As the ‘Hallyu’, or the Korean wave swept across the globe - it came with implications for how consumers of popular culture perceive and engage in the making or remaking of gender norms. It popularized the idea of ‘soft masculinity’, marking a major shift from the filmic hegemonic representations of gender in Hollywood and Bollywood - with significant consequences for women and sexual minorities. The phenomena also ignited heated debates.

This paper explores what Hallyu has to offer to a Malaysian audience onboard, across the spectrum of races, ethnic groups and genders. It attempts to build a picture of the effects of Hallyu in Malaysia through interviews conducted with local audiences of Korean content.

It also questions how fandom and viewership of Korean content may translate into positive or negative attitudes towards sexual and other minorities in a complex political context and how it may aid in curving out a space for other masculinities. Taking into account the obstacles on the way, it attempts to situate the viewership in a globalized moment - whereby certain local and global forces are coming into contact with each other to shape, construct or deconstruct traditionally perceived gender norms and other traditions.

Authors:
Tamoso Deep, Multimedia University, Malaysia

About the Presenter(s)
Tamoso Deep is currently pursuing his master's degree in creative multimedia in Multimedia University, Cyberjaya, Malaysia. He completed his graduation in Limkokwing University of Creative Technology in 2021, majoring in broadcasting and journalism.

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