Market Power and the Downsizing of Democracy. Globalization, Communication and Economic Elites in South Korea
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CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by Goldsmiths Research Online GOLDSMITHS Research Online Thesis (PhD) Lee, Bong-hyun Market Power and the Downsizing of Democracy. Globalization, Communication and Economic Elites in South Korea You may cite this version as: Lee, Bong-hyun. 2011. Market Power and the Downsizing of Democracy. Globalization, Communication and Economic Elites in South Korea. Doctoral thesis, Goldsmiths, University of London. [Thesis]: Goldsmiths Research Online. Available at: http://eprints.gold.ac.uk/6603/ COPYRIGHT This is a thesis accepted for a Higher Degree of the University of London. It is an unpublished document and the copyright is held by the author. All persons consulting this thesis must read and abide by the Copyright Declaration below. 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This copy has been supplied on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. http://eprints-gro.goldsmiths.ac.uk Contact Goldsmiths Research Online at: [email protected] http://eprints-gro.goldsmiths.ac.uk Contact Goldsmiths Research Online at: [email protected] Market Power and the Downsizing of Democracy Globalization, Communication and Economic Elites in South Korea Bong-hyun Lee 2011 Thesis Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Media and Communications Goldsmiths, University of London Preface This dissertation is the result of my own work and includes nothing which is the outcome of work done in collaboration except where specifically indicated in the text. Bong-hyun Lee Goldsmiths College October 2011 ii Abstract Media and communications engage in social power relations. This thesis aims to investigate the “power value” of media and communications, focusing on the private communication practices of economic elites. The main argument is that, in the age of hyperglobalization, elite private communication plays no less important a part than mass forms of communication in shaping and maintaining economic elite power that operates in a far from transparent and accountable manner. This detachment of media and communications from the public is a symptom of the shrinking of democracy, which sanctions the massive transfer of resources to the organized interests. For the purpose of empirical study, his thesis investigates the sites or networks of the national and transnational market forces within the historical context of the neo- liberalization of the Korean economy and society since the 1990s. The research shows, via in-depth interviews and qualitative case studies, how increasingly broader areas of the economy are becoming discursively de-politicized and how the closed communicative processes of economic elites are replacing democratic structures. Think-tanks, epistemic communities and policy networks, with their practices of private communication, lobbying and “brain sharing”, often make policy decisions that have a significant impact on the masses. The discrete culture and exclusive elite communication networks which are prevalent in the global-national investment web of intermediaries allow the growth of “invisible power”, which almost completely blocks the vigilance of the public. In the financial market, the cohesive culture, combined with the reflexive and intensive communication environment, generates a system of preferences and evaluations as well as one-sided expectations that have a tremendous impact on corporate management and the whole of society. The study suggests that we should attend to the growing tendency of the mediation of power that is taking place with minimum reference to the public. This research contributes to the understanding of the “power value” of media and communications by providing an alternative or complementary explanation. iii Table of Contents Abstract …………...…………………………………………………………...iii Table of Contents ……………………………………………………………….iv List of Tables and Figures ...………………………………………………….viii List of Abbreviations ...…………………………………………...........................ix Acknowledgements .………………………………………………………………x Part I. Surveying the Issues 1. Introduction .……………………………………………...…......1 1.1 Background and Research Agenda .……………………………………...2 1.2 Summary of the Approach and the Research Questions .………………5 1.3 Structure of the Thesis …..………………………………….....................8 2. Hyperglobalization and the Paradox of Korean Democracy ….10 2.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………..11 2.2 The East Asian Miracle and its Limitations …………………………..12 2.3 The Momentum of Globalization and the Crisis ……………………...14 2.4 The Structural Reforms after the Crisis …………………………….17 2.5 The Shift of Power Relations …………………………………………...20 2.6 The Korean Media and Social Power Relations …………………….25 2.7 The Social Consequence of the Neo-liberal Turn …………………….29 2.8 Neo-liberal Democracy …………………....……………………………33 2.9 Conclusion ……………………………...……………………………….35 iv Part II. Framework and Methods 3. Mapping the Research Framework ……….…………………37 3.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………..38 3.2 The Rivalry between Freedom and Equality …………………………….38 3.3 Hyperglobalization and the Shrinking of Democratic Politics …………...44 3.4 The Media, Communications and Power ………………………………...51 3.5 Omissions from the Existing Research …………………………………...61 3.6 The Emerging Research Area ………………………...…………………..65 4. Approaches and Methods ……………………………………….66 4.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………..67 4.2 Theoretical Frameworks …………………………………………………..67 4.3 The Selection of the Empirical Field …………………………………...74 4.4 Methodological Considerations ………………………...………………...76 4.5 Methods …………………………………………………………………….78 Part III. Empirical Studies 5. The Discursive Construction: The Downsizing of Politics …...86 5.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………..87 5.2 The Korean Epistemic Community of Economics ……………....………88 5.3 The Interpretation of the Crisis ……………………………...………..92 5.4 The Discourse of the “Economy First” Society .……………………….97 5.5 The Anti-political, Anti-public Discourse …………………...………….104 5.6 The Downsizing of Democracy ……………………………...…………..109 5.7 Conclusion …...……………………………………………...…………...113 v 6. The Business Elite, Knowledge and Policy …………………115 6.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………....116 6.2 The Business Elite and Policy ……………………………………………117 6.3 The Chaebols: the Dominant Korean Business Elite ………………..119 6.4 The Knowledge and Power of the Network …………………………..129 6.5 Communication in the Business Elite Network ………………………...135 6.6 Case Study: The Chaebols‟ National Agenda Setting ………………….141 6.7 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………...154 7. The Financial Market: Disciplining Firms and Household ....156 7.1 Introduction .………..……………………………………………………....157 7.2 Inside the Financial Market ……………………………………………..158 7.3 The Global Integration of the Market after the Crisis ………………...162 7.4 The Exit Power of Financial Capital ……………………………………167 7.5 The New Law of the Market …………………………………………….168 7.6 Culture and Communication in the Market ……………………………172 7.7 Social Consequences of the New Law of the Market …………………..179 7.8 Case Study 1: The Rise and Fall of the “China Momentum” …………181 7.9 Case Study 2: The Disciplining of Samsung Electronics ………………189 7.10 Conclusion ……………………………………………………...………….195 8: The Global-National Nexus: The Iron Triangle ……………...197 8.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………198 8.2 The Reappearance of the Arcana Imperii …………………………….…199 8.3 The “Fire Sale” ………………………...………………………………...201 8.4 The Growth of Advisory Intermediaries ………………………………..203 8.5 The “Iron Triangle” of Korea …………………………………………206 8.6 Communications: Exclusive but Intensive ……………………………...210 8.7 Privatization of Profit and Socialization of Loss ……………………….215 8.8 Case Study: Lone Star‟s Buy-out of KEB ………………………………218 vi 8.9 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………...233 9: Conclusion ………...……………………………………………235 9.1 The Purpose and Summary of the Thesis ……………………………236 9.2 The Findings and Discussion ……………....…………………………….238 9.3 The Contribution of this Thesis ……………...…………………………….247 Appendix1: List of interviewees ……………………………………………....249 Appendix2: The Media used for Textual and Content Analyses ……………....252 Appendix3: The Presidents of Korea and their Terms in Office ………………253 Bibliography ………..…………………………………………………………...254 vii List of Tables and Figures Table 2-1: The Income Distribution