Monday, April 12, 2010

Koreality

In case you hadn't heard about this, here is some info on the development of the plan to destroy the image of Korean Americans.

Here are some random thoughts I had about the challenges faced in putting this together:

*Though I do believe there are fame-whores in the Korean American community, I think there is generally a duality in these Korean knuckleheads that party -- on one side, they definitely drink, fight, fornicate, do drugs, sing noh rae bang, etc. But in my limited experience I have found that these same people usually are also hyper-aware of how they represent for the Korean community, they tend to be church-goers and they don't like to be public about their indiscretions. *The ones that may not have the latter qualities stated above, tend to be involved in criminal activities and equally would not want to be showcased on a national television show. *The deeper crevices of Koreatown (e.g. room salons) seem like highly unlikely participants in a show like this. Also many times, club staffs are commonly sprinkled with people with questionable immigration status which would make it even more difficult to get releases. In addition, the sensitivity of the Korean American community may cause a swell in boycotts by business owners ( I speak from experience on this). I think these producers have their work cut out for them. I am not sure which side to root for. On one side, I am bothered with the idea of exploiting Korean Americans with some of our collective worst qualities. On the other side, if it's going to happen, I'd at least like it to be done right. My prediction is that they will need to create a watered-down incomplete portrait of K-town nightlife and the participants will hold back and not create the "situation" the producers are hoping for. But you can never underestimate the power of Patron and the allure of fame.