embarrassing to read those comments. There are some rare decent replies, but I'm scared to go on these sites because of the hateful posts.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/53B1S.jpg)
OGN caster Jung So-Lim.
Jung So-Lim: I was recently insulted by a hateful comment. I try to fix things whenever someone says that I'm doing something wrong, but one person replied saying 'go drive a pan-lid in the kitchen if you're going to broadcast like that'. It basically means that I should just stick to housekeeping. This was an insult used back in the 80's as more and more women got their driver's licenses and the expression was used to say 'go back in the house and stop driving'. I was surprised that these kinds of people still existed.
Seo Ji-Soo: I used to frequently read the comments on the community sites and had a lot of fun doing so, but I don't do that anymore. I don't even read the comments to the articles. I believe I'm the only female progamer left, and there are lots of bad rumors and misconceptions. I was so hurt by this that I still have a hard time asking male progamers to practice with me outside of my team.
Jung So-Lim: When Kim Jung-Min commentator entered the army, the PD told me never to go on the community sites. Netizens tend to be one-dimensional, so he warned me beforehand. This made me even more curious and soon after, I found out that people indeed talk very rudely online. Some of them were very sexual that I can't even mention them, but I think you get used to these as time passes. I'm not really hurt by the comments anymore.
Lee So-Ra: Have Seo Ji-Soo's and Kim Ga-Eul's career overlapped at all? I don't think I remember a game between them.
Kim Ga-Eul: Seo Ji-Soo debuted right when I retired as a progamer. I don't think our careers overlap.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/RzfqF.jpg)
STX Soul's Seo Ji-Soo.
Seo Ji-Soo: I was friendly with Kim Young-Mi and Lee Jong-Mi, but Kim Ga-Eul was a tough character for me. She was at the top when I first began playing and her force would often compete with that of other male progamers. Oh, my sister once played a game against her in the program called "Beat A Gosu".
Kim Ga-Eul: I started progaming unexpectedly, but I tend to be really shy due to my personality. I think I was only close with Kim In-Kyoung and Kim Young-Mi in my early days. It was difficult meeting other people, even though I became close with the 2 people through living together, I still couldn't get to know the others as well.
Lee So-Ra: I think Lim Soo-Ra once said she wants to be someone like Kim Ga-Eul in an interview.
Lim Soo-Ra: When I took coaching lessons, Ha Tae-Ki would often mention that she is a great leader and a person worthy of being a role model. I didn't really know about her as I was a Special Forces player, but I followed her carefully since then.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/bk0FF.jpg)
Kim Ga-Eul (left) wasn't hesitant to give Lim Soo-Ra (right) some advices.
Kim Ga-Eul: Thank you for looking at my like that. I think my personality fits very well with my job. Being stubborn and strong helps me out when I'm at work. To say it positively, I can focus well, but to say it in a bad way, I'm very rough (laughs).
Seo Ji-Soo: I think I'm like that too. I don't like to gossip with other women and think 'why would they do such things' whenever I see other women talking in coffee shops. I think we share that carefree personality.
Kim Ga-Eul: I think we're similar in ways which we shouldn't be. That means that we're not very social... Since I'm the experienced one here, I will give Lim Soo-Ra and Seo Ji-Soo an advice. Keep your own style. Don't just follow it just because someone said this and this guy's style is effective, but accept them with an open mind and adjust it according to your own style. For Lim Soo-Ra, you have to keep exchanging information with the players to make a style that fits both sides. When I started as the manager, I wanted to quit after 1-2 years. It was really difficult back then, but now it feels like it was just a learning period. I hope Seo Ji-Soo can keep walking on the path she is on right now. It can't be easy competing with other men, but people are already approving your will to challenge.
Lim Soo-Ra: People around me say that I'm charismatic, but my personality suggests otherwise. I don't even know how to control the players... I'm still learning.
Kim Ga-Eul: It's important to have a positive mindset. Accept everything and direct it onto the players, but keep it at one direction. Just treat it as an experiment and don't set the goal so high so early.
Jung So-Lim: You must be worried too now that you have to have a child soon. I hope you can come up with a solution by discussing with other married people. I also think that Seo Ji-Soo is doing a fine job right now. It's hard to be alone and it's a position that cannot avoid criticism from the current Korean internet culture. I hope you realize what an important position you hold in this industry. Please take care of yourself knowing how proud you should be of what you do.
Jung So-Lim: I'm always thankful to the fans of e-sports. There are lots of fans on and offline, and e-sports wouldn't exist without them. However, I would like to ask for one thing. Please keep in mind that every comment you make can seriously hurt the players and other related people. Let's be supportive of e-sports through responsible comments.
Seo Ji-Soo: I heard a lot of good things from people I don't get to see often. I want to try harder and show them good results from me in the future.
Lim Soo-Ra: I thought it would be uncomfortable being here, but I was wrong. Let's share more stories in the 3 year anniversary special.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/EYypS.jpg)
Samsung Khan's coach Kim Ga-Eul.
Kim Ga-Eul: I had a good time as well. I heard to a lot of good stories in the past 2 hours from people that I don't normally talk to. Lim Soo-Ra especially reminded me of myself in the past.
Lim Na-Hye: Everyone here has been revealed on TV, and I'm a person that reveals you guys. I don't know what will happen once these pictures are posted (laughs). It was good that I got to know about each other's situations in the different fields. I hope another woman can become a PD for the 3 year anniversary special so I don't have to come here.
Jung So-Lim: I think I'm the only person that knows everyone here. I broadcast both StarCraft and Special Forces, and ran into Lim Na-Hye a few times in OGN. It makes me feel good, but it's sad that I'm the oldest one here. I still want more females involved in the scene.
Lee So-Ra: I hope there are more women working for e-sports by the time the 3 year anniversary comes around. I hope we can have a real gossip session with more than 10 people. Thank you for being here today.
Original article in Korean (http://esports.dailygame.co.kr/news/view.daily?idx=37167&page=1)
