ICT Innovation and Korean Society

This book emerged out of a collaborative research project entitled “Global Applications of the Korean Development Models in the Information and Communication Industry.” From September 2015 to August 2020, scholars with expertise in industrial and regional sociology, media and cultural studies, and science and technology policy participated in the project. The goal was to explore cases related to the information and communications technology (ICT) industry in South Korea, analyze factors that have contributed to its successful and/or unsuccessful experiences, and carry out comparisons with those of other nations.

This book introduces five topics relevant to ICT innovation in Korean society. While chapters 1, 2, and 3 focus on South Korea’s ICT and media industries, chapters 4 and 5 extend our view by offering relevant topics in the context of the globalized media environment and culture.

In chapter 1, Joon-Shik Park takes a close look at the role of the ICT industry in relation to South Korea’s economic and social development. He suggests that innovation in this industry has enabled the country to climb up the ladder of success, and discusses in detail the necessary conditions for further advancement. As examples of innovative ecosystems, industrial areas in Korea such as Teheran Valley and the Pangyo ICT cluster as well as the companies Naver, Daum, and Kakao are introduced for their contribution to the new industrial ecosystem.

In chapter 2, Kyung-Hee Kim and Juhyun Hong provide an analysis of the diffusion process of content that enables users to exchange information and share experiences through interactions via social media. With the goal of identifying the different roles played by the Korean government, media users, industry professionals, and communication technologies, they interviewed 12 experts who spent most of their career in the ICT industry. In this chapter, they provide an explanation of the positive roles (i.e., media users, industry professionals, communication technologies) and negative roles (i.e., the government) played by each involved actor.

In chapter 3, Sun Ho Jeong examines the progress of digital news innovation in South Korea and provides an outlook. Although emerging technologies have brought about positive changes to Korean society, they have also led to disruptive experiences for the journalism industry in particular. Approaching the subject matter from the perspectives of the industry and academia, she provides a brief introduction of the history and characteristics of digital news in South Korea, followed by challenges and opportunities experienced by news organizations in the 2010s, and a discussion on journalism innovation for the 2020s. The chapter concludes with final remarks for future directions.

In chapter 4, Shin Dong Kim presents a discussion on the factors contributing to the worldwide success of Korean media and pop culture. Kim’s close inspection of the domestic factors (i.e., expansion of the television market, accumulation of program production technologies and skills, and a new generation of creators and consumers of media), and global factors (i.e., geopolitics of East Asian countries in relation to the development of cultural industries) that are identified as contributors to the Korean Wave furthers our understanding of the historical context of the phenomenon. The chapter also provides an opportunity to think about its implications for Korean people.

Chapter 5 examines communities of foreign brides in South Korea, where social media is utilized for empowerment of migrant minorities. For this study, Dominique Nduhura, Shin Dong Kim, and Nadine Mumporeze conducted interviews and focus group discussions with 40 foreign brides from Vietnam, the Philippines, and Cambodia who are currently residing in South Korea. Findings suggest that their experiences with social media are largely favorable (i.e., connectedness, cathartic role, mutual education, advocacy, business platform, body celebration, political participation, access to services, etc.), while some mishaps from such use persist.

For Korea to continue to develop and grow its economy in the post-industrial era, it requires more advanced economic and social development strategies. These must be founded in the virtuous correlation between the ICT industry leading the transition to an advanced nation and key elements of economic and social development. This book attempts to explore cases related to the ICT industry in South Korea, analyze factors that have contributed to its successful and unsuccessful experiences, and carry out comparisons with those of other nations.

Joon-Shik Park
Joon-Shik Park is a professor in the Department of Sociology at Hallym University, South Korea. He received his PhD from Yonsei University in Korea. His research focuses on employment and regional studies. Park began his academic career as a researcher on labor and employment issues in Korean society. Recently, he has been interested in comparing social economy and local regeneration in the context of global social and economic crises. His most recent books, articles, and project reports cover such issues as the impact of globalization on employment regimes and local societies; social dialogue and integration; and creative innovation for sustainable local development.

Kyung-Hee Kim
Kyung-Hee Kim is a professor in the Media School at Hallym University and the director of the Institute for Communication Arts and Technology. She received her PhD from Ewha Womans University. Her research focuses on the interplay of digital culture, news organization, and gender. She has written and edited severl books on social media, media literacy, and gender. She has also published in numerous journals including the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Media, Culture and Society, and Asian Journal of Communication.

Juhyun Hong
Juhyun Hong is an associate professor in the School of Communication at Kookmin University, South Korea. She received her PhD in Journalism from Ewha Womans University. Before teaching at Kookmin University, she was a research scholar at Peking University. Currently, her areas of research are social media communication, internet public opinion, and network analysis.

