Jürgen Hinzpeter

Jürgen Hinzpeter (6 July 1937 – 25 January 2016) was a German journalist best known for his coverage of South Korean topics. Hinzpeter was a reporter for the ARD and the only journalist to film the massacres during the Gwangju Uprising in South Korea in 1980. He captured the events on camera, documenting the violence against civilians and the military crackdown in the city. His footage was sent to West Germany and broadcast internationally, exposing the South Korean regime under Chun Doo-hwan to global scrutiny.

His coverage helped draw pressure from the international community, contributing to the eventual push for democratization in South Korea, which culminated in 1987. Hinzpeter also reported on opposition politician Kim Dae-jung, who later became president of South Korea after winning the 1997 election. In Gwangju, a memorial honouring Hinzpeter has been erected by the May 18 Memorial Foundation.