Page 262 - Culture Technology Communication

Internet Discourse 245

habitus concerning Internet use in Korea. Second, I present an
ethnographic study of sixteen Korean students in elementary, junior
high, and high schools. Most of these students were novice Internet
users whom I interviewed for two months in 1996.
Generally, it appears that through symbolic power, the Internet
integrates people at the margin of the world into the habitus of the
virtual world system. The Internet educates Korean younger genera-
tion through guiding rules and the pre-existing order of the virtual
world system. In Bourdieu’s terms, it constantly implants a certain
taste and knowledge by means of social distinction and meconnai-
sance. The controlling mechanism of the virtual world system is dif-
ferent from political intervention and physical exploitation in the
modern world system (Wallerstein 1979). In the contemporary world,
it is not economic, but cultural power that controls people. Cultural
capital is the most effective controlling mechanism in the virtual
world system. It efficiently affects people—in this case, the younger
generation as a minority in Korea—at the very corner of the world. In
the virtual world system, the Internet provides a legitimate way of
using language and imparting knowledge. People voluntarily habit-
uate themselves to the rules of the Internet while believing it to be a
treasure island of the most advanced information and a democratic
means of communication. This voluntary participation is not false,
but is based on meconnaissance or the power/knowledge of science
and technology.
Specifically, I begin by measuring and analyzing discourse con-
cerning the Internet as presented by Korean journalism. In Korean
society, the Internet is rapidly disseminated partly because of a social
mobilization effected by journalism and political propaganda. Com-
petition among the most widely circulated Korean newspapers has
led to the social movement of disseminating the Internet: Kidnet on
Chosun Daily, The Internet Youth Camp (IYC) on Dong-A Daily, and
The Internet in Education (IIE) on Joong-Ang Daily. Hanguerae, the
most progressive and critically-oriented newspaper, also provides ex-
tensive coverage of the Internet. These newspapers have special sec-
tions on the Internet and information technology every week. Kidnet
of Chosun Daily is a movement for distribution of the Internet to ele-
mentary school students, whereas IIE of Joong-Ang Daily is for jun-
ior and high school students and IYC of Dong-A Daily is for college
students. Competition in the newspaper industry limits each other’s
territory among the Internet users.
Secondly, this paper adopts an ethnographic approach in order
to scrutize Internet use in people’s everyday life. It will examine