Sun Ho Jeong
Sun Ho Jeong is an assistant professor in the Department of Mass Communication at Konkuk University, South Korea. She received a PhD in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, a Master of International Affairs from Columbia University, and a BA in journalism from Ewha Womans University. Jeong’s primary research interests include journalism in the context of digitization and globalization, and the role of digital media in fostering social change. She has published in academic journals including Information, Communication and Society, International Communication Gazette, International Journal of Communication, Journalism, and Journalism Practice.

Shin Dong Kim
Shin Dong Kim is a professor in the Media School at Hallym University, South Korea, where he served as the founding director of the Institute for Communication Arts and Technology for more than a decade. He received his PhD in Mass Communications from Indiana University. Kim has written on and taught media policy, politics and media, and globalization of media and culture. His writings appear in Asian Popular Culture (Routledge), East Asian Cinema and Cultural Heritage (Palgrave Macmillan), Mobile Communication: Social and Political Effects (Passagen Verlag), Perpetual Contact (Cambridge University Press), Handbook of the Media in Asia (Sage), and Contemporary Television (Sage).

Dominique Nduhura
Dominique Nduhura holds a PhD in Communication from Hallym University and a Master’s Degree in Culture, Communication, and Media Studies from Kwa-Zulu Natal University, South Africa, and is trained extensively in digital journalism in Africa, Sweden, and the United States. He is a lecturer at the School of Journalism and Communication, University of Rwanda, where he served as dean for four years (2007–2010). His research interests include development communication, digital technologies and society, social media and citizen journalism, and ICT policies.

Nadine Mumporeze
Nadine Mumporeze (PhD) is a feminist scholar in the social sciences and humanities with 16 years of work experience. Her research interests include gender equality, sociology of mass communication and media, sociology of attitudes, sociology of work and employment, social stratification, social change, development theories and strategies, human resources management, and teaching. Her recent publications dwell on gender issues in the African and Asian contexts, such as the gender digital divide, social media use by migrant women, sextortion, and factors influencing attitudes toward women’s employment.

Preface

01 The Virtuous Cycle of the Korean ICT Industry and Economic and Social Systems (Joon-Shik Park)
The ICT Industry and Korea’s Economic and Social Development
Innovation in the ICT Industry and Climbing the Next Ladder of Success
Development and Advancement of the ICT Industry
Innovation Ecosystem and ICT Industry
Summary and Conclusion

02 Agents in the Diffusion of Social Content in Korea:Role of Users, Employees, and the Government (Kyung-Hee Kim and Juhyun Hong)
What is Social Content
Agents of Social Content Diffusion and Their Roles
Conclusion

03 News Innovation: Progress and Future Prospects (Sun Ho Jeong)
Digital News in South Korea: Brief History and Unique Characteristics
Lessons From the 2010s
For Journalism Innovation in the 2020s
Conclusion

04 The Korean Wave: Success Factors (Shin Dong Kim)
Contributing Factors
What is the Korean Wave to Koreans?
Another cultural imperialism or a successful counterculture to the American empire?
Future Prospects

05 South Korea’s ICT and Migrant Minorities’ Capabilities: Analysis of Foreign Brides’ Empowerment by Social Media (Dominique Nduhura, Shin Dong Kim and Nadine Mumporeze)
Introduction
Literature Review
Methods
Research Findings
Discussion of the Findings
Conclusion

Contributors

For Korea to continue to develop and grow its economy in the post-industrial era, it requires more advanced economic and social development strategies. These must be founded in the virtuous correlation between the ICT industry leading the transition to an advanced nation and key elements of economic and social development. To this end, it is very important to advance specific economic and social areas related to the ICT industry that can underlie a post-industrial economic and social paradigm shift. With this in mind, we examine how Korea is attempting to advance sustainably after its industrialization through ICT innovation, despite the various constraints and challenges it faces both domestically and internationally.
_ “01 The Virtuous Cycle of the Korean ICT Industry and Economic and Social Systems” 중에서

Social content has been spreading through the interaction of employees, users, and communication technologies, while the government has been an obstacle, failing to play its role in the diffusion of social content. According to the employees, they have made considerable contributions in social content diffusion, including rapid recognition of change, development of profit models, and creation of platforms for user participation. Users have also played a leading role in the diffusion of social content; they have majorly contributed in the quantitative expansion of the content and also facilitated the qualitative improvement of the content through various responses.
_ “02 Agents in the Diffusion of Social Content in Korea” 중에서