Tradition, Escapism and The Occupation:
Examining Japanese Mass Media

I. Introduction

In the twentieth century, the mass media and popular culture of the United States has taken on an ever more dominating position throughout the world. Pop singers, athletes, movie stars and other celebrities from the United States have international name recognition. Clearly, the United States is the world leader in mass media pervasiveness, but there is one country that has often managed to reverse the trend, introducing many elements of its own mass media and popular culture around the globe, including to the United States.

While American mass media products, companies, and affiliated terms like MTV, Titanic and Michael Jackson are now international; words such as Sony, Pokémon, Godzilla, and Nintendo are also well known in many countries. The mass media of Japan, drawing on influences from both the country’s rich traditions and the occupation of the country by allied forces, especially the U.S., after World War II, have grown into a regional and global influence of high importance over the last fifty years. Translated versions of manga (Japanese comics) and anime (Japanese animation) are read and watched by many around the world, while Japanese fashion, pop music and films circulate strongly throughout Asia. Japan is also the world’s top producer and exporter of many of the technologies that make modern mass media possible, including VCRs and CD players (Ivy, 257). A 1999 survey revealed that media has the fourth largest influence on youths in Japan after politicians, big corporations, and the government, indicating that Japanese mass media have a strong presence at home as well (Teo).

Japanese mass media (or masu mejia, the English-borrowed Japanese phrase) include the typical industrialized forums of newspapers, magazines, television and film, but also features aspects that are exclusive to the country, such as the mass appeal of manga and anime, as well as the function of offspring of mass media like karaoke singing. Before examining each medium, it is important to gain at least a minimal understanding of the nation, culture and history that has produced them.

II.  Background Information About Japan and Japanese Society

The country of Japan consists of four main islands (Hokkaidoo, Honshuu, Shikoku, and Kyuushuu) and roughly 3,900 smaller ones. (Author’s note- Throughout this paper, double vowels in Japanese names and words will be used to denote the proper long vowel sounds of the words.) This archipelago stretches just under 1,900 miles from north to south. At its closest point to the Asian mainland, Japan is 120 miles from South Korea (Hendry, 6-7). The country is divided into 47 prefectures, which are further divided into 652 cities, 1,997 towns and 607 areas which can be called "villages" for lack of a better English word (Hendry, 59).

While Japan has an emperor, he has little political power. The government of Japan is divided into three branches: legislative, administrative, and judicial. The legislative branch consists of the Diet, which is divided into the House of Councilors (upper house) and the House of Peers (lower house). The length of term for each person in the Diet is six years, but elections are staggered so that not every term expires the same year. The administrative branch consists of the cabinet, appointed and headed by the prime minister (currently Keizo Obuchi), who is elected. The final branch, the judicial, consists of the Supreme Court, which is primarily appointed by the cabinet. The chief justice of the supreme court is appointed by the emperor (Hendry, 188-189).

Statistics from 1992 reveal that Japan was 77 % urbanized, slightly less than the European Union (79 %) and slightly more than the United States (76 %) (Ahmed, etc., on-line). In 1997, the gross national product of Japan was over 4.17 trillion dollars, or $33,076 per capita (Japan Information Network, on-line). When the Allied Occupation began in 1945, the real consumption per capita of Japan was just 15 % of United States consumption. By 1988, that figure had reached 62 % and it continues to grow (Horioka, 263).

In 1997, the population of Japan was estimated at 123.6 million people, twelve percent of which were university graduates and nearly all of which were literate (Sugimoto, 2). Attendance records in Japanese schools have been phenomenal throughout the twentieth century; over 98 % attendance has been reported since 1900. Classes of up to 45 children are common in Japanese schools. The classes are then often divided up into smaller groups. Each group is given a task and the group maintains a collective responsibility and all members of the group receive equal grades (Hendry, 97).

While Shintoo, the native Japanese religion, is widely practiced in the country, it is not uncommon for Japanese to practice elements of other religions as well, primarily Buddhism and Christianity. For example, researcher Youichi Ito suggests that a Japanese family might take a newborn baby to a Shintoo shrine (because it seems the most nationalistic), celebrate a Christian wedding (because it seems the most romantic), and hold a Buddhist funeral (because it seems the most solemn) (Ito, 251).

