Increasing Consumption of Korean Dramas during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Cases of Indonesian Viewers
Keywords:
Korean dramas, COVID-19, consumption, lived experiences, motivation
Abstract
This qualitative study focuses on Indonesian transnational fans’ consumption of Korean dramas (hereafter K-dramas) during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study highlights the fans’ lived experiences, thoughts, and interpretation of Korean culture in watching K-dramas as well as how they construct identities through their consumption and articulation in their everyday lives. This study used qualitative questionnaire as the instrument to collect the data for the study. Using thematic analysis, the study reveals that there were four emerging motivating factors to watch K-Dramas among Indonesian viewers: fresh substitutive choice, easy access, interesting stories and visuals, and cultural factors. Additionally, the study also showed four outcomes of their consumptive behavior: language acquisition and motivation to learn Korean, cultural understanding and new perceptions of Korea, pursuit of education, and pure entertainment and stress-reliever. Hence, this study contributes to the body of literature on K-Dramas consumption, especially in the era of COVID-19 pandemic.
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References
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Lotz, A. D. (2021). Unpopularity and cultural power in the age of Netflix: New questions for cultural studies’ approaches to television texts. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 24(4), 887–900. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549421994578
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Panda, S., & Pandey, S. C. (2017). Binge watching and college students: motivations and outcomes. Young Consumers, 18(4), 425–438. https://doi.org/10.1108/YC-07-2017-00707
Park, J. H., Lee, Y. S., & Seo, H. (2019). The rise and fall of Korean drama export to China: The history of state regulation of Korean dramas in China. International Communication Gazette, 81(2), 139–157. https://doi.org/10.1177/1748048518802915
Prasopsorn, T., & Panmanee, N. (2019). The Korean Wave in Thailand : The Influence of South Korea ’ s Entertainment Culture on Thai Students ’ TV and Film Consumption Behavior. April, 983–990.
Sanson, K., & Steirer, G. (2019). Hulu, streaming, and the contemporary television ecosystem. Media, Culture and Society, 41(8), 1210–1227. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443718823144
Seo, Y., Cruz, A. G. B., & Fifita, I. M. E. (2020). Cultural globalization and young Korean women’s acculturative labor: K-beauty as hegemonic hybridity. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 23(4), 600–618. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367877920907604
Shim, D. (2006). Hybridity and the rise of Korean popular culture in Asia. Media, Culture and Society, 28(1), 25–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443706059278
Tambunan, S. M. G. (2013). Intra-Asia cultural traffic: transnational flow of East Asian television dramas in Indonesia [Lingnan University]. https://commons.ln.edu.hk/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=cs_etd
Tupani, D. (2020). Nielsen: Covid-19 Tingkatkan Jumlah Penonton Televisi (Nielsen: Covid-19 Increases the Number of Television Viewers). Media Indonesia. https://mediaindonesia.com/humaniora/298392/nielsen-covid-19-tingkatkan-jumlah-penonton-televisi
Vlassis, A. (2021). Global online platforms, COVID-19, and culture: The global pandemic, an accelerator towards which direction? Media, Culture and Society, 43(5), 957–969. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443721994537
Ainslie, M. J. (2016). Korean overseas investment and soft power: Hallyu in Laos. Korea Journal, 56(3), 5–32.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
Castro, D., Rigby, J. M., Cabral, D., & Nisi, V. (2021). The binge-watcher’s journey: Investigating motivations, contexts, and affective states surrounding Netflix viewing. Convergence, 27(1), 3–20. https://doi.org/10.1177/1354856519890856
Chalaby, J. K. (2016). Television and Globalization: The TV Content Global Value Chain. Journal of Communication, 66(1), 35–59. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcom.12203
Chandra, Y. (2021). Sociocultural Aspects of Motivation in Learning Korean: Indonesian Learners of Korean as a Foreign Language. Petra Christian University.
Gupta, G., & Singharia, K. (2021). Consumption of OTT Media Streaming in COVID-19 Lockdown: Insights from PLS Analysis. Vision, 25(1), 36–46. https://doi.org/10.1177/0972262921989118
Halim, T. M., & Kiatkawsin, K. (2021). Beauty and celebrity: Korean entertainment and its impacts on female indonesian viewers’ consumption intentions. Sustainability (Switzerland), 13(3), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031405
Henthorn, J. (2019). International Fan Professionalization on Viki. Television and New Media, 20(5), 525–538. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527476418770742
Hernández, E. L. T. (2018). Public diplomacy, soft power and language: The case of the Korean language in Mexico City. Journal of Contemporary Eastern Asia, 17(1), 27–49. https://doi.org/10.17477/jcea.2018.17.1.027
Hübinette, T. (2012). The reception and consumption of Hallyu in Sweden: Preliminary findings and reflections. Korea Observer, 43(3), 503–525.
Illouz, E. (1997). Consuming the romantic utopia: Love and the cultural contradictions ofcapitalism. University of California Press.
Jeong, J. S., Lee, S. H., & Lee, S. G. (2017). When Indonesians routinely consume Korean pop culture: Revisiting Jakartan fans of the Korean drama Dae Jang Geum. International Journal of Communication, 11, 2288–2307.
