Sang , Yeon
(2015)
Face Of The Nation: Articulating A New Image
Of Korea And Taiwan Through Regionally
Popular Celebrities.
International Journal of Asia Pacific Studies (IJAPS), 11 (1).
pp. 35-52.
ISSN ISSN: 1823-6243
Abstract
The rapid spread of popular culture within East Asia has motivated the
government of each nation to promote its national image to attract tourists. This
dynamic cultural exchange has not only brought these nations closer to each
other, but has heightened competition in projecting new national identities
through visual images projected through promotional tourism videos. This paper
elaborates how Taiwan and South Korea are using regionally popular celebrities
to foster local identity configurations that simultaneously reach out beyond
national borders and revise longstanding ideas about the nature of their
populations. Through interviews with the Korean Tourism Organization (KTO) of
South Korea and the Tourism Bureau in the Ministry of Transportation and
Communications of the Republic of China and analysis of cultural promotional
videos such as Trip to the Heartwarming Country of Korea (released in 2010 in
South Korea), Haru (released in 2011 in South Korea) and Taiwan Touch Your
Heart (released in 2009 in Taiwan), I demonstrate that, through visual imagery in
fashioning cultural ideals to be projected in tourist markets, Korea and Taiwan
are trying to reconstruct and rebrand their national images to promote their
interests. Both governments make marketing via the Korean wave a crucial part
of their appeal for cultural tourism. By featuring regionally popular local
celebrities, they are following strategies to promote their international standing
through the dissemination of newly rearticulated national images. South Korea
emphasises the quality and appeal of its popular culture, while Taiwan
emphasises the openness and enthusiasm of Taiwanese towards popular foreign
products and people.
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