Ito also points out many differences in the communication styles between Japan and the United States. Japanese society can be classified as collectivistic, homogeneous, and human relations based, while U.S. society is individualistic, heterogeneous, and ideological (Ito, 240-253). Despite the Japanese values of homogeneity and collectivism, several experiments have shown that Japanese subjects are less conforming than U.S. subjects, even when the authority figure is a member of the in-group. This may appear surprising, but collectivistic societies tend to be more particularistic, using different standards in different situations, while individualistic societies tend to be more universalistic, with each individual applying one set of standards to all situations (Ito, 244-245). Ito also mentions that maintaining harmony is an important Japanese value, emphasized by Buddhism (Ito, 252) and that a survey revealed that 76 % of Japanese believe that a silent man is more likely to succeed than a eloquent one (Ito, 260).

III. A Brief History of Japan Through the Allied Occupation

While the previous section dealt with the geography, religion, values and living standards of Japan, the country’s history is also important. Due in part to Japan’s status as an island nation, the country had never undergone a significant occupation by outsiders until the Allied Occupation after World War II. The earliest settlers in Japan arrived somewhere between 10,000 and 20,000 years ago. There is a possible direct lineage between many Japanese today and these earliest settlers, though some scholars believe that those settlers were primarily ancestors of the Ainu people, who were eventually pushed into northern Japan and of which relatively few remain (Hendry, 6-7).

The Japanese tradition of cooperative activity has its roots in the emigration of many mainland Asians during the third century B.C.E. Over the next 600 years, these newcomers established a society in which cooperative activity was increasingly valued (Hendry, 6-7). By the beginning of the Common Era, Japanese society was already highly stratified. During the European Middle Ages, Japan entered a long feudal period (Hendry, 10-12).

Central control was somewhat reestablished in Japan during the Tokugawa Period that began in the sixteenth century. During that beginning of that period, missionaries from Europe could be found in Japan, but the ruling family began to see Christianity as a threat to its power. As a result, all foreigners were ordered out of Japan and Japanese people were forbidden from traveling outside of the country. This began a two and one-half century period of isolation (Hendry, 14).

Commodore Matthew C. Perry of the United States began the "opening" of Japan to the Western world by visiting the country it 1853. Fifteen years later, in 1868, the current regime was overthrown and the young Emperor Meiji was "restored" to the throne (Dower, 3). The position of prime minister in Japan was established in 1885 (Hendry, 16). From 1868 until 1912 the Meiji government socialized citizens for Westernization, industrialization and empire building under the slogan, "Rich Country, Strong Military". The desire for strong military spilled over into the 1930’s and early 1940’s as the country underwent a rapid period of military expansionism (Dower, 3).

Japan’s 1945 defeat in World War II struck was a stunning blow to the nation. After nationalism had reached an all-time high during the war and after the government promised victory, the Japanese people found their country defeated, the victim of the first two atomic bomb attacks in history and occupied by the forces they were supposed to defeat. The relationship between the occupying forces and the Japanese people, however, was a relatively stable one (Kawai, 10).

Unlike Germany and Italy, the wartime government in Japan remained in power after its defeat. Thus, the same leaders who were fighting with the Allied nations were now found cooperating with them to rebuild the country, reform the government, and write a new constitution. The Allied officials often worked behind the scenes and most likely wrote the final draft of the new constitution, rather than helping the Japanese government write it, since it was written in very awkward Japanese (Kawai, 53).

The pre-Occupation constitution of Japan made the emperor the ultimate authority, though he could take no action except through his ministers, whose advice was mandatory in practice. Nonetheless, the theoretical concentration of power in one person prevented the Diet from playing an important role in the processes of government. Under the old constitution, the Diet lacked substantial power and thus, inadequately represented the people (Kawai, 55).

The new constitution, made official in 1947, proclaimed the emperor nothing more than a "symbol of the state deriving his position from the will of the people in whom resides sovereign power." The Diet replaced the emperor as the greatest authority in the land as a result of the new constitution. Both houses of the Diet became directly elected by the people and the new constitution called it the "highest organ of state power" (Kawai, 55-56).

The Allied Occupation, led by the United States, lasted until 1952. The influences of the Occupation were widespread. The new constitution clearly reshaped the government system of Japan into a more U.S. style. Allied and U.S. officials in Japan during the Occupation did their best to encourage and institute democracy and capitalism in the country (Kawai, 60). While many reforms were forced onto the Japanese people, the country’s history since the Occupation has shown its openness to Western ideas without blinding following them. Japan has incorporated elements of its own value system and culture, as well as fresh ideas and technologies into industrialized norms to create institutions, such as mass media, that are in many ways distinctly Japanese, but can look familiar to the Western observer. One mass medium affected by the Occupation was the newspaper industry.

