Reporter: John Cheng (Year 3, School of Journalism and Communication)
Professor Kim Sojung is no ordinary professor – born in Korea, she majored in Chinese and is a great fan of Chinese culture; like many teenagers, she listens to K-pop and watches Korean TV dramas. In fact, her life story may be more interesting than most academic papers.
Professor Kim spent her undergraduate years studying Chinese in Korea. To her, it was surprisingly pleasant and satisfactory. “I was really interested in journalism and communication. But at that time, China was one of the fast-growing countries and people started learning Chinese. So my parents said, ‘if you want to be a journalist, why don’t you learn a foreign language? It’s easier for you to become a journalist.’ I was a good kid, so I said ‘okay mum, let me study Chinese then.’”
But this did not stop her from pursuing her dream – communication studies. She took a lot of communications-related courses at university, and found herself inspired by public relations. Back then, PR was an emerging industry in Korea, so Professor Kim decided to pursue a master’s degree in PR in the States.
However, the PR industry in Korea proved to be a disappointment for her. “They just mainly dealt with media relationship and media writing. I thought I could be involved in big projects and develop strategies for the company, like in the US.” However, she became interested in the advertising industry. “It’s creative, it’s interesting, and it’s related to consumers.”
She recalls working in an in-house advertising agency of the famous Samsung group. “I was once involved in a corporate advertising campaign for Samsung which was one of the most successful advertising campaigns in Korea. We used cartoons and animations and dealt with different forms of media, like print and radio. The campaign won a lot of awards and it was a really rewarding experience.”
Eventually, Professor Kim went back to campus and completed a PhD degree in advertising. Looking back, she is thankful for what she has experienced. “This is life. Nothing is fixed, everything is changing.”
When she was an undergraduate student, Professor Kim spent half a year studying Chinese in Taiwan. She has also been to China many times. Driven by her interest in Chinese culture, she decided to join the Chinese University of Hong Kong in summer 2013. Currently, she is teaching Applied Communication Research for postgraduates and Integrated Market Communication for undergraduates. She enjoys life in Hong Kong a lot. “My colleagues are very nice, the staff are supportive, and the students are all very smart.” She also thinks Hong Kong is a convenient city, though it is always too crowded. “I really hate waiting for the line for the restaurants. I couldn’t imagine I have to wait for one hour for lunch! Now I know when I should go, just before 6pm.”
Professor Kim has also noticed that the Korean culture is extremely popular in Hong Kong. “Whenever I go to shopping mall, if people recognize I’m a Korean, they start talking about Korean actors and actresses or K-pop or K-drama. It’s really amazing!” She herself is also a big fan of K-pop and K-drama, her favorite band is CNBlue and her favorite TV drama is My Love from the Star.
She is now working on a research project to investigate into why Chinese people consume Korean media content, like K-pop and K-drama and how this consumption influences their identification with and political view towards Korea. She also has another goal: learning Cantonese. “It’s really difficult, but I should definitely learn it!”
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