A Longitudinal Analysis of Foreign Program Imports on South Korean Television, 1978–2002: A Case of Rising Indigenous Capacity in Program Supply

Abstract

A time-series analysis using the 25-year longitudinal data shows that the proportion of foreign imports aired on the Korean terrestrial broadcasters decreased between 1978 and 2002. The findings indicate that Korea's competitiveness in producing television content has risen over the period, as Korea's economy and television advertising market grew consistently and rapidly in spite of the short-term drop in the late 1990s. The rise of domestic television programming output was particularly evident in drama series. The Korean case defies the crude form of Americanization of television in developing countries. However, it also shows that it will take time and resources for a country to enter into the phase of increasing indigenous television content.