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| One of the logo images for "The Korea File" podcast by Andre Goulet |
By Steven L. Shields
As a 119-year-old organization, the Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch (RASKB) is understandably not on the technological vanguard. But we're trying.
The RASKB, which is keeper of a great deal of information stored in our books, journals and the minds of our members, has teamed up with "The Korea File," a podcast hosted by Canadian Andre Goulet, to reach new audiences.
Goulet has lived in Korea and has a lasting interest in all things Korean. He oversees a continuing program of interviews with RASKB officers, lecturers, and excursion docents. Many are academic professionals; others are "armchair" enthusiasts. All have expertise and decades of experience. The podcast joins a growing list of efforts by the RASKB to promote Korean studies.
I was the first one interviewed for the podcast series back in April; we talked mainly about the founding history of the RASKB. Goulet had prepared a list of questions, which he sent me in advance so I could collect my thoughts. His interview style was fast-paced and direct. He kept me on track since I have a tendency to ramble!
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| "The Korea File" host Andre Goulet poses with his microphone. / Courtesy of Andre Goulet |
Another episode discusses urban development and how Seoul is fast on the way to becoming a megacity playground for the rich and famous, such as London, New York and Tokyo. Former Seoul National University professor and linguist Robert Fouser shared his thoughts in an episode titled, "The death and life of great Korean cities." He talked about more recently developed areas of Seoul, like Gangnam, which he said "look artificial and contrived." Indeed, Korea's massive apartment blocks are so uniform and bland, they look like "undemocratic military bases."
I remember when Ilsan, in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, was a "new" city. I commented to a friend how stark and cold the place looked and felt. He argued for "progress." There is little room left for neighborhood personality or even community feelings. I recommend Fouser's recently published Korean-language book on the topic, "Exploring Cities."
In an episode titled, "The legacy and future of the Royal Asiatic Society-Korea Branch," Jon Dunbar, editor of the RASKB's annual journal, "Transactions," dispelled misgivings the society is a stodgy, dusty, boring old group. He pointed out that while there are older people at RASKB events, most of those people joined the RASKB when they were young. He also stressed the social benefit younger people can have by socializing with the older generations of Korea's foreign residents.
As he noted in his interview, the RASKB with its "unusual cohort of members (including missionaries, diplomats and other expatriates) have witnessed every aspect of Korea's contemporary history, from occupation, colonization and fratricidal war to a modern era of democracy, development and international cultural influence."
The latest episode, just released last Saturday, features Jennifer Flinn, an RASKB council member and consulting professor at Kyung Hee University, sharing her extensive expertise on Korean food culture in an episode titled "Cuisine, Demographics and New Gendered Realities in South Korea." She also spoke about leading excursions for the RASKB, and how the society distinguishes itself through these tours by offering experts in their fields.
From pen to typewriter, to computer, to webpage, to podcast, the forbears of the RASKB would be justifiably surprised to trace the path of the organization's use of technology.
Steven L. Shields, a retired cleric, serves as a vice president of the Korea Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (www.raskb.com) and is a columnist for The Korea Times.