IV. Newspapers

By 1924, newspaper circulation in Japan already topped 6.3 million people daily (Ivy, 242). Occupation historian Kazuo Kawai remarks that "the press had long been a force of liberalism and democracy in Japanese life," even before the Occupation (Kawai, 211). There had always been some government censorship of Japanese newspapers, but during the late 1930’s the government of Japan took full control. On February 26, 1936, military extremists broke into the Asahi Shimbun (Daily Asahi) building and smashed the press equipment in an attempt to stop the publication of the anti-militarist paper. In 1936, the government established the Board of Information to control the press, which used war-time rationing of newsprint to force more than 250 newspapers to consolidate into fifty. The government also merged the nation’s two largest news wire services, who had been competitive rivals, into a single, government controlled agency. According to Kawai, the government reduced the "entire Japanese press to the uniformity and monotony of the official propaganda line (Kawai, 213).

After the war, the Occupation officials ordered the Japanese government to free the press, but it practiced its own censorship by ordering the press not to print anything detrimental to Allied objectives. In fact, stories usually had to be submitted to censors before they could run (Kawai, 215). Following the Occupation, Kawai writes that "the press began to thrive again and came close to reflecting the character of the Japanese public, though leaning slightly more toward a progressive, urban bent rather than a conservative, rural one" (Kawai 218-219).

Today, the Japanese newspaper industry is led by four major newspapers; the Yomiuri Shimbun (Daily Yomiuri), the Asahi Shimbun (Daily Asahi), the Mainichi Shimbun (Daily Mainichi), and the Nikkei Shimbun (Daily Nikkei). All four of these newspapers are national papers, and are named after large corporations rather than geographic areas. Each paper’s main office is located in Tokyo, with regional branch offices located throughout the country (Yomiuri Shimbun Web Site). In addition to the four largest papers, there were 117 other daily papers in the country registered with the Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association (JNPEA) in 1994. The combined daily circulation of morning and evening newspapers in the same year amounted to roughly 72 million newspapers, one copy for every 2.38 people and 1.22 copies per household (The Web Kanzaki).

The JNPEA estimates that more than 80 % of the Japanese population reads at least one newspaper everyday. In its 1994 survey, however, JNPEA found that 54.2 % of the population reads newspapers less now than they had in the past. The same survey revealed that the most widely read portion of newspapers was the television programs pages (66.4 %), followed by social issues (60.5 %), regional articles (56.7 %), and sports (54.3 %). The JNPEA also survey also discovered that daily reading drops steadily through decreasing age demographics, with only 51.7 % of the population aged 18-19 reading every day (The Web Kanzaki).

The Yomiuri Shimbun has the largest daily circulation of any Japanese newspaper, as well as the largest circulation of any newspaper in the entire world. The Yomiuri is the only paper in the world that prints and distributes over 10 million copies per day, passing that mark in May of 1994. The paper’s web site lists their most current circulation at 10,223,923 copies, covering 21.69 % of the households in all of Japan (Yomiuri Shimbun Web Site). Like most companies that own newspapers, Yomiuri is a giant corporation whose holdings include NTV (a televsion network), radio stations, music labels and a professional baseball team, the Yomiuri Giants (NTV Web Site).

Despite its huge circulation numbers, the Yomiuri Shimbun certainly does not maintain a monopoly on a the Japanese newspaper industry, an industry that will account for an estimated 27.2 % of all advertisement spending in the country in 1999 (Advertising Age International Supplement). The Asahi Shimbun has an enormous circulation as well, standing at 8,321,138 according to the latest estimates. The Mainichi Shimbun (3,978,617) and the Nikkei Shimbun (3,021,432) carry large circulations as well (The Web Kanzaki).

The corporations that own these four papers, as well as all other newspaper companies, benefit from the fact that the overwhelming majority of newspapers in Japan are sold through daily subscriptions, rather than at newsstands, providing for a stable market. The newspaper companies also benefit from a system of Saihan-kakaku-iji, the "legal guarantee of the retail price maintenance," an exemption from the anti-trust laws. Critics point to this exemption as the cause of "spoiled media giants" in Japan. The exceptional volume of Japanese newspapers distributed compared to those of quality papers all over the world, is achieved with "over-heated sales competition by a nation wide network of distributors" (The Web Kanzaki).

In newspaper reporting, the Japanese press club system dictates journalism. The press club system consists of the closed membership circles of journalists assigned to major government offices as well as big companies. Writers who cover a specific field usually register with the appropriate press club and have their own desks at the club. Until recent years, the clubs were closed to foreigners, since all members had to be registered with the JNPEA. Over the past few years, members of international wire services like Reuters have been allowed membership. It is a convenient system both for journalists and news sources. Journalists can get information while sitting at their desks and corporations can efficiently hand out their news releases. Club members also usually enjoy the privilege to have regular round-table conferences with the officials. Of course, such a system can contribute to a style of reporting that either consciously or unconsciously reflects the nature of the relationship between the journalist and the office or company that he or she covers, a style contrary to the Japanese value of objective reporting (The Web Kanzaki).

