Dana Ter

Bio

Dana is a journalist and former expat kid who grew up in 10 countries on 4 continents. She writes about art and culture with a focus on Taiwan, Korea and NYC. Her stories have been published in the Taipei Times, Contently and Untapped Cities, among others. She also has a Dual MA/MSc in International and World History from Columbia University and the London School of Economics. Email: danayter@gmail.com Twitter: @danayter.
7 Reasons Why 'Resurrection' Has Nothing on 'The Returned'
By Dana Ter
While ABC's new series Resurrection investigates the supernatural, The Returned — the French cult favorite that shares a premise with the former — simply flirts with it. The American series, which premiered on Sunday night, is not a direct remake of…
6 Young Asian-American Filmmakers Who Are Shattering America's Asian Film Bias
By Dana Ter
From yellowface on How I Met Your Mother to #NotYourAsianSidekick, the portrayal of Asian people in the American media has been igniting the Asian-American blogosphere recently. Lucy Liu and Maggie Q are always mentioned as success stories, but the…
These Half-Naked Women Are Standing On Street Corners, But Not For The Reason You'd Expect
By Dana Ter
If you're cruising along a desolate highway in Taiwan in the dead of the night, chances are you'll run into scantily-clad women sitting in glass cubicles decorated with neon signs. They'll totter out in their micro-skirts and super high heels,…
The Twitter Feed Every Book Lover Needs to See
By Dana Ter
Nigerian-American novelist Teju Cole proved that social media is not just a means of self-promotion on Wednesday, when he converted his Twitter feed into a template for a short story. After having remaining dormant for nearly three months on the…
The Korean Clothing Trend Breaking Down Dating Barriers
By Dana Ter
"This is the blind-date restaurant where couples dine on their first date," my Korean-American friend said, pointing at a two-story French restaurant. He was giving me a crash course in Korean "couple culture" that involved a tour of popular hangout…
Taipei: The World's Newest Indie Music Capital
By Dana Ter
Taipei is a big city with the soul of a small town. I seemed to have forgotten this when I was there last summer, though. When my taxi pulled up in front of a coffee-shop-turned-jazz-bar called Witch House, in a back alley near National Taiwan…
The New Mitt Romney Documentary Will Change Everything You Thought About the 2012 Election
By Dana Ter
It was a month before the presidential elections last year that the "Mitt Romney Style" video, a parody of Psy's "Gangnam Style" was circulating around college campuses. Its chorus — "Affluence, extravagance, that's Mitt!" — was like a rallying cry…
The Viral Photo From Ukraine That Proves Music Really Can Change the World
By Dana Ter
A day before protesters in Kiev knocked down a statue of Vladimir Lenin, an unnamed Ukrainian man took a seat on a makeshift stool in front of a blue piano in the middle of a rainy street. Time stopped for a moment. All eyes and ears were fixed on…
Why Young Asian-Americans Are Fleeing Hollywood
By Dana Ter
We were speaking in English and picking strawberries at a night market in Taipei last winter when the storekeeper curiously asked my friend where I was from (even though I had lived there for seven years). "She's visiting from New York," my friend…
Cultural Appropriation Isn't an American Problem
By Dana Ter
Evoking Asian culture seems to be in vogue these days. Just last week, media pundits were quick to comment on why Katy Perry's geisha-themed performance at the American Music Awards was "racist." The Wall Street Journal's Jeff Yang went so far as to…