K-pop and the West: Media, Fandom, and Transnational Politics
The Asia Research Institute's second annual Korean studies symposium, October 27-28, 2023, will examine research, pedagogy, and methodologies in our critical study of K-pop in the West.
Attendance is free and open to the public.
Not able to attend in person? to watch our Zoom livestream.
Symposium Agenda
Friday, October 27
Location: Screening Room, Center for the Arts, University at Buffalo North Campus
9:00-9:30 Registration and Refreshments
9:30-9:45 Opening Remarks
9:45-11:15 Panel 1: Fans and Fandom
Areum Jeong, Arizona State University
The Performing Deokhu: Mediating Selfhood and Relations of Power in Fan Videos
Jonghwan Yoon, Yonsei University
The Desire Surrounding Signifier of K-pop Oppa and Its Genealogy
Wonseok Lee, Washington University, St. Louis
K-pop’s Posthuman Expandability: A Comparative Analysis of Virtual K-pop Groups
Moderator: Stephanie Choi, UB Asia Research Institute
11:15-11:30 Break
11:30-1:00 Panel 2: Transnational Bodies
Paroma Ghose, Leibniz Center for Contemporary History
K-pop and the ‘Postcolonial Interruption’
Jaehoon Lee, Indiana University
The Techno-Woman Warrior: K-pop and the Sound of Asian Futurism
Jeong-In Lee, University of Texas at Austin
K-pop in the Borderland: Media Spectacles and the Geopolitical Soundscape
Moderator: Junhao Hong, UB Department of Communication
1:00-2:30 Lunch
2:30-3:45 Keynote Lecture 1
Dafna Zur, Stanford University
K-pop's Next Level: Documenting K-pop in the Age of AI
3:45-4:00 Break
4:00-5:30 Panel 3: Music and Visual Aesthetics
Lawrence Monocello, Washington University, St. Louis
K-pop Idols, Body Ideals, and Disordered Eating in Young Korean Men
Haley Suh, University of California, Irvine
The (In)Coherence of Gothic Conventions in K-pop Music Videos
Donna Kwon, University of Kentucky
Multivocal or Maximalist? The Politics of Vocal Production in K-pop
Moderator: Millie Chen, UB Department of Art
5:30-5:45 Closing Remarks
Saturday, October 28
9:00-9:30 Registration and Refreshments
9:30-9:45 Opening Remarks
9:45-11:15 Panel 4: Performing Gender and Race
Min Joo Lee, Occidental College
In Pursuit of Perfect Men: An Analysis of Hallyu Tourists’ Romantic Desires for Korean Men
Jahyon Park, Wesleyan University
(EXP)ectations and Cultural Boundaries
Stephanie Choi, University at Buffalo
Decolonizing the ‘Dark Side of K-pop
Moderator: Mimi Okabe, UB Asian Studies Program
11:15-11:30 Break
11:30-12:45 Keynote Lecture 2
Thomas Baudinette, Macquarie University
K-pop Fandom’s Role in Shaping Knowledge of Gender and Sexuality among LGBTQ+ Fans
12:45-2:15 Lunch
2:15-4:15 Panel 5: Nationalism and State Intervention
Mathieu Berbiguier, University of California, Los Angeles
Kukppong and Authenticity: A New Wave of ‘K-Nationalism’ in K-pop Fandom(s)
Jamie Johnson, University of West London
K-pop, Museum Funding and Soft Power
Gongju Cha, Claremont Graduate University
K-pop and the Cultural Hierarchy: Commodification as the Regenerating Force of Hegemonic Power
Jinwon Lee, Korea University
Reflecting Gender Equality through the Lens of Korean Media: From the Human Rights Perspective
Moderator: Mark Nathan, UB Department of History and Asian Studies Program
4:15-4:30 Break
4:30-5:45 Roundtable: K-pop in the Classroom
Moderators
Stephanie Choi, UB Asia Research Institute
Hyein Amber Kim, UB Department of Linguistics
5:45-6:00 Closing Remarks
Symposium Sponsors
Academy of Korean Studies, University at Buffalo Asia Research Institute, Asian Studies Program