Jin, D. Y., & Yoon, K. (2016). The social mediascape of transnational Korean pop culture: Hallyu 2.0 as spreadable media practice. New Media and Society, 18(7), 1277–1292. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814554895
Jin, D. Y., & Yoon, T. J. (2017). The Korean Wave: Retrospect and prospect: Introduction. International Journal of Communication, 11, 2241–2249.
Ju, H. (2017). National television moves to the region and beyond: South Korean TV drama production with a new cultural act. Journal of International Communication, 23(1), 94–114. https://doi.org/10.1080/13216597.2017.1291443
Ju, H. (2018). The Korean Wave and Korean Dramas. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228613.013.715
Ju, H. (2019). Korean TV drama viewership on Netflix: Transcultural affection, romance, and identities. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 13(1), 32–48. https://doi.org/10.1080/17513057.2019.1606269
Jung, H. (2019). Agenda-setting in the realm of popular culture: The case of the Korean Wave in East Asia. Global Media and Communication, 15(3), 361–377. https://doi.org/10.1177/1742766519872782
Jung, S., & Shim, D. (2014). Social distribution: K-pop fan practices in Indonesia and the “Gangnam Style” phenomenon. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 17(5), 485–501. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367877913505173
Kim, J., Unger, M. A., & Wagner, K. B. (2017). Beyond Hallyu: Innovation, Social Critique, and Experimentation in South Korean Cinema and Television. Quarterly Review of Film and Video, 34(4), 321–332. https://doi.org/10.1080/10509208.2016.1241623
Kim, Y. (2021). Historical Drama in the Time of Global Streaming Platforms: Envisioning Transition in Mr. Sunshine. Television and New Media, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1177/15274764211010944
Lee, H. (2018). A ‘real’ fantasy: hybridity, Korean drama, and pop cosmopolitans. Media, Culture and Society, 40(3), 365–380. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443717718926
Lee, S. (2015). From Diaspora TV to Social Media: Korean TV Dramas in America. In S. Lee, A. M. Nornes, N. Kwak, & Y. Ryu (Eds.), Hallyu 2.0: The Korean Wave in the Age of Social Media (pp. 172–191). University of Michigan Press. https://doi.org/10.3998/mpub.7651262
Lobato, R. (2018). Rethinking International TV Flows Research in the Age of Netflix. Television and New Media, 19(3), 241–256. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527476417708245
Lotz, A. D. (2021). Unpopularity and cultural power in the age of Netflix: New questions for cultural studies’ approaches to television texts. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 24(4), 887–900. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549421994578
Lukman, J. (2020). Indonesian TV viewership jumps amid COVID-19 ‘stay at home’ policy. The Jakarta Post. https://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2020/03/28/indonesian-tv-viewership-jumps-amid-covid-19-stay-at-home-policy.html
Nowell, L. S., Norris, J. M., White, D. E., & Moules, N. J. (2017). Thematic Analysis: Striving to Meet the Trustworthiness Criteria. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406917733847
Nye, J. (2011). The Future of Power. Public Affairs.
Nye, J. S. (2004). Soft Power and American Foreign Policy. Political Science Quarterly, 119(2), 255–270. https://doi.org/10.2307/20202345
Panda, S., & Pandey, S. C. (2017). Binge watching and college students: motivations and outcomes. Young Consumers, 18(4), 425–438. https://doi.org/10.1108/YC-07-2017-00707
Park, J. H., Lee, Y. S., & Seo, H. (2019). The rise and fall of Korean drama export to China: The history of state regulation of Korean dramas in China. International Communication Gazette, 81(2), 139–157. https://doi.org/10.1177/1748048518802915
Prasopsorn, T., & Panmanee, N. (2019). The Korean Wave in Thailand : The Influence of South Korea ’ s Entertainment Culture on Thai Students ’ TV and Film Consumption Behavior. April, 983–990.
Sanson, K., & Steirer, G. (2019). Hulu, streaming, and the contemporary television ecosystem. Media, Culture and Society, 41(8), 1210–1227. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443718823144
Seo, Y., Cruz, A. G. B., & Fifita, I. M. E. (2020). Cultural globalization and young Korean women’s acculturative labor: K-beauty as hegemonic hybridity. International Journal of Cultural Studies, 23(4), 600–618. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367877920907604
Shim, D. (2006). Hybridity and the rise of Korean popular culture in Asia. Media, Culture and Society, 28(1), 25–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443706059278
Tambunan, S. M. G. (2013). Intra-Asia cultural traffic: transnational flow of East Asian television dramas in Indonesia [Lingnan University]. https://commons.ln.edu.hk/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=cs_etd
Tupani, D. (2020). Nielsen: Covid-19 Tingkatkan Jumlah Penonton Televisi (Nielsen: Covid-19 Increases the Number of Television Viewers). Media Indonesia. https://mediaindonesia.com/humaniora/298392/nielsen-covid-19-tingkatkan-jumlah-penonton-televisi
Vlassis, A. (2021). Global online platforms, COVID-19, and culture: The global pandemic, an accelerator towards which direction? Media, Culture and Society, 43(5), 957–969. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443721994537
Published
2022-12-06
How to Cite
Chandra, Y. (2022). Increasing Consumption of Korean Dramas during the COVID-19 Pandemic. K@ta, 24(2), 81-89. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.9744/kata.24.2.81-89
Section
Articles
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License
