The popularity of Hallyu or Korean wave as an effective soft power mechanism has been of great interest to recent scholarship. The Hallyu wave gained its current momentum mainly due to the export of K-Dramas, that is dramas whose country of origin is South Korea. In such scenario, understanding the reason of popularity of K-dramas among the overseas audience is crucial for the further spread of Hallyu.
One of the key aspects that can be of great insight for this would be to analyze the nature of the overseas audience. Thus, this research paper is aimed at understanding the dynamics of overseas K-drama viewership by answering the following 4 themes; -Specifics of the audience, such as age and gender. Reasons for the audience to prefer their dramas ‘Korean’. Especially to know if they prefer K-dramas over regional and other international tele-series.The emergence of a new ‘K-Drama viewing culture’ among its audience.
For instance, fan club activities. blogs, YouTube channels etc.Correlation of drama watching with increasing interest in Korean language and Korean studies among its audience. By understanding these themes, the research tries to map any visible trend in K-drama pop+ularity among the audience of certain country or region. Apart from furthering the focused development of Hallyu in these countries or region, I also hope to identify other potential regions using these parameters. For this, India has been taken up as a potential region by exploring the reasons for rising viewership of K-Dramas and its implication for further development in India.IntroductionAudience is an important component of media studies at the various media products are designed keeping them in mind.
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Thus, knowing their preferences, viewing habits and lifestyle are crucial aspects of audience research. Producers and broadcasters lay great importance on audience studies in order to reap greater programme success and economic profit. The harbinger of Hallyu or Korean wave has been the export of K-dramas. Korean dramas (k-dramas) can be understood as tele series, whose country of origin is South Korea with underlying Korean cultural value. With the increase in export of k-dramas from 8 to 336 million US dollars during the period 1997–2014 and the Korean wave is spreading beyond South Korea to Asia, the middle east, Europe, the Americas and Africa. Thus, understanding the ‘international audience’, in terms of nature of preferences, participation in extended drama viewing activities, holds significance. If hallyu need to be sustained and further developed in potential countries and regions, understanding the dynamics of viewership is important. The paper aims to examine various internal and external factors that determine the choices made by audiences, being determinants of various viewership trends. The paper further investigates the nature of viewership impact on the audiences’ attitude and behavior towards the cultural content consumed. The analysis is based on various case studies and surveys conducted by various scholars.
For a better understanding of the working of these factors, let’s have a look at the development of Hallyu, through the export of K-dramas.k-DRAMAS and the birth of HallyuExport of dramas had begun in the early 1990s itself. In 1997, China’s national station (CCTV, China Central Television) aired the Korean TV drama ‘What Is Love All About?’, which became a huge hit and was re-broadcast by several other Chinese networks. The family-centric love story won the hearts of many. Surprised by the impressive 15 % audience viewership( the second highest ever for an imported program in China), it sparked a general interest in Korean dramas.
Chinese media began to use the term hanliu (Korean Wave) to describe this cultural phenomenon.The enthusiasm was soon elevated by the broadcast of ‘Star in My Hear’t, that was the first broadcast on Phoenix TV on Hong Kong before heading to the mainland. If this was the beginning, the real wash out by the Hallyu wave came with the broadcast of ‘Winter Sonata’ by NHK’s satellite channel in 2003. The momentum was maintained and taken to a whole new level with the broadcast of ‘Jewel in the palace’ by MBC in 2003. While Winter Sonata had been exported to 20 countries, Jewel in the Palace was sold to 87 countries as of May 2011, gaining a strong fan base in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and the US.
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However, with the spread of Hallyu to rise in popularity of K-pop (Korean popular music), K-drama had begun to take a backseat from being the drivers of Hallyu with. But, with the rekindling of K-drama popularity with ‘My love from another star’(2013-14) followed by other commercial hits like The heirs(2013). K-dramas continue to channelize Hallyu with efficient use of new digital media. So what makes K-dramas click with the audience? Factors determining international viewership According to Mauskapf, the decision by the audience to select, evaluate and recommend products (in our case Korean dramas) is determined by the influence of socio-cultural dynamics, environmental and institutional factors etc. If this point is taken into account, then the following can be considered the factors influencing viewership; -1)cultural proximityEminent scholars like Kim Eumee and Ryoo Jiwon considers cultural proximity, common historical-cultural legacy and common rapid industrialization phase as prominent reasons for K-dramas to yield immense popularity in East Asian countries. So, what do we understand by cultural proximity?