The usually anonymous nature of most articles in Japanese newspapers reflects this strong desire for objectivity. Journalists are educated to write objective articles without any personal opinion. As a result, some news articles can be misleading when personal opinion is indeed evident. The major newspapers have begun to introduce some sections similar to the news analyses found in papers in the United States. The Asahi Shimbun now features a section entitled "My Opinion," while the Mainichi Shimbun contains "Eyes of a Writer." In such sections, personal viewpoint is openly written and all articles are signed. Some local newspapers are attempting to introduce bylines for all articles (The Web Kanzaki).

V. Magazines

Magazines, like newspapers, have a long history in Japan. The first magazine to be published in Japan was titled Seiyo-Zasshi (Western Magazine) and first appeared in October of 1867. The magazine was published by Shunzo Yanagawa, a scholar. Seiyo-Zasshi consisted of just over ten pages of wood-printed booklet. Only six issues appeared before the magazine closed in September of 1869. In 1874, the same year that the Yomiuri Shimbun debuted, Meiroku-Zasshi became the first Japanese magazine that was intended for a wide and general audience (The Web Kanzaki). By 1900, a magazine called Taiyoo had a monthly circulation in excess of 300,00 (Ivy, 224). Most of the magazines that appeared before the turn of the century were focused on business or Western culture.

When Japan entered what would become World War II in 1937, many magazines closed or were forced to change their policies as the government restricted the freedom of the press. After the war, many new magazines started up, despite a lack of paper. In 1956, Weekly Shincho became the first weekly magazine to be published by a publishing house. Until that time, only newspaper companies had published weekly magazines. Shonen-Jampu (Boys’ Jump), which currently has the highest circulation of any magazine in Japan, debuted in 1968. Shonen-Jampu is a manga magazine that runs several different manga storylines in each issue, making Japan the only country in the world whose top selling magazine is a "comic book." (Manga will be discussed in greater detail later in this paper.) The last thirty years have seen hundreds of new specialty magazines introduced (The Web Kanzaki).

Today, Japan publishes the second-most magazines titles in Asia. In 1998, approximately 4,240 different magazine titles were available in the country, placing the nation fifth in the world behind the United States (12,794), China (8,135), the United Kingdom (7,945), and Germany (6,400) (Printing World). Roughly 70 % of the magazines are monthly. Over three billion copies of monthly magazines are sold each month, while over two billion copies of weekly magazines are sold each week (The Web Kanzaki).

While there are an abundance of business, home and other types of informative magazines available in Japan, the newspapers tend to dominate the realm of serious print journalism. Therefore, magazines are more often used for entertainment and for an escape from the objective norms of the newspaper industry. Tabloid magazines are very popular for this reason. Most, if not all, of the major newspaper companies and respected publishing houses also print tabloids. Fuji and Nikkan Gendai are two of the top weekly tabloid magazines in Japan. Researcher Yoshio Sugimoto explains that the many companies publishing tabloids are "cashing in on the public’s desire for non-sterilized news" (Sugimoto, 224).

Some magazines have become forums for marginal political groups. Sugimoto describes the agendas of Shunkan Posuto and Shunkan Gendai as "sexist, nationalist, and anti-government." Meanwhile, magazines like Sapio are targeted primarily towards antiestablishment youth. Nonetheless, Japan has its fair share of the types of magazines found in large numbers in Europe and the United States. Women’s weeklies like Josei Jishin and Shuukan Josei focus on celebrities, royal families and female sexuality (Sugimoto, 224).

While magazines are not as widely read as newspapers in Japan, they do provide an alternative from the typically timid reporting found in newspapers. Since the same companies that publish newspapers publish many magazines, however, it is likely that, for the most part, they are more of a consumer product than a true alternative to newspapers. Regardless of this, the popularity of tabloid and entertainment magazines as well as manga, indicates a desire to escape the humdrum of every day news and social structure. Young and old, rich and poor and just about every other segment of the Japanese population read such escapist and entertainment-based publications. While different magazines appeal to different target audiences or the general population, many tabloids and manga are targeted to commuting businessmen and businesswomen for reading on the way to work (Sugimoto, 225). While we will return to the topic of manga later on, let us know turn our attention to radio.

