KOREAN WAVE, STRONG OR WEAK?

Welcome to Wednesday's edition of Press Perspective.

It's May 14th here in Seoul.

I'm Min Sun-hee.

Today we take a gauge of the Korean Wave in recent times and some of the tasks ahead.

For more I have freelance journalist David Lee here in the studio.

David it's a pleasure.

I also have Marianna Baroli with Italian news magazine Panorama.

Marianna it's great to have you on.

1) David, let's start with an article you recently wrote about the power play between K-pop artists and their agencies and its broader impact on the industry as a whole.

2) Marianna, despite the growing presence of K-pop on the international stage, album sales fell for the first time in a decade last year.

3) David, beyond K-pop, K-screen productions have failed to make it onto the list of this year's Cannes Film Festival, which kicked off this past Tuesday.

4) Marianna, some believe the presence of streaming platforms like Netflix has shifted the movie industry's focus to more commercial productions rather than artistic pursuits.

5) David, U.S. President Donald Trump recently spoke about "100% tariffs on movies not made in the U.S."

6) Marianna, K-pop group NCT WISH was recently unable to partake in the SMTOWN LIVE 2025 event in LA owing to visa issues.

7) David, K-pop and K-dramas continue to make headlines, and yet some critics claim the Korean Wave may soon hit a snag.

8) And Marianna, what are your thoughts regarding the concern here about the future of the Korean Wave?

All right.