Factors in Thai audiences’ reception of Korean celebrity reality shows

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to study (1) the formats of Korean celebrity reality shows (2) Thai audiences’ reception of Korean celebrity reality shows and (3) the factors influencing Thai audiences’ reception of Korean celebrity reality shows. In qualitative research section, the researcher analyzed the formats based on 3 selected shows; We got married, Family Outing season1, and Right Now, It’s Girls’ Generation. The researcher also conducts an in-depth interview with some informants including the administrator and founder of community fan page of the selected shows. In quantitative research section, a questionnaire is a vital tool to collect data from the samples who are Thai audiences aged between 13 and 50 years old 400 people. The results reveal that the formats of the 3 selected shows share some characteristics in common. The cameras are not hidden. The script is only served to guide the direction of the shows but not use in forms of the dialogue or conversation. There are special gimmicks such as emoticon, symbols and caption that help describe the situation and celebrities’ expression. However, each show has different narrative styles. According to the audiences' reception, most of audiences are female, more than half of them aged from 23 to 35 years old, most of them are in undergraduate level, the occupation is student and do not earn any income. They started to watch the shows by themselves because of the 3 factors. The most influential factor is the show participants. The audiences watch the shows because the participants are their favourite celebrities. The other reason is they would like to know more about their favourite celebrities. The second influential factor is the show content, format and presentation. It is revealed that the entertainment in the reality show attracts the audiences’ interest. The least influential is external factor such as the convenience and they have a lot of free time.