Posted on: Sunday, June 19, 2005
Father of Korean broadcasting in Hawai'i exemplifies dads' role
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By Jeff Chung
In Confucianism, the father figure is the head of the household. As Korean society is deeply rooted in Confucianism, the father figure is still the head in modern South Korea.
Chung family photo The father figure has the burden of providing for the family, but this has been changing in recent dramas as both parents are now working.
Korean women in general outlive Korean men, and usually the grandmother is the single grandparent in the household.
An example of this is in "Ode to Han River," in which Joon-ho's grandmother basically has authority over household matters and is the primary disciplinarian.
The father typically works long hours Mondays to Saturdays. Korea has just recently adjusted to a five-day work week. Men in their mid-40s often are asked to take an early severance from the company as young men are hired to the same job at a lower salary.
Do you have a better understanding of Korean culture through Korean dramas? We're happy to report that of the 326 poll responses, 265 viewers clicked "yes." Score one for cultural diversity. These are the general trends in Korea as it is portrayed in dramas.
This is a good opportunity to talk about a father's influence.
My father, Kea Sung Chung, is 71 and very healthy. He is still active in the companies KBFD and TAN (The Asia Network), the first 24-hour Korean cable network.
If you are a fan of Korean drama, you should even be a bigger fan of my father.
In 1976, he started Korean broadcasting in Hawai'i by leasing time from channel 13 every Saturday morning so he could air KBS news.
In 1986, he liquidated all of his assets to start up KBFD. Though it makes sense now, at the time the business outlook was a long shot by any odds.
There have been difficulties to overcome in the past 19 years, but my father's dream to promote Korean culture in Hawai'i finally has been realized. KBFD has taken ethnic programming mainstream in Hawai'i because of his efforts.
For all the fathers reading this today, for the men in uniform who protect our neighborhood, for the men who protect our freedom in Iraq, for the fathers who protect and care for the family — and for my father — have a Happy Father's Day.
Jeff Chung is general manager of KBFD, which airs all of the K-dramas. Reach him at 521-8066.
In Korean dramas, the father often is the decision maker. The situation gets a bit more complicated if the household is multigenerational, as commonly seen in dramas where grandparents also are included. When this happens, the eldest in the household typically has the say.
Kea Sung Chung, 71, is living his dream of promoting Korean culture in the Islands. He's Jeff's dad.
With the early severance, men are then commonly going into small businesses to keep their livelihood.
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