If you haven’t been living under a rock these past couple of months, you probably would’ve heard of Psy and watched the viral music video that has racked up over 500 million views and counting for his hit song Gangnam Style.
You might have also noticed the more than generous media coverage Psy and his ‘horsey-dance’ have been attracting.
With Psy hitting the headlines in Australian mainstream news of late for his satirical tune that pokes fun at the lavish lifestyles of South Korea’s Gangnam district and his signature dance proving a hit with locals, one can say Koreans (Asians) are finally receiving much deserved representation in Australian media and that multiculturalism is well and truly alive Down Under.
However, many media companies are essentially profit-driven businesses buoyed by advertisers and it is exactly this reason that we should question whether the media genuinely advocates for a diverse society through Gangnam Style – and leading us who are passive media audiences to believe that Asian music/culture is really making its mark in the ‘multicultural’ Western world.
Mabel Kwong 