Discussions on Beneficial TV Genre: Korean Body-Care TV Programs in the Era of Neo-Liberalism

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to discuss the major background of dominant female body discourses, which have been produced through Korean body-care reality TV programs, as regarded 'female-oriented pop culture' in neo-liberal society. The body-care reality TV programs have played a strong role in proliferating dominant discourses on female body and body-care, which are packed as a 'cultural étiquette' for Korean women who want to belong into the category of normalcy as a good citizen by voluntarily taking care of their bodies. In this socio-cultural milieu, this study focused more on examining the mechanism of neo-liberal messages on female body care by interrogating the behind context of two representative Korean body care TV programs "Let Me In", and "Get It Beauty". As result, Korean body care reality TV programs targeted only women have regarded the female body as an object in need of repair and this body discourse, which have shared a common thread with the neoliberal ideology in modern Korean society.