According to Straubharr’s theory of cultural proximity, cultural proximity can be defined as ‘how transnational media content from an adjacent geographical region or a region similar in other aspects, has an influence on audience residing in that particular region’. Thus, the Confucian values such as family relationships, respect for parents, and love between siblings conveyed in most Korean dramas seem to be well appreciated by the Asian audience who share similar cultural values. Take the case of successful drama ‘What is love about?’ The drama deals with two families, a traditional conservative family, and a westernized open-minded family who come together for the marriage of their children.
The generation gap shown between the younger and older generation was well received by its Asian audience, especially in Mainland China. According to Shim Doabo (2008) compared to Japanese and American series, K-dramas were more chosen in developing countries like Mainland China and Vietnam because of how K-dramas retained traditional values while achieving the ‘technical sophistication ‘ compared to American or Japanese series. Thus, making them a prominent model to follow ‘economically and culturally’. Cia Jian refers to this phenomena as a cultural blend. Even though new genres have evolved, these values remain at the heart of Korean dramas. Kim Bok Rae further goes on to refer to Hallyu as the ‘missionary of East Asian cultural values’. Then what about the popularity of Korean dramas in non-Asian countries cultural similaritySimilar cultural and social settings, can be contributing factors to cultural affinity felt towards a particular county. This can be reflected in the consumption patterns of cultural products. According to Fan Hong, a professor at Tsinghua University’s School of Journalism and Communication, Korean dramas have the power to appeal to global audiences because of Jeong—a Korean term for human affection, which is usually a central theme in dramas. irrespective of the genre, friendship, family values and ‘pure’ love, which is timeless. Hong points out that these are universal feelings that appeal to a wide audience. This factor can provide an important connection with people in other parts of the world as well as Asia. She further says that “Korean dramas deal with everyday life and familiar subjects, and thus many Chinese people favor Korean dramas for their human codes’. Let’s take a look at the case of K-drama popularity in Iran. In Iran, Jewel in the Palace was aired by IRIB (Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting).
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It was reported to have been ranked as the most popular drama from March to April in 2007, with 57 % audience rating and 97 % satisfaction. According to a local magazine HamshahryJavan (Young Citizen), the popularity of Jewel in the Palace has been due to the ability of the audience to empathize with the lead character in her struggle to become the first female physician of the king during the Joseon era. Another aspect that was mentioned was the beautiful hanboks worn in these period dramas. Being a Muslim country, women have to keep themselves well covered beneath the burqa, thus they can appreciate the elegance of the body covering traditional attires of the period dramas. No wonder other period dramas like Jumong(2009) has had a great viewership in Iran.
Even in Eastern European countries, specifically Romania and the even USA had a strong viewership for Jewel in the palace, coming to admire the cultural heritage portrayed in this drama. This resonates with Sung Sang Yeon’s opinion that the ‘delicate and eloquent ‘ expression of Asian values and sentiments is what makes K-dramas popular3)emotional sensitivity script of K-dramas that remarkably portrays the nuances of human emotions, be it, love, loyalty, agony, anger or revenge has been often applauded by global audiences. The fact that Winter Sonata, Autumn in my Heart, Stairway to heaven has had high viewership rate even in the retelecasts, substantiate the worldwide appreciation for the emotional sensitivity of
It was reported to have been ranked as the most popular drama from March to April in 2007, with 57 % audience rating and 97 % satisfaction. According to a local magazine HamshahryJavan (Young Citizen), the popularity of Jewel in the Palace has been due to the ability of the audience to empathize with the lead character in her struggle to become the first female physician of the king during the Joseon era. Another aspect that was mentioned was the beautiful hanboks worn in these period dramas. Being a Muslim country, women have to keep themselves well covered beneath the burqa, thus they can appreciate the elegance of the body covering traditional attires of the period dramas. No wonder other period dramas like Jumong(2009) has had a great viewership in Iran.
Even in Eastern European countries, specifically Romania and the even USA had a strong viewership for Jewel in the palace, coming to admire the cultural heritage portrayed in this drama. This resonates with Sung Sang Yeon’s opinion that the ‘delicate and eloquent ‘ expression of Asian values and sentiments is what makes K-dramas popular3)emotional sensitivity script of K-dramas that remarkably portrays the nuances of human emotions, be it, love, loyalty, agony, anger or revenge has been often applauded by global audiences. The fact that Winter Sonata, Autumn in my Heart, Stairway to heaven has had high viewership rate even in the retelecasts, substantiate the worldwide appreciation for the emotional sensitivity of
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