Chilean Hallyu Fans and Their Serious Leisure Practices in South Korea’s Digital Public Diplomacy

Juram Jun; Jinok Choi

doi:10.5354/0719-1529.2025.76811

Authors

Juram Jun Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Korea https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0202-7659
Jinok Choi Universidad Central de Chile, Chile https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3287-2906

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Abstract

This paper analyzes the effectiveness of the digital public diplomacy of the Korean Embassy in Chile, with a focus on The Online Supporters program. Specifically, it examines whether the program fosters serious leisure of Hallyu fans, reflects the key characteristics of serious leisure as defined by Stebbins (1982), and contributes to the embassy’s digital public diplomacy. To achieve this, a mixed-methods approach was employed: an analysis of the content and the comments of the 123 posts created by the Online Supporters and published on the embassy’s official Instagram account between 2021 and 2024, followed by in-depth written interviews with program participants. The findings indicate that the embassy’s social media functioned as a platform through which both the Online Supporters and the public engaged in serious leisure. Furthermore, the six core characteristics of serious leisure were clearly reflected in the Online Supporters’ activities.

Author Biographies

Juram Jun, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Korea

HK Research Professor at the Institute of Latin American Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. She earned her Ph.D. in Economics, specializing in Latin American Economy, from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.

Jinok Choi, Universidad Central de Chile, Chile

Associate Professor in the Master’s Program in Korean Studies at Universidad Central de Chile. She earned her Ph.D. in Korean Studies from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, with research focusing on Korean migration in Latin America.

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