VI. Radio

The Tokyo Broadcasting Station (TBS) began radio broadcasting as a public utility corporation on March 22, 1925, with similar public corporations following in Osaka and Nagoya shortly thereafter. Receivers’ fees and contracts were required of all radio listeners and within one year of the debut of TBS, there were 285,507 contracts. Nippon Hoosoo Kyookai (NHK) formed as a merger of the three public utility corporations in 1926 and by 1928, the number of receivers’ contracts had increased to over 500,000. NHK remained the only radio network until the start of commercial radio broadcasting in 1951 (Ivy, 243).

Since radio in Japan was originally devoid of competition, it could refrain from providing pure entertainment for mass appeal. Unfortunately, it also lacked the incentive to offer any programs of great distinction. Kazuo Kawai points out that "respectable mediocrity … was its chief characteristic" (Kawai, 220). When the Board of Information took over radio in 1936, NHK began to suffer from the same kind of control that the press did during World War II (Kawai, 221).

The Occupation officials chose radio as its preferred tool to execute their so-called "reeducation for democracy." The airwaves were full of directives and instructions intended to fulfill the goals of the Occupation, though the programming also contained U.S. forms of light entertainment, including jazz (Ivy, 244). While the Occupation officials tried hard to impose their messages upon the Japanese people through radio, their approach went sour with the general population and many people simply stopped listening to the radio. Eventually, the Occupation officials caved in to some extent and returned some control to Japanese programmers. U.S. officials in Japan encouraged programmers to copy popular U.S. programs. When private broadcasting was introduced in 1951, the pace of Japanese radio began being set by competition with the influence of the continued existence of NHK (Kawai, 221).

Today, one of every five people in Japan listens to the radio daily. While that number may not sound very impressive, those who do listen to the radio tune in for an average of over two hours each day. While FM music stations are popular with many young people in Japan, all types of radio programming are immensely popular with self-employed people, carpenters, shop owner, hairdressers, and others who work inside for most of the day. Unlike television, modern Japanese radio tends to appeal to more segmented audiences (Sugimoto, 223).

There are currently about 300 radio stations in Japan, the majority of which can be found on the FM dial. These stations are owned by primarily by commercial broadcasting companies. According to 1992 statistics, fifty-nine such companies operate radio stations only, while 36 operate both radio and television. The range of programming is quite extensive, from pop music to traditional music, from news to radio dramas and other forms of entertainment (The Web Kanzaki).

The two most popular types of music found on youth-oriented radio stations are rock and pop, though techno and club music have gained solid followings with teens in recent years. Popular Japanese music sometimes contains some English lyrics or has an English title. While some Western popular bands are very popular in Japan, the Japanese popular music industry is formidable unto itself, and is popular throughout Asia and has a respectable following around the world. In addition to being heard on the radio, popular Japanese bands and singers can be seen on TV and often record hit songs as the themes of live-action or anime shows. One major name in the popular music business is Tetsuya Komuro, a producer who is also a member of the band Globe. At least one title produced by him can be found in nearly every week’s top ten charts (Japan Guide Online).

Radio in Japan is in some ways similar to radio in other parts of the world, including the United States. While its beginning years feature exclusive dominance by NHK, it is now a commercially driven medium. As television in Japan has captured the nation’s attention, the radio industry has moved to targeting more specific audiences in order to make a profit. Radio in the United States went in a similar direction with the advent of television in that country, but the NHK monopoly prevented Japanese radio from ever enjoying the truly mass appeal that U.S. radio did in the pre-television era. Instead, mass appeal in Japan turned straight from newspapers to television.

VII. Television

According to 1997 statistics, the average Japanese person spends 4.25 hours per day watching television. That average is the third highest in the world behind the United States (6.59) and Italy (4.65) (AdWeek East, 14). When television was introduced to Japan in 1953, it quickly became popular, though few people could truly afford to purchase a set at the high price of ¥15,000. Nonetheless, between the years of 1956 and 1960, the percentage of Japanese families owning a set rose from less than one percent to almost 50 percent (Ivy, 248).

By 1964, the year of the Tokyo Olympics, it had become clear that television had surpassed film in popularity, though movies retained their star-making and trend-setting powers. Researcher William Kelly writes that shows imported from the U.S. like "I Love Lucy and Father Knows Best created a yearning for the middle class lifestyles presented in the show that presented a strong work ethic as the basis for commodity acquisition" (Ivy, 249). Television continued to growth and thrive in Japan and, in 1975, television overtook newspapers as the top medium for advertising (Ivy, 250-251).

