[The Fountain] The two faces of gukppong

It shows the reality that Koreans are sensitive to comments from outside but are coarse in embracing other cultures.

JEON YOUNG-SUNThe author is head of the K-Entertainment Team of the JoongAng Ilbo. Gukppong is a portmanteau of guk (nation) and ppong (slang for drugs), which likens a sense of national pride to an emotionally elated state after using drugs. The terms began to be used in the 2010s. If you get a shot of this, you get to have the experience of an overwhelming joy that you own all the success of “K-labels.”

The more you watch the performance of the so-called “Do You Know Club,” the more you get addicted to the feeling. The club refers to a list of talented Koreans that foreigners can recognize, such as Kim Yuna, Son Heung-min, BTS, Bong Joon-ho, etc.

The nuance of the word is different from patriotism and nationalism, as the limits of this experience are acknowledged to some extent. It is noteworthy to watch out for gukka, or hatred of own country, which is the opposite word of gukppong. The two phenomena could be symbiotic as they can be considered one. Of course, it is not unique to Korea. In various degrees, the demand is everywhere.

There is an important characteristic of Korean gukppong. Here, foreigners’ perspectives and their recognition are particularly important. This can help explain why the number of multinational content and creators advocating “Korea is the best” is increasing.

On the surface, they introduce Korea to the people of their native countries, but the target is actually Korean. They get many views for just applauding Korean dramas or songs. It may be harmless up to this point.

But it is also common to engage in more provocative mechanisms to attract attention. To ride the gukppong fad, they go so far as to fabricate foreign media reports or encourage hatred by comparing Korea to other countries.

In the entertainment programs selling Korean food abroad, gukppong never fails to appear. Foreign customers finishing up a bowl of kimchi and praising Korea could be a fun factor. But it is often ignored that these shows lack reality as compliments are conveyed 100 percent while criticisms are mostly edited out.

The Genius Paik, which recently began to be aired, belongs to this genre. Paik Jong-won, a big shot in the restaurant industry, sets up a restaurant in Morocco in just 72 hours to prove the strength of Korean cuisine. It took a step further from other fairy-tale restaurant shows, as it depicts a realistic story of starting a business.

But the program was involved in controversies after two episodes over the labeling of the disputed Western Sahara and a provocative comment on a local prayer scene. It shows the reality that Koreans are sensitive to comments from outside but are coarse in embracing other cultures.