The vortex of multiculturalism in South Korea: a critical discourse analysis of the characterization of "multicultural children" in three newspapers. Issue 1 (2nd January 2019)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Shin, Jaran
• Is Part Of: Communication and critical/cultural studies. Volume 16:Issue 1(2019)
• Page Start: 61
• Page End: 81
• Publication Date: 2019-01-02
• Subjects: critical discourse analysis -- mixed-race children -- multiculturalism -- South Korea -- newspaper discourse; Communication and culture -- Periodicals; Communication -- Periodicals; 302.205
• DOI: 10.1080/14791420.2019.1590612
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1479-1420

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This study investigates how multicultural children have been portrayed by the Korean media, where the term is typically used to mean a child of an underprivileged Korean man and a female marriage migrant from a less industrialized neighboring country. Adopting the theoretical lens of critical discourse analysis, I examine news articles published from 2009 to 2013 in the Hankyoreh, the Hankook Ilbo, and the Chosun Ilbo : three daily newspapers representing a full range of progressive, moderate, and conservative political perspectives within society. Analysis reveals that multicultural children have been characterized as a marginalized group, as a threat to the future Korean society, or as global human resources. Given that these discourses are manifestations of underlying ideology, I also explore how these three discourses are conjoined with three competing ideologies in Korea; namely, democracy, nationalism, and neoliberalism. This study concludes by discussing how multiculturalism serves as a discursive framework through which democratic, nationalist, and neoliberal ideas gain their effectiveness.