Today, more than 90 percent of the Japanese population watches television everyday (Sugimoto, 222). Thousands of different local, cable and satellite television stations exist in Japan, but most local ground stations form an affiliation with one of the five largest commercial networks, all based in Tokyo. NHK also maintains a strong presence on television, despite the commercial competition, and is probably the most globally recognized Japanese network. Each of the five commercial networks, Nippon Television Network (NTV),Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), Fuji-TV, TV-Asahi and TV-Tokyo, are owned by one of the five companies that also print the five largest newspapers in Japan (The Web Kanzaki). NTV, owned by the Yomiuri Company, proclaims itself to be "the top-rated commercial broadcaster (in Japan) for five years in a row" (NTV Web Site). That gives Yomiuri both the top newspaper and the top commercial television network in Japan.

Cable television in Japan was originally used only in remote areas, but in 1987, the first urban cable station began in Tokyo (The Web Kanzaki). Cable has grown steadily since then and is now found in 28.2 % of Japanese households. While that number trails far behind the United States, it is higher than many other industrialized nations and is on the rise. Satellite television actually reaches a higher percentage (30.1 %) of homes in the country than cable (Advertising Age International Supplement). The Japanese government recognizes that the future of television does not lie in ground-broadcasting networks and has taken steps to accelerate the pace.

The Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications put a ban on the opening of new terrestrial stations in May 1995. The MPT determined that, in the new age of multi-channel television typified by satellite broadcasting and cable TV, there was no need for any further increase in the number of regional TV stations that have difficulty operating without the support of a major Tokyo-based broadcaster. Such an unprecedented move required that communications companies and entrepreneurs who wished to enter the television broadcasting business would have to either buy an existing station or turn their attention to cable, satellite, or the fledgling digital broadcasting industry (The Web Kanzaki). Last year, the MPT announced a ambitious schedule to shift all analog television broadcasts to digital by the year 2010 (Electronic Engineering Times, 8).

Currently, network giants such as TBS air many series, all of which contain a finite number of episodes. If the series is very popular, a sequel or several sequels may be released in subsequent years. Since the series have definite beginnings and ends, TBS list dozens of series as current, since they have all aired, are airing, or will air over a year’s time. TBS lists 22 variety shows, 25 animated shows, 34 documentary specials and news shows, and a multitude of dramas as current on their web site. The dramas are divided into categories such as "romantic comedies," "horror," "on the job," "youth," "it’s a man’s life," and, "a woman’s perspective" (TBS web site).

Television in Japan is currently designed to appeal to mass audiences, though the rise of cable and satellite channels may slightly change that. Of all Japanese mass media, television has, arguably, the most homogenizing effect on people. Unlike newspapers, however, television looks to entertain and even newscasters "openly make evaluative comments between news stories, taking one side and accusing the other" (Sugimoto, 223). In an effort to compete for viewers, Japanese stations are full of slapstick comedies, voyeuristic shows, violent programs and other broadcasts that generally have little resemblance to everyday life. Unlike shows in other parts of the world, however, the programs are not simply a perversion of cultural values but are often completely antithetical to them (Sugimoto, 223). The alternative reality presented in tabloid magazines and mangas are just as, if not more prevelant, on television. Why a society that puts strong stock in its cultural values would willfully produce and enjoy shows that are often so divergent from those values is a topic we shall return to later on. For now, let us turn our attention towards film.

VIII. Film

Of all forms of mass media in Japan, the film industry may have the largest direct foreign influence. Since 1986, foreign films (a large number of them from the United Sates) in Japan have earned more revenue than domestic ones. By 1998 the gap had widened to ¥60,969,000 for foreign films compared to ¥26,391,000 for domestic ones. The actual numbers of domestic and foreign films released, however, are not as far apart. Though more foreign films than domestic ones have been released every year since 1987, in 1998 only 57 more foreign films were released than domestic ones (306 foreign, 249 domestic). This means that in 1998, the average foreign film in Japan brought in ¥199,245, while the average domestic film brought in just ¥105,988, nearly twice as much. The highest grossing film ever in Japan is Titanic, which brought in over ¥16,000,000 at the box office (Japan Information Network).

As a whole, the cinema industry in Japan is on the rebound. Movie theater revenues in 1996 totaled ¥148,870,000, the lowest total since before 1983. The total rebounded to ¥177,197,000 in 1997, however, and increased again in 1998 to ¥193,499,000 (Japan Information Network). While those numbers are slightly skewed since the anime hit Mononoke Hime (Princess Mononoke) was in theaters in 1997 and Titanic was shown in Japan in 1998, they are nonetheless impressive.

