Soft Power: K-Pop, Anime and Global Pop Culture

Political scientist Joseph Nye coined the term 'soft power' around 1990 to describe a country's ability to influence others through attraction, such as culture and values, rather than force or money. Popular culture has become a major form of soft power. Japan's manga, anime and video games, such as Pokémon (1996), gained global audiences, and Hayao Miyazaki's 'Spirited Away' won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003.

South Korea's 'Hallyu', or Korean Wave, spread from TV dramas in the late 1990s to K-pop; Psy's 'Gangnam Style' became the first YouTube video to reach one billion views in 2012, and BTS topped the US charts in 2020. Governments have supported these industries, as in Japan's 'Cool Japan' strategy. Critics question whether culture can be planned by states, and fans themselves shape global trends.