Abstract
The information and propaganda activities of the US Information Agency (USIA) in South Korea from 1945 to 1960 accelerated the global dominance of the American film industry in an effort to combat communism. Succeeding the US Information Service (USIS) in Korea in the aftermath of the Pacific War, USIA did its work with the explicit approval of the US Congress and the Eisenhower administration: USIS collaborated with the US military and cooperated with the US film industry to produce, distribute, and exhibit commercial and noncommercial pro-American motion pictures. It also assisted the South Korean government and its military in nurturing pro-American values that further influenced the local film industry and founded the local television industry. While the United Nations Korean Reconstruction Agency (UNKRA) and United Nations Civil Assistance Command in Korea (UNCACK) also assisted in the aftermath of the Korean War, no group was as well organized as USIS in working with the Korean government or reaching out to the public, including to Americans at home who quarreled with the US agency’s total and unidirectional influence.
Recommended Citation
Park-Primiano, Sueyoung
(2022)
"The Tentacular Reach of USIA/S in Postwar South Korea,"
The Journal of e-Media Studies: Vol. 6:
Iss.
1, Article 4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1349/PS1.1938-6060.A.477
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/joems/vol6/iss1/4
Figure 1: USIS Pusan branch, 1951 [ohmynews.com]
History of the DPI.jpg (515 kB)
Table 1: History of the DPI [Table designed by Sueyoung Park-Primiano]