Soshified
Created on February 1, 2008, Soshified is a website that represents a global fan community for Girls’ Generation, or SNSD. With 200,000 members and 176 staff members, it describes itself as “the authoritative source for the latest news and media about the top South Korean girl group, including high quality pictures, video streams and in-house English-subtitled videos.”
As the word cloud reflects, the site is organized primarily around SNSD. Individual members make appearances in the feed with equal frequency, but nothing generates more content than SNSD itself.
This site reflects a high degree of organization and activity through a variety of meetups, fan projects and charity work, all of which are global in nature. It has donated tens of thousands of dollars to various charities: “Soshified’s Japan Relief Fund Project raised a total of US$45,500 for the victims of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. This was achieved through a 3-week donation drive from 12 March to 31 March, 2011 by 480 members from 32 countries.” Fan projects that support SNSD include participation from around the globe, such as the 2nd Anniversary Fan Project, where “A Soshified passport was made for the girls, and a total of 904 messages were sent in from 62 countries.” The professional nature of the site can be seen in its email for press and media inquires, as well as projects such as the 2011 “field trip” organized in partnership with the Korean Tourism Organization, which included “the attending of Girls’ Generation 2nd Tour Concert and MBC studio recordings.”
The economic dimension of the site is prevalent and transparent. The site features a section devoted to acquiring SNSD merchandise, which is seen as part of the support of the group by the fans. In addition, individuals can donate to Soshified itself via a Pay Pal account in the Forum. The site displays the total amount of gross donations, as well as net donation amounts after the deduction of PayPal fees.
Forums provide a place for interaction with other members of the fan community. Highly organized, the forum features sub-forums for each of the members, Soshified activities, media and a fan area for members. The forum contains over 200,000 members, with over 700 members online at any given time. The forum also solicits for individuals to join in the capacity of radio DJs, translators and writers.
The site posts content from other sources on the activities of the members of the group as well as the group as a whole, with full attribution. Such content also features full translations of articles on the group. The site also posts original content by site staff. Substantial editorials, such as The Growing Cost of Collecting SoShi Merchandise, explore the viability of acquiring fan merchandise given the financial situation of SONEs around the world. Can Girls’ Generation Benefit From the ‘Gangnam Style’ Phenomenon? contemplates the impact of K-pop singer Psy’s success in Western countries like the United States. The site also reviews music videos and releases by the group.
The site also features original creative content as well. Soshitoons is an ongoing comic series. The site also features spotlights of members and staff. Cucumber, an ongoing fan fiction series, is in its 26th edition.
Digital Tour (Best viewed in 720p at Full Screen)