The first time I met Jane here in Korea, it seemed like all the wind machines were suddenly turned on (you know the wind effect we see on TV every time a beautiful girl passes by ^^) and everyone couldn’t stop looking at her as she entered our classroom. If someone would ask me to describe Jane in few words I would say beauty, brains and glamour.
Jane Joo Lee was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa where her family settled in 1983. Her father, whose hometown is located in South Chungcheong Province, moved to the US to attend business school. Jane graduated from Urbandale High School in Des Moines, Iowa in 2005. She then attended Washington and Lee University and graduated with B.A. in Broadcast Journalism and also went to graduate school at Columbia University earning an M.S. also in Broadcast Journalism. I still put her in the Power Korean stories because I think Jane is also Korean at heart ^^
Career
Journalism
Her fascination of how the news was packaged and presented to the public when she was in high school made her decide to study journalism in college. When she was younger she was already very interested in politics and world affairs so watching the news was part of her routine. She said millions of events happen around the world every day but only a small percentage gets airtime on television. So she wanted to know how that decision was made because it's very important and a powerful one. She also wants to know why such decisions were made. So to get into the news business, she studied journalism in college and graduate school, interned at media companies and built relationships with incredible mentors.
Fashion
Journalism touches almost all areas in the world or even our own personal lives, so how did she land in the fashion industry? Jane has always been interested in culture and lifestyle. She said we can learn a lot about the political and historical landscape of a time period based on fashion trends and cultural movements. She started with Forbes right after finishing her graduate school because she was interested in how the economy was affecting retail, the arts and the luxury goods market. The chief product officer encouraged her to cover topics she was passionate about so she started writing a luxury jewelry blog and that's how everything started. Currently Jane is an associate editor of Forbes Lifestyle and has her own show entitled Lifestyle with Jane Lee. Here's a video of the 2nd Episode
Fashion
Journalism touches almost all areas in the world or even our own personal lives, so how did she land in the fashion industry? Jane has always been interested in culture and lifestyle. She said we can learn a lot about the political and historical landscape of a time period based on fashion trends and cultural movements. She started with Forbes right after finishing her graduate school because she was interested in how the economy was affecting retail, the arts and the luxury goods market. The chief product officer encouraged her to cover topics she was passionate about so she started writing a luxury jewelry blog and that's how everything started. Currently Jane is an associate editor of Forbes Lifestyle and has her own show entitled Lifestyle with Jane Lee. Here's a video of the 2nd Episode
On Korean Fashion
She thinks Koreans are amazingly fashionable, especially the young people. She also said that if you walk around Seoul everyone looks like they've stepped out of a fashion magazine—boys and girls. One of the reasons why Jane literally grabs everyone’s attention is her fashion. I remember most of our female classmates were excited to see what outfit she would wear every time she comes to our class. She’s like a walking fashion magazine. Anyway, hehe, she also loves that Korean women are comfortable with embracing very feminine looks—ruffles, lace, giant bows— which happens to be her favorite. At the same time she also said it’s fun to watch K-pop stars experimenting with edgier looks.
Korea on her show?
Jane is very impressed with Korea’s traditional dress hanbok. For her it’s one of the most beautiful traditional costumes in the world. The colors are loud and vibrant but the silhouette itself is very simple. She said if given a chance, she would want to feature a Korean designer like Lee Young Hee who incorporates the traditionalism of the hanbok into more modern styles.
Here's another video of Jane hosting
More about Jane
Jane was my classmate in my first ever Korean language class at Seoul National University. And probably also my most memorable Korean class. I could still remember her fondness for frozen yogurts, which were her usual breakfast during our class. Hahaha Despite her very feminine aura, she has a black belt in taekwondo so I was always careful if she’s beside me. haha And according to her Forbes profile she could run a marathon in high heels. Well, there’s no doubt about it. I remember, one tiume, we walked hunting for a samgyeopsal restaurant and she was wearing heels. We all got so tired but still Jane was still very poised. Hehe. Also, she likes horses, French art and Labradors.
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