'K-Webtoon' Masked President Moon: "Korean Webtoons Rank No.1 in Japan"

After Deliberation on State Council Agenda, Ministry of Culture Introduces Produced Masks... "Webtoons, the New Hallyu Representing K-Content"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min] "It is said that Korean webtoons are recording the highest sales in the webtoon market of Japan, a global comic powerhouse."

President Moon Jae-in said this on the 3rd after reviewing the agenda at the Cabinet meeting while taking out a mask. It was an explanation about the K-Webtoon mask produced by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

President Moon emphasized, "Today (the 3rd) is 'Comics Day.' Especially during the COVID-19 situation, the popularity of webtoons has exploded domestically," adding, "Overseas expansion is also active. Korean webtoons are highly evaluated in the United States and Japan."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Moon explained, "Webtoons are now a genre representing K-content and are regarded as part of the new Korean Wave. That is why the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism produced masks to encourage and support the webtoon content industry."

Introducing the mask engraved with the protagonist of a webtoon, President Moon said, "The artist donated the protagonist character as a talent contribution."

Kang Min-seok, the Blue House spokesperson, explained in a written briefing, "The webtoon character engraved on the mask was 'Kim Hyun,' the protagonist from 'TEN' by artist Lee Eun-jae," adding, "'TEN' is a webtoon that depicts how the protagonist, who was bullied at school, escapes from school violence and grows."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Park Yang-woo, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said at the Cabinet meeting that "South Korea ranks fifth in the global comic market. Our webtoon platforms are dominating digital comic markets in various countries," and explained, "We decided to produce webtoon masks because featuring webtoon characters on masks would help with exports and also comfort the youth who have been attending face-to-face classes."

President Moon said, "Besides Lee Eun-jae’s 'TEN,' the webtoon masks produced by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also feature characters from 'Itaewon Class' (by artist Gwangjin) and 'Her Private Life' (by artist Roseong)," adding, "For energetic students, wearing masks can be uncomfortable, so including webtoon characters on masks also carries the meaning of encouraging mask-wearing."

President Moon said, "The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism initially proposed that Cabinet members wear webtoon masks at the Cabinet meeting to encourage the webtoon industry, but it was too radical and was not adopted. However, the intention is profound, so I am introducing it," and added, "All ministries, please do not hesitate to come up with ideas. Ideas that seem ingenious or sometimes even quirky are welcome."

Meanwhile, Spokesperson Kang said, "'K-Webtoon Masks' will be distributed to 990 people selected by lottery among those who visit the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Instagram, leave comments encouraging youth to wear masks, and write the name of the webtoon artist whose work they want to receive," adding, "The set will also include a Daum Webtoon viewing pass, a droplet-blocking filter, ear-protecting silicone, and a regular cotton mask."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.