Winning back Koreans' interest in reading
- 9 years ago
How many books do you read a month?
Reading more books... almost never fails to make it onto lists of new year's resolutions for many Koreans... but the reality is that fewer people are picking up books these days.
Arirang's Kwon Soa has the story.
An adult literacy rate of 98 percent.
Roughly seven out of ten go to university.
But the average household in Korea buys fewer than one book a month.
Somewhat ironic, but Koreans' interest in reading seems to be fading.
Last year, only five percent of Koreans over 13 years old said their favorite hobby was reading.
That's down from eight percent in 2004.
"People are just choosing to spend their money on other things. With the rising amount of academic and work-related stress, they feel the need to release that by entertaining themselves in a more active way than reading."
"While spending on culture and entertainment in Korea has risen for 10 straight years, spending on books has decreased steadily for the past four."
The amount of money the average household in Korea spent on books last year slumped to a record low.
Paper book sales are down, but with reading via digital devices becoming more common,... there is optimism that the trend could push the nation's reading rate back up.
One of Korea's major bookstores, Kyobo, has seen success in its two-year e-book service history, as its customers read nearly 15 books a year on average.
But there is skepticism too.
"It's hard to say the rise in e-books will reignite Korea's lost love for reading, as the majority of e-book readers are those who already are passionate readers of conventional books."
To trigger a greater passion for books in the average person, bookstore owners have started to do more than just sell books.
"We try to entice customers by organizing meetings with authors or by holding literature lectures."
And experts say a key way to restore an interest in reading is to encourage people to perceive it as a hobby that can be shared with other peo
Reading more books... almost never fails to make it onto lists of new year's resolutions for many Koreans... but the reality is that fewer people are picking up books these days.
Arirang's Kwon Soa has the story.
An adult literacy rate of 98 percent.
Roughly seven out of ten go to university.
But the average household in Korea buys fewer than one book a month.
Somewhat ironic, but Koreans' interest in reading seems to be fading.
Last year, only five percent of Koreans over 13 years old said their favorite hobby was reading.
That's down from eight percent in 2004.
"People are just choosing to spend their money on other things. With the rising amount of academic and work-related stress, they feel the need to release that by entertaining themselves in a more active way than reading."
"While spending on culture and entertainment in Korea has risen for 10 straight years, spending on books has decreased steadily for the past four."
The amount of money the average household in Korea spent on books last year slumped to a record low.
Paper book sales are down, but with reading via digital devices becoming more common,... there is optimism that the trend could push the nation's reading rate back up.
One of Korea's major bookstores, Kyobo, has seen success in its two-year e-book service history, as its customers read nearly 15 books a year on average.
But there is skepticism too.
"It's hard to say the rise in e-books will reignite Korea's lost love for reading, as the majority of e-book readers are those who already are passionate readers of conventional books."
To trigger a greater passion for books in the average person, bookstore owners have started to do more than just sell books.
"We try to entice customers by organizing meetings with authors or by holding literature lectures."
And experts say a key way to restore an interest in reading is to encourage people to perceive it as a hobby that can be shared with other peo