One reason that foreign films, especially those produced in the United States, tend to take in more revenue than domestic Japanese ones is that few film studios in Japan have the budgets to produce the high-cost blockbusters that Hollywood does. Despite this, many Japanese directors, producers, and films do have international acclaim. The legendary Kenzi Mizoguchi directed several films that were well received in Japan and are known in other parts of the world as well, including A Geisha (1953) and parts one and two of The 47 Ronin. Akira Kurosawa is another prominent figure in Japanese filmmaking. His titles include the epic films Ran (1985) and Seven Samurai (1954) (Lisa’s Japanese Movie Listings).

On the less serious side, Japan has also produced its share of senseless action and monster films. The most famous of these films are the Godzilla series, which began in 1956 with a film directed by Terry Morse, a foreign director. That film was originally released as Gojira in Japan, but was released in North America as Godzilla, King of the Monsters. Japanese director Insohiro Honda continued the Godzilla series in 1964 with Godzilla vs. The Thing and added Godzilla’s Revenge in 1969. Yoshimitu Banno directed Godzilla vs. The Smog Monster in 1972, while Jun Fukuda directed the last Japanese-directed Godzilla film, Godzilla vs. Megalon in 1976 (Lisa’s Japanese Movie Listings).

While Japanese directors and producers have had some commercial success at home and abroad, the modern film market in Japan is more commercially dominated by U.S. films, in part due to the high budget films loaded with special effects that come out of Hollywood. In a culture that often seeks fantastic escapism in its media, U.S. movies have a lot to offer. These budget problems are one of the reasons why anime films account for 55% of the domestic gross box office receipts in Japan (Bayliss). Animators can produced stunning visual effects for fractions of the cost that live-action directors and producers can.

IX. Anime

Mononoke Hime, by Hayao Miyazaki, has earned 150 million dollars in Japan and is that country’s second highest grossing movie of all time, topped only by Titanic (New York Daily News News Service). This means that the highest grossing domestic film in Japan is an animated one. A U.S.-dubbed version of the film began playing in the United States in select cities in the fall of 1999. The film has received extremely favorable reviews in both countries and typifies the popularity of animation in Japan.

Japanese animation is unlike animation produced in any other part of the world. It often features fade-ins, close-ups, unusual camera angles, round characters and a host of other features found almost exclusively in live-action productions throughout the rest of the globe. Anime also covers as wide a range of genres as live action productions. Genres of anime range from children and family oriented series and movies (Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon; Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon), fantasy stories geared at teenagers and up (El-Hazard: The Magnificent World), action (Patlabor), situational comedies (Taiho Shuizaho; You’re Under Arrest), drama (Koko wa Greenwood; Here is Greenwood), science fiction (3x3 Eyes), historical classics (Grave of the Fireflies) and even parodies of other anime (Project A-ko). While there are also many hard-core pornographic anime titles, they are no more typical of anime than Debbie Does Dallas is of U.S. live-action films, despite a popular North American myth to the contrary.

Anime in Japan is delivered in three primary forms. Anime movies, as mentioned above, account for a large portion of the domestic box office gross. Animated television series air at several different times through the day on Japanese networks, according to what audience is being targeted. Lastly, animation is often released directly to video. Such anime is referred to as original video animation (OVA). All three forums are extremely popular and it is not uncommon for anime titles to have been released in all three forums, as is the case for Ranma ½, which includes several television series, many OVAs, and two movies.

While Japanese animation is internationally unrivaled for artistic merit, with the possible exception of some of the more recent Disney films, some of the visual features of anime have U.S. origins. The large eyes found in many anime, for instance, can be traced to U.S. comics and cartoons available in Japan during the Occupation. It is easy to see the similarity between, for instance, anime eyes and the eyes of Betty Boop or Felix the Cat. Still, not all anime feature characters with large eyes and some anime feature some large-eyed characters to represent cuteness or innocence while other characters have smaller eyes (Poitras, 102).

The anime culture in Japan is indeed unique. Anime also constitutes one of the largest pop culture exports of Japan to the United States. Speed Racer and Astro Boy were two of the earliest titles to receive a mainstream following in the United States. Voltron gained tremendous popularity with U.S. viewers in the 1980s, while the latest dubbed versions of anime found on U.S. television include Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, and, of course, Pokémon. In addition, anime has a strong cult following in the United States and in many other parts of the world, with subtitled and dubbed versions available in video and comic stores. The domestic and international popularity of anime is similar to that of manga, where many anime titles originate. In many ways, the development of anime was a natural progression from manga with the development of film and television. Anime is simply a moving version of manga.

X. Manga

Roughly one-third of all publications in Japan are manga, a pattern that does not occur in any other industrialized society (Sugimoto, 225). Author Frederik Schodt, who has written a number of books about manga and anime, points out that "in 1995 there were about 2.3 billion manga produced, and nearly 2 billion actually sold" (Considine 1996). Manga covers all three of scholar Tsurumi Shunsuke’s three categories of art: pure arts, arts for the masses and the border arts between the previous two (Ivy, 247-248). Enjoyed by people from all walks of life, manga is so widespread in Japan that some say that it is more popular than television (Kumagai, 74).

