This international conference held at SFU on Oct. 4th and 5th, and at UBCO on Oct. 7th will explore how digital platformization has been shifting the ways in which media and popular culture evolve in the East Asian and Asia-Pacific contexts. The empirical and theoretical studies presented by leading scholars across media/communication studies, cultural studies, sociology, and Asian studies, will address various aspects of digital platform-driven media industries, texts, and audiences while questioning the Western-centric discourse of digital platforms.
The conference is organized by Kyong Yoon (Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, UBC Okanagan) and Dal Yong Jin (School of Communication, Simon Fraser University), and is sponsored by the Public Humanities Hub Okanagan, UBCO Principal’s Research Chair Program, the Academy of Korean Studies, and the SFU’s David Lam Centre.
The conference is open to the public and takes place at the UBCO campus and at the Kelowna Innovation Centre in downtown Kelowna. See below for session details and location information.
Vancouver Conference Program (printable)
Kelowna CONFERENCE PROGRAM (printable)
Conference Poster (printable)
UBCO Sessions | Location: UBCO Ballroom, UNC 200
For the UBCO sessions, NO registration is required. Please feel free to come for any session.
A limited number of sandwich lunches are available for general attendees. Please RSVP to kyong.yoon@ubc.ca if you would like to join the lunch at 12:15 at UNC 200.
9:00-9:20 Welcome Reception
9:20-9:30 Welcome Remarks
9:30-10:45 Session 1 Digital Platformization of Korean Media Practices
Chair: John Cho
Assistant Professor
Department of Community, Culture and Global Studies, UBC Okanagan
- Dal Yong Jin
SFU Distinguished Professor
School of Communication, Simon Fraser University
“The Platformization of Distribution Channels: Korean Perspectives”
- Hyung-Gu Lynn
AECL/KEPCO Chair in Korean Research
Department of Asian Studies, UBC Vancouver
“Platformization’s Impacts on TV/Web Serial Storytelling”
- Benjamin M. Han
Associate Professor
Department of Entertainment and Media Studies, University of Georgia
“The ‘Global’ in Original Korean Series on Netflix and Disney+”
10:45-11:00 Coffee/Tea break
11:00-12:15 Session 2: Sinoscapes of Digital Platforms
Chair: Ying Zhu
Associate Professor
Faculty of Management, UBC Okanagan
- Guobin Yang
Grace Lee Boggs Professor of Communication and Sociology
Annenberg School for Communication and Department of Sociology, University of Pennsylvania
“Chinese Social Media in Times of Crises”
- Micky Lee
Professor of Media Studies
Communication, Journalism & Media Program, Suffolk University
“Experiencing Hong Kong Urban Culture through Platforms and Cinema Screens”
- Kyong Yoon
Professor of Cultural Studies
Department of English and Cultural Studies, UBC Okanagan
“Transnational Audiences in the Age of Platforms: Detouring the Order of Restriction on Hallyu in China”
12:15 – 13:00 Lunch
13:00 – 14:15 Session 3: Playful yet Contentious Asia-Pacific Digital Mediascapes
Chair: Annie Wan
Associate Professor
Department of Creative Studies, UBC Okanagan
- David Humphrey
Associate Professor of Japanese and Global Studies
Department of Linguistics, Languages and Cultures, Michigan State University
“AVOD in Japan: Streaming and the Afterlife of Televisual Attention”
- Sarah Ganzon
Assistant Professor
School of Communication, Simon Fraser University
“The Buggy, Less Sexy Version of the Game: Censorship, Nintendo’s e-shop and Yuri Games in the Nintendo Switch”
- Taeyoung Kim
Lecturer in Communication and Media
School of Social Sciences and Humanities, Loughborough University
“Streaming Platforms as a Playground for New Genres: An Ambivalent Nature”
14:15– 14:20 Closing Remarks
Public Roundtable | Location: Kelowna Innovation Centre (460 Doyle Ave)
16:00 – 16:30 Reception: The Kelowna Innovation Centre Rooftop (Perch Sky Lounge)
16:30 – 17:45 Public Roundtable: The Kelowna Innovation Centre Theatre (1st floor)
Digital Media Culture in East Asia during/after the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the media landscape in East Asia. Digital media became essential to cope with life during COVID-19 and is now widely integrated into people’s daily lives.
Join us as three leading experts on East Asian digital media and culture share their thoughts on how digital platforms generate (or restrict) new experiences through various services and technological infrastructure (e.g., subscription-based streaming services, social media, and user-generated content).
Through vivid case studies of China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Japan, the three scholars will highlight the potential power, creativity, and risks found in the rapidly changing digital media experiences in East Asia.
This engaging roundtable promises a timely and cross-cultural dialogue. This event is open to the public. No registration is required for the roundtable. RSVP is recommended for the reception (16:00 – 16:30) (to Kyong Yoon kyong.yoon@ubc.ca).
- Presenters:
- Guobin Yang
Grace Lee Boggs Professor of Communication and Sociology
University of Pennsylvania - Micky Lee
Professor of Media Studies
Suffolk University - Dal Yong Jin
SFU Distinguished Professor
Simon Fraser University
- Guobin Yang
- Moderator: Kyong Yoon (UBC Okanagan)