The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister YU In Chon, MCST) is proactively working to provide accurate and comprehensive information about South Korea on an international scale. This initiative involves monitoring and analyzing the current flow of information about Korea worldwide.

The MCST has analyzed foreign media trends and surveyed the country’s image via the former Korean Culture and Information Service, aiming to grasp and monitor how South Korea is perceived and understood globally. From this year, the ministry will enhance its efforts to survey the dissemination of information about Korea abroad, focusing on the efforts of the newly established International Cultural Affairs and Public Relations Office within MCST.

The survey’s content will be developed by taking into account the requirements from various ministries. In addition, the survey will expand its scope beyond foreign media to include online encyclopedias (such as Wikipedia), tourism websites, books, and the official websites of international organizations that are often referenced to consult for information about Korea. MCST intends to finalize the subjects and scope of the survey by early April, following feedback from government departments and related organizations. The study will be conducted, and its findings will be shared with the relevant agencies and organizations by October. The analysis of how information related to Korea is circulated globally will serve as a basis for future national promotion strategies.

The Deputy Minister of the International Cultural Affairs and Public Relations Office at MCST remarked “There is a growing international interest in Korea, with increasingly diverse areas of focus. Analyzing Korean-related information available overseas is the first step in addressing this interest. We anticipate that this will lead to more timely and field-oriented government initiatives to introduce South Korea to the world properly.”