Manga, which often relates fantastic stories, but covers as many genres as anime, fits right into the visual traditions of the Japanese alphabet (hiragawa) and pictograms (kanji) (Kumagai, 74). Just as the highest-grossing domestic film in Japan is an animated one, the most popular weekly magazine in Japan is a manga, Shonen-Jampu (Boys’ Jump), which is an anthology of several ongoing stories. The 1988 New Year’s Special of Shonen-Jampu was purchased by an estimated 70 % of boys 10-15 years of age (Kumagai, 74).

Manga has many historical roots. The increase of manga artists during the Occupation has been attributed to the decreasing popularity of kamishibai, traveling picture card shows. Kamishibai were very popular during the beginning of the century, but their popularity had waned by the time that World War II had ended. The narrators of these shows discovered that they could make a better living drawing manga, so many of them became manga artists (Ivy, 246).

Several forms of pictorial story-telling have been cited as ancestors of manga, including ukiyoe (woodblock prints) and kibyoshi (serialized yellow-jacket books popular among the masses during the late Edo period) (Kumagai, 75). Schodt provides a detailed history of manga in his book, Manga! Manga!: The World of Japanese Comics, widely considered the most authoritative book on manga written in the English language. Schodt explains that caricatures dating from the 6^th or 7^th century C.E. were found in a Buddhist temple He also explains that the widespread acceptance of a drawn means of story-telling in Japan can be traced to the humorous illustrations of Toba Sojo (1053-1140) and Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) (Schodt, 28-45).

Though the style of drawing found in manga shares some of the same foreign roots as some anime, U.S. comics currently have little success in Japan. While short newspaper strips like Peanuts have had some success, popular U.S. comic books like Superman and Captain America, when translated, have never been successful. Most Japanese readers consider them to wordy (the comics do not let the pictures tell enough of the story) and simplistic in their plot lines. Interestingly, the wild, new wave work of American Gary Panter has been embraced by Japan, though it is little known in the United States (Schodt, 154).

The failure of such mainstream U.S. titles in Japan illustrates some of the key difference between manga and U.S. comic books. Manga plot lines are usually more complex than their U.S. counterparts, even in titles written for children. Manga also relies more heavily on the images to tell the story than U.S. comics. Such differences partially explain why manga is popular among all age groups in Japan, while U.S. comics are ordinarily read solely by children.

XI. Comments on Violence and Sex in Japanese Mass Media

It is important to remember that manga covers many genres, but it is true that there are numerous manga that feature graphic sex and violence, though with no less complex of story lines than the ones that do not. These manga join an abundance of violent and erotic books and films, which permits many Japanese to vicariously live contrary to the culture’s dominant values (Hendry, 178). Such a dichotomy between the popularity of such media and traditional Japanese values is, by Japanese standards, no hypocrisy. Remembering that the Japanese culture is particularistic in its values and judgments rather than universal, it is easy to see how the dichotomy works. In order for everyday society to function harmoniously without the violence and eroticism evident in certain media, people must live out their desires for these things through films, books, manga, etc.

Thus, by Japanese cultural standards, violent crime disruptive to the flow of society is completely unacceptable in everyday life, but enjoying media that portray such violence is very much tolerated and in some ways expected. In the words of one scholar, "…the sometimes excessive violence of films, comics and television programs makes it possible for (Japanese) people to live in quiet and apparently uneventful harmony in the real world" (Hendry, 178). It is important to remember that this dynamic is a fragile one that relies on the assumption that the cultural values are antithetical to the ones presented in such media, rather than extreme perversions of them, which is often the case in U.S. media. It should come as no surprise that a culture that values aggressiveness and individualism such as the United States have much greater problems with societal behavior being influenced by violent media than Japanese culture does. While the relationship is between media and society is far from this simple, such differences provide a clue to understanding the link between society and media in Japan.

XII. Other Features of Mass Media in Japan

Karaoke

Now that the main types of media in Japan have been examined, there a few other topics to be mentioned, the first being karaoke. Though not exactly a form of mass media, karaoke singing is certainly related to it, since many of the songs sung are popular songs played on the radio. Karaoke is believed to have originated at a snack bar in Kobe some time in the early 1970’s. In 1976, an electronics company began selling a machine called Karaoke8 that used eight-track cartridges. Over the years, karaoke equipment has evolved into laser disks, VHDs, and compact disks. Images or