How Korean Celebrity, Gender, and Advertising Intersect—Some Quick Key Points
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes. But first, let me extend my warm thanks to Professor CedarBough Saeji (a.k.a. @TheKpopProf) for her invitation to talk on this topic to her class last week. Next, to...
View ArticleBlackpink’s Rosé Deserved So Much Better Than the “Young Silly Woman Puts...
It’s all very cute and charming until you realize how rarely you see it used on men. Why is that? Estimated reading time: 7 minutes. Right: So-hee of the Wonder Girls. Yeah, Rosé does look very cute...
View ArticleMaking Sense of the NewJeans “Cookie” Controversy
A reading list for everything you ever wanted to know about the sexualization of minors in K-pop Estimated reading time: 3 minutes. The best thing you can read to make sense of it, actually, is Haley...
View Article“Japan is Famously—or Notoriously—Known for its People Not Being Able to Say...
Turning Boys Into Men? The Performance of Gender for South Korean Conscripts, Part 8 Estimated reading time: 4 minutes. Photo (cropped) by Jim Flores on Unsplash. Am I just projecting when I say...
View ArticlePerforming in “Public” Spaces in Korea and Japan—Can Anyone Do it? Or Mostly...
“Musicians’ experiences of dis/comfort, im/mobility, security and threat, as well as their coping strategies, are all gendered.” Estimated reading time: 5 minutes. Photo by Chris Barbalis on Unsplash....
View ArticleWOMEN WE LOVE Bookclub Event—Sunday, February 11, 2-4pm
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes. Just a heads-up to let you all know about this upcoming event, to give you time to order and read the excellent Women We Love: Femininities and the Korean Wave (2023)...
View ArticleSome Smart, Sophisticated Events for Smart, Sophisticated Busanites (And Me...
Busan is GOOD! 부산이라 좋다! Estimated reading time: 4 minutes. Source: iamcacophony. Sorry that I’ve been so neglectful and absent these past few weeks. One excuse is just being very busy settling into the...
View ArticleFeminazi Killjoys Target Cute Children’s Song
And I’m one of them: (Source: Instiz) Here’s a transcript: ‘아빠 힘내세요’라는 동요 아시죠. Anchor: You know the song Cheer Up Father, yes? 어깨 축 쳐진 아빠에게 아이들이 용기를 줬던 노래인데 이 노래가 양성평등을 저해한다는 판정이 나와 문화관광부가 해명자료까지 내는...
View ArticleHow does military conscription affect Korean gender relations and attitudes...
The vision of male-female relations that conscription engenders—that men’s role is to do important work for the nation, while women’s is to remain on the sidelines offering their support through...
View Article“Girl-groups in Hot Pants” Isn’t a Concept That Always Sells a Product....
Compared to men, women are almost 60 times more likely to be wearing revealing clothing in Korean advertisements. Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes. Source: @Sulllllimmmm “I’ve seen many pictures of...
View ArticleOn K-pop Stars Dating
Precious few songwriters and MV directors present female K-pop stars as grown women with sexual experience, agency, and desire. But these assigned gender roles can quickly crumble under revelations...
View Article“W코리아가 여성을 화보에 담아내는 방식이 마음에 든다. 자기다운 모습으로 카메라를 응시하는 여성 모델들.”
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes. Image sources: @pompomiya “I like the way W Korea portrays women. Look at the models here all staring back at the camera in their own ways.” If I die tomorrow, my...
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