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Throughline · August 20, 2026 · 48m

How Korean culture went global

Heijin Lee, John Dimoia, Michael Kim
Show Notes

Throughline explores South Korea's 50-year government strategy to export its culture and build global influence. Scholars discuss how the country systematically used entertainment, sports, and beauty to transform its economy from manufacturing to soft power. Recent milestones—BTS's sold-out return, K-pop at the World Cup final, and Oscars for a K-pop-related film—demonstrate the strategy's success.

This summary was generated from show notes and public descriptions, not from a full transcript review. Details may contain inaccuracies.

Highlights

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South Korea's 50-Year Cultural Export Strategy
South Korea's government pursued a deliberate, long-term plan to spread Korean culture globally as an engine of economic growth and national influence.
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Sports, Screens, and Sex as Soft Power Tools
The strategy deliberately used international sporting events, television/film ('screens'), and sexual appeal to capture global attention and drive economic growth.
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Global Recognition of K-Pop
Recent milestones—BTS's sold-out return, K-pop at the World Cup, and Oscars for a K-pop-related film—signal the strategy's complete global acceptance.
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Economic Pivot from Manufacturing to Entertainment
After decades reliant on manufacturing, South Korea pivoted to cultural export as a new growth engine, using soft power to generate revenue and global relevance.
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Misc

✧K-pop Demon Hunters picked up two Oscars this year.
✧BTS returned to sold-out crowd performances.
✧K-pop took center stage at the World Cup final.
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