Research Proposal

Separate Worlds

I want to do my project on the idea of manufacturing consent to wage war against communist countries. Imperialism has led a capitalist country like the US to have coups in countries like Ghana, Venezuela, and Bolivia, have neocolonial power in countries like South Korea, and wage economical war against countries like the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the People’s Republic of China. Arguably the “Red Scare” in the US has never ended but instead has become more inconspicuous. Thousands of Americans are ready to wish death upon citizens in the DPRK and China without knowing anything about their histories and the US’s influences against these countries. I also want to talk about Cuba and African socialist countries (before coups that put them out of power like Burkina Faso) but need to do more research.

The question I am attempting to answer is “How are communist countries dehumanized?” This was the clearest way I could describe my aim in this paper, as I think a lot of different factors we’ve talked about in class affect this inquiry (dehumanizing/othering, colonialism/neocolonialism, imperialism, capitalism, etc.).

I think I can answer my research question in a variety of ways. I want to reference Noam Chomsky’s “Manufacturing Consent” (whether it be the book or the short video), and Michael Parenti’s “Inventing Reality”. These two are political economy analyses that I think are key to understanding my topic. I also plan on examining a documentary about the DPRK called “My Brothers and Sisters to the North” and another video called “Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang in Seoul”. Recently, China has been under fire in terms of the idea of “China taking over the world” as well as WW3 vs. the DPRK. Most, if not all, Americans are never given a proper history lesson on these two countries. When all we know about these countries is gathered largely from the media, we understand how media is not impartial but instead directly influence us. MBASITN gives us an inside look into the citizens of the DPRK and how they live their daily lives. This I think will help to humanize the DPRK to people who have only consumed negative propaganda about them. It’s also interesting to hear first-person narratives from the citizens about their views on the government. LCOPIS was really heartbreaking for me to watch. It breaks down the illusion of people who wish to come to the south to flee the north and really puts historical context into the testimonies from defectors. I think that both political economy analysis and documentaries are the two main modes of inquiry I will be approaching this with, along with some articles and speeches like Thomas Sankara talking about imperialism and this article from Hampton Think about South Korea as a neo-colony.

As I was exploring this proposal, I think that it may be more beneficial to stick with one specific example of manufacturing consent (like the Korean peninsula and reunification). I found an interview with a current organizer from the North who has lived in the South after being captured during this war that I think would be good to reference. I also would like to include this short documentary of a small remote Korean village that is directly affected by US imperialism and occupation.

References

• Aj+. “This Remote South Korean Village Has Become a Symbol of Resistance against U.S. Militarism. Pic.twitter.com/LTkVh5DRgM.” Twitter, Twitter, 6 Nov. 2017, twitter.com/ajplus/status/927676974272716800?s=20.
• AlJazeeraEnglish. “Noam Chomsky — The 5 Filters of the Mass Media Machine.” YouTube, YouTube, 2 Mar. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=34LGPIXvU5M.
• Bove, Riley. “From Stolen Land to Riches: US Neo-Colonialism in South Korea.” Hampton Institute, Hampton Institute, 8 Jan. 2020, www.hamptonthink.org/read/from-stolen-land-to-riches-us-neo-colonialism-in-south-korea.
• Cho, Sung-Hyung, director. My Brothers and Sisters in the North. Daily Life in North Korea — “My Brothers and Sisters in the North” (Full Awarded Documentary), MAGNETFILM GmbH, 2016, youtu.be/IBqeC8ihsO8.
• Ford, Derek R. “Still Fighting for Korea’s Liberation: An Interview with Ahn Hak-Sop.” Hampton Institute, Hampton Institute, 25 Jan. 2020, www.hamptonthink.org/read/still-fighting-for-koreas-liberation-an-interview-with-ahn-hok-sop.
• Herman, Edward S., and Noam Chomsky. Manufacturing Consent: the Political Economy of the Mass Media. Vintage Digital, 2010.
• Parenti, Michael. Inventing Reality: the Politics of News Media. St. Martin’s Press, 1993.
• Yun, David, director. Loyal Citizens of Pyongyang in Seoul (서울의 평양 시민들), 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkUMZS-ZegM.