[Asia Economy Jeong Wanju, Deputy Director and Political Chief] The powerful weapon of the dinosaur content company Netflix is not just its diverse content. Their unique know-how called the 'recommendation algorithm' continuously reorganizes content to suit consumers' tastes.
It groups consumer patterns and uses various tags to stimulate addiction. It is equipped with a strategic weapon that efficiently targets consumers' perspectives and preferences. Remodeling the hidden individual desires into customized forms was effective.
The case of Netflix should not be viewed solely as a corporate survival strategy. This is especially true for the political sphere. Regardless of party lines, politicians' rhetoric seems to be increasingly chaotic. Like elementary school students, they tend to latch onto the opponent's words rather than the essence. The biased double standards of 'Naeronambul' (double standards) have long been formalized. Politics is becoming more and more caricatured and only fuels disgust.
They verbally emphasize communication with the people. However, in reality, they only pour out what they want to say. Criticism that they lack empathy aligned with public sentiment is repeated but always goes unheeded.
The lesson from the general election brought by the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) seems already forgotten. In the general election where the 'super ruling party' was born and the main opposition party suffered a crushing defeat, the people chose 'pragmatism.' They did not choose the divided ruling and opposition parties based on factional logic. Practical stability for my life, my family's life, and my neighbors' lives decided the vote.
What about now? The massive ruling party with '176 seats' is enjoying its election victory with unstoppable unilateral dominance. There is no visible process of persuading the opposition for cooperation. Instead, as the opposition points out, only remarks perceived as 'arrogance and conceit' are rampant.
The sight of ruling party lawmakers engrossed in a daily offensive seemingly urging the resignation of the Prosecutor General and the Board of Audit and Inspection chief, whose terms are guaranteed, is bitter. It is like the principle that a 'means' cannot be justified just because the 'purpose' is right. How could there not be voices criticizing it as 'democratic dictatorship' instead of 'military dictatorship'?
The reason why the remarks of ruling party members Park Beomgye and Yoon Junbyung added fuel to the controversy over jeonse and wolse (rental deposit and monthly rent) and backfired is the same. It was the result of not being able to hold back what they wanted to say from the premise of 'I am right and you are wrong' in response to Yoon Heesook of the Future United Party's '5-minute speech' syndrome.
Yoon's remarks are, in fact, a painful point for the United Party. How little sympathy did the United Party lawmakers' remarks gain that a 5-minute speech caused such a stir? They shouted with loud voices and baseless suspicions, opposing for the sake of opposition, but in the end, it was nothing more than self-display. They failed to gain public consensus.
Another term for a member of the National Assembly is 'Seonryang (選良),' meaning an excellent person chosen. However, the current Seonryang reject rational thinking and common sense. Their humanities insight and empathy are at rock bottom.
Let's recall the negotiation group leader speech by Yoo Seungmin, the floor leader of the Saenuri Party at the time. The then opposition party, the New Politics Alliance for Democracy, evaluated it as a "great speech showing the direction conservatism should take," causing a significant impact. It clearly presented the philosophy of conservative self-reflection and reformist conservatism. It is still regarded as a 'legendary speech' because it was a tailored speech representing the public's dissatisfaction with the conservative ruling party.
If Netflix were merely a platform showing content, it would not have achieved such results. If politicians keep repeating content long past its expiration date and focus only on their own remarks regardless of the public's perspective, the outcome is obvious. In the case of a company, it would be bankruptcy. Watching the 'nonsense extravaganza' of Seonryang is now simply tiresome.
Following the aftermath of Yoon's remarks, on the 4th, the National Assembly saw a rare continuation of 'debate battles' among ruling and opposition lawmakers rather than ugly political strife. How long this will last is uncertain, but we can only hope the message competition between the parties shown in one afternoon continues.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
