By Jason Lim
In his new book, ``Buyology,'' branding guru Martin Lindstrom tells the story of three main sponsors of American Idol, one of the most popular TV shows in history. Coke, Cingular and Ford each pay $26 million a year to advertise on the show. However, research showed that while Coke was very memorable and Cingular somewhat more memorable after the show, Ford actually became less memorable.
What happened? According to Lindstrom, Ford didn't integrate its presence in the narrative of the show. It bought air time for its commercials, but its products didn't become a part of the everyday processes of the show, unlike Coke, which had widely integrated its products into the workings of the show itself by having judges drink out of Coke bottles, having Coke bottle shaped couches, etc. In short, Lindstrom's results showed that consumers ``have no memory of brands that don't play an integral part in the storyline of a program. They become white noise, easily, instantaneously forgotten.''
This is what's happening to KORUS FTA in America.
As a long time Korea watcher, one of the most strange and fascinating things about the country is how arcane government policies are consumed so eagerly by the general public. Take the KORUS FTA, for example. When negotiations were underway in the latter months of the Roh administration, head negotiators from both sides actually became local celebrities, with their faces seemingly getting more real estate on local print and broadcast media than ``hallyu'' stars. Across the Pacific in the U.S., the same two faces would not have registered a blink in the face of an ordinary American.
Despite the stated importance of the KORUS FTA to the future of Korea, politicians and government officials in the Lee Myung-bak camp are throwing in the towel already and managing down expectations for its quick passage.
Admittedly, there is a lot of legitimate reasons for such pessimism, but the main excuse is the same. The KORUS FTA faces a double whammy: The Obama administration, confronted with the acute economic crisis, will have its hands full and can't afford to spend time and effort to pay attention to Korean issues. Additionally, Obama is a Democrat, hence more protectionist than a typical Republican. Ergo, there is no way the FTA will pass in the near future.
In short, it's all becoming white noise, and all we can do is wait and see, looking for opportunities to present our case.
But such diagnosis is passivity and pessimism masquerading as prudence and wisdom. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure because it takes the circumstances as immovable and unchangeable. Rather than accepting the status quo, Korean leadership should be thinking about how to rescue the FTA from its white noise status and elevate it to a strong, clear signal. And like Coke, this takes presenting the product as an integral part in the overall narrative of the program.
The current FTA storyline has been popularized by labor unions and protectionist groups. It's simple and powerful: ``In 2006, Korea exported 554,000 vehicles to the United States, while the United States was allowed to export only about 4,000 vehicles to Korea. Furthermore, if the KORUS-FTA passes, good jobs will be destroyed … this will benefit the rich, and the middle class will vanish.'' In short, the KORUS FTA is unfair and will only benefit the fat cats who created the economic mess that we are in today.
To counter this storyline, the KORUS FTA proponents present a fact-sheet filled with figures and numbers. It presents good logical arguments on how the FTA is beneficial to the U.S., which, unfortunately, is beside the point. You can't counter a narrative with numbers. It's like bringing a baseball bat to a football game. For KORUS FTA to pass, it needs to be packaged with a story that's powerful enough to not only quiet the ``this is unfair'' narrative of the opposition but also to tap into the founding exceptionalist myth of American society.
American exceptionalism, which is ingrained into every American psyche, tells the story of an America that is the chief beacon of truth, liberty, and justice, sacrificing itself for the nobler ideals of the innate human condition across the world, ensuring opportunities to achieve the American dream for all. Despite the major hiccups in its application, this sense of exceptionalism drives American decision-making everyday when it comes to foreign policy.
In this light, how about this storyline? At the end of the Korean War, Korea was the poorest country in the world. But, because of the American sacrifice ― in blood, material and protection ― Korea is now a spectacular success story of a dynamic economy and democracy. In essence, Korea is the epitome of American exceptionalism successfully transplanted. And now, the KORUS FTA is the vehicle by which Korea will stand on its own two feet and become a true partner with the U.S. on all levels.
It's a real, concrete way of paying back American generosity. The KORUS FTA is Korea's bar mitzvah, signaling its independent maturity, all thanks to American generosity. Korea is the American success story. The KORUS FTA is an integral part of the American exceptionalist narrative. And, oh, by the way, even Japan hasn't done this yet, although it, too, received American help.
I realize that things are never simple. But I know that stories that speak to the heart are always better than stories that speak only to the head. And stories that reinforce one's sense of self-worth are always better than those that try to erode the psychic foundation of one's existence.
Jason Lim was the 2007-2008 fellow at Harvard Korea Institute. He can be reached at Jason.lim@post.harvard.edu