The Impact of Media Use and Cultural Exposure on the Mutual Perception of Koreans and Japanese1

Abstract

This study examines how the use of a foreign country's media and culture influences perceptions of that country. A total of 315 Korean and 290 Japanese college students were surveyed in 2002 to facilitate the author's analysis of the flow of cultural products between Korea and Japan and the impact of their use. Between countries cultural products flow in one direction because of differences in market size and cultural competitiveness. This paper aims to reconfirm the asymmetric flow of cultural products between Korea and Japan. Its results reveal that Korean college students spend 25.40% of their media usage time consuming Japanese media products, whereas only 1.79% of Japanese students devote any time at all to Korean products. Next, studying both domestic and foreign media use, the author examined the effects of asymmetric cultural consumption on how Koreans and the Japanese perceive each other. Perception of a country is described in terms of three variables: cultural affinity, product purchase intention, and preference for the country. Use levels of foreign media, cultural exposure to the foreign country, and social demographics were hypothesized to influence these variables. Traveling experience to the counterpart country and preference for that country's food were measured to represent cultural exposure. Gender was a significant variable influencing cross-cultural perception. For Japanese students, first-hand exposure to Korean culture affected their perception of Korea significantly, whereas Korean students were more strongly affected by media use. Interestingly, Korean students’ domestic media use negatively affected their cultural proximity to Japan, while Japanese students’ domestic media use positively affected their intentions to purchase Korean products.

Keywords:

• Cultural Discount
• Cultural Identity
• Cultural Flow
• Japan and Korea
• Media Use

Notes

The present research has been conducted by the Research Grant of Kwangwoon University in 2004

1. A 1993 survey on the use of Japanese broadcasts via satellite showed that around 15% of the general respondents were able to access NHK BS-1 and BS-2 (Seongkwunkwan University Social Science Research Institute, 1993).

2. Japanese comics accounted for 80% of the Korean market, and five million Korean households were receiving Japanese satellite broadcasting in 1996. In 2000 exposure to the Japanese pop culture among teenagers was 37.4% for broadcasting, 50.4% for video, 49.6% for film, and 63.5% for games (Ministry of Culture and Tourism, press release dated June 17, 2000).

3. The Roh Mu-Hyun Administration, launched in 2003, has been consistent with the open-door policy to the Japanese culture. The fourth stage of opening allows broadcast of Japanese programs and music in terrestrial broadcasting in Korea starting in 2004.