Discursive strategies of othering: North Korean youth on a South Korean television show

Abstract

Abstract As the number of South Koreans, especially those in their 20s and 30s, in favor of unification with North Korea decreases, it is not surprising that younger generations feel a lack of closeness or familiarity with North Korean refugees in South Korea. Targeting South Korean adolescents’ ambivalence toward unification and North Korean refugees is a talk show called Great Friends. Moderated by a South Korean host, Great Friends presents the experiences of a group of North Korean and South Korean youth. Given the current social climate surrounding North Korean refugees in South Korea, this study investigates how North Korean youth on this program are discursively constructed over the course of 17 episodes aired in 2015. Considering the unequal power relations between the host country and refugees, this study applies critical discourse analysis (CDA) to interpret how North Korean adolescents are presented to a South Korean audience. The analysis reveals the ‘othering’ of North Koreans through discourses of difference. Despite presenting North Koreans as friends to South Koreans, these discursive constructions create a dichotomy by positioning North Koreans as inferior to their southern counterparts. The findings contribute to rethinking how authorities promote the integration of North Koreans in South Korea.