South Korea and Thailand approach soft power to develop cultural industry

According to the Diplomat, Thailand has recently been promoting its autonomy, thinking differently and doing differently to become a country with impressive cultural products that have a strong influence on the world.

To achieve this goal, cultivating “soft power” will play a key role in allowing the country to skillfully navigate the flows of diplomatic international while still preserving autonomy.

When looking at the 2022 Global Soft Power Index, a startling revelation emerged: Thailand, despite being the second-largest exporter of cultural products in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), did not make the global top 30, lagging significantly behind regional frontrunner Singapore.

This difference raises questions about Thailand’s approach to soft power and suggests some potential for enhancing the country’s soft power appeal. According to Dr. Tim Hildebrandt at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Thailand can learn valuable lessons from the remarkable rise of South Korea’s cultural industry.

Experience in developing cultural industry from Korea

Over the past few decades, South Korean pop culture has emerged as a major soft power asset. While audiences may be familiar with stars like BTS or the cinematic creations of the film “Parasite,” the rise of South Korean culture and its soft power has not been accidental. Instead, it has been underpinned by the country’s sustainable development strategies.

Dubbed the “Korean Wave” or “Hallyu,” the phenomenon began in the late 1990s, when television, movies, and music South Korea has been praised in other Asian countries such as China and Japan.

As pioneering companies like Samsung dramatically expanded their consumer electronics presence beyond East Asia after 2008, they created a wave of Korean pop culture, a wave that was further fueled by the spread of the internet.

You Tube – sharing platform video American streaming services have emerged as a bridge between K-Pop and global audiences. In addition, the rise of streaming services has created a fertile ground for the dissemination of Korean television and films.

For a long time, the Korean government has continuously formulated strategic policies to expand the cultural industry and globalize Korean culture, including export strategies to spread the image of Korea to the world.

Unified by a common understanding of the economic growth potential of the cultural industry, the Korean government through its terms adjusted policies according to contemporary needs, promoting the development of the Korean economy in the 1970s.

These efforts are managed and developed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea through cooperation with various ministries, agencies, professional organizations, corporations and academia, contributing to enhancing Korea's cultural status on the world stage while promoting mutual growth through cross-border cultural exchange.

The government's proactive promotion of Korean culture not only strengthens the country's national image and influence but also fosters a positive global view of Korean identity.

In addition to promoting Korean pop culture and traditional art styles, the effort includes initiatives such as “Kimchi Diplomacy” that promote cuisine and promote Korean language learning abroad.

By strategically maintaining these aspects of culture, South Korea has seen them as powerful tools for shaping international perceptions and continues to use this constructive image for diplomatic purposes. In this way, South Korea's cultural rise clearly illustrates the concept of 'soft power'.

Thailand's approach to cultural industry

Just as South Korea has achieved some success in navigating the soft power of cultural development, Thailand has also recently exploited cultural policy to strengthen its soft power and enhance international diplomacy.

According to Dr. Tim Hildebrandt, just like South Korea has adopted “Kimchi Diplomacy,” Thailand has pioneered culinary diplomacy through its “Global Thai campaign” since 2002.

The initiative focuses on expanding the presence of Thai restaurants worldwide, not only promoting Thailand as a culinary destination but also promoting economic opportunities in the food and beverage industry.

Through the campaign, Thailand promotes strategic culture abroad, thereby enhancing soft power.

Another way to develop Thailand’s cultural industry is to generate soft power through television dramas. Thai television dramas have gained considerable traction as cultural exports and are increasingly popular in other Asian countries such as South Korea, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Furthermore, Thailand also possesses untapped potential to expand policies focused on cultural exports, perhaps leveraging assets such as Muay Thai (Thai kickboxing) or tapping into industries Travel has been strong in creating a friendly and progressive international image.

Going forward, planners will continue to take a more comprehensive and coordinated approach to cultural policy./.