Policy, Pop & Dumplings

Hot water over iced lates. Slippers indoors. Traditional medicine over Western pharmaceuticals. Why is everyone suddenly romanticizing Chinese lifestyle choices—and why does it feel political?This week, Gunjan and Paroma unpack Chinamaxxing through the lens of shifting cultural power. From Fareed Zakaria and Jon Stewart on Western liberalism’s fraying moral authority to bell hooks on “eating the other,” we ask: is this appreciation, appropriation, or something stranger? A geopolitical vibe shift disguised as wellness trends? When choosing herbal tea over coffee starts to feel like picking a side, what does that say about whose culture holds capital now?Credits and Show notes: 1. All About Love, New Visions, Bell Hooks2. Mala Project by Sticky Rice

In this episode, we ramble on about what actually defined 2025 for us and our feeds - birth-rate panic, short feeds, intense fandoms, and taste flexing as the new status symbol. We also talk about how K-systems are quietly influencing everything from music to streaming to soft power. If 2025 felt chaotic, this is the breakdown for everything that happened and everything we are gearing up for.Credits:Noona, You Are a Woman to Me (2025) My Korean Boyfriend (2026) - Available on NetflixTwo is already too many - Phoebe Arslanagic-LittleBillionaires can't love anymore: China bans your favourite CEO romance.‘Parasocial’ is Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2025Declining Consumer Demand Pulls Luxury Brand Valuations Down (Forbes, 2025)Gentle MonsterLearn languages on PreplyWhen Life Gives You Tangerines (2025) - Available on NetflixTaiwan Travelogue - Yáng Shuāng-zǐ, 楊双子, Lin King (Translator)Toronto International Festival of Authors

Across East Asia, school, barracks, and work often run on rank, rivalry, and endurance. In this episode we n trace how South Korea’s mandatory military service, Japan’s senpai-kohai culture, and China’s exam pressure shape what “strength” and “justice” look like for young people. We discuss why bullying and revenge narratives resonate, and how pop culture can turn private harm into public debate and try wrapping our heads around what it would take to build real belonging instead of fear.Instagram: @policypopdumplings.Email: [email protected]: Ta Park, Van My et al. “Promising Results from the Use of a Korean Drama to Address Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors on School Bullying and Mental Health among Asian American College-Aged Students.” International journal of environmental research and public health vol. 17,5 1637. 3 Mar. 2020, doi:10.3390/ijerph17051637Hong MY and Goo J (2024) The significance of school bullying prevention program: a narrative inquiry from the perspective of a school police officer at a Youth Police Academy in Korea. Front. Educ. 9:1408275. doi: 10.3389/feduc.2024.1408275.

This episode explores how Korean dramas are turning classrooms into mirrors of society. Through stories of bullying, competition, and survival, we ask: can fiction spark real conversations about what students face behind closed doors? And when does storytelling stop reflecting reality and start shaping it? Credits: The Glory, Available on NetflixWeak Hero, Available on NetflixAll Of Us Are Dead, Available on NetflixSky Castle, Available on NetflixClass of Lies, Available on NetflixLord of the Flies

South Korea’s gaming culture shaped a generation and then found itself at the center of a national debate. From PC bangs that became social lifelines to curfews that sparked controversy, this episode looks at how a country known for its esports glory began rethinking its own creation. And what if gaming addiction isn’t really about games at all but everything around them?Credits:Addiction by Design - Machine Gambling in Las VegasK-pop Demon Hunters, Available on NetflixWelcome to N.H.K.

One of us is fresh off a Blackpink concert high and obsessing over their new banger "JUMP", and the other is still in a BTS and Stray Kids induced haze. But here's the thing about K-pop that'll blow your mind: 150 million fans worldwide aren't just streaming and screaming, they are organizing climate campaigns that are making corporations sweat. We are diving into how fandoms went from bulk-buying albums to forcing Hyundai to drop coal partnerships, why luxury brands are getting called out for "K-washing," and how Indonesian presidential candidates are literally using concert tickets to win elections. From photocard addiction to carbon activism, this is the story of how stan culture accidentally became a powerful climate movement.Credits:Blackpink Toronto Concert Audio, personal.Books by Kim YounaUnboxed: High Fashion, High CarbonTwitter and teargas: the power and fragility of networks protest, by Zeynep TufekciDaughters of the Fragrant Flower Garden, Zhuqing LiHometown Cha Cha Cha, Available on NetflixRacket Boys, Available on NetflixPrincess Mononoke, Available on Netflix

Beneath the turquoise salt waters of Jeju, a sisterhood of women has held its breath for centuries. The Haenyeo dive without tanks, armed with only their lungs, a knife, and the quiet rhythm of the sea. They have built lives from the ocean’s gifts, defied traditional gender roles, and passed their skills from mother to daughter. Now, warming seas and dwindling harvests threaten not just their livelihood, but an entire way of being. This is the sound of waves meeting history- of women, water, and a fight to endure.Further reading, watching and spiralling:Daughter of the Sea: Sisterhood in the Sea | Patagonia FilmsDeep Dive Korea: Song Ji-Hyo's Haenyeo AdventureThe Island of Sea Women, Lisa SeeWe Do Not Part, Han KangWhen Life Gives You Tangerines, Available on NetflixOur Blues, Available on NetflixWelcome to Samdal-ri, Available on NetflixMy Lovely Sam Soon, Available on Amazon Prime Video

Two policy nerds decode the Hallyu Wave, the rise of Asian dramas, and why subtitles are changing the world. They explore how pop culture, soft power, and identity collide in a global age. From pandemic binge-watching to the boom of OTT platforms, they unpack how art, identity, and influence intersect—and what it means to belong everywhere and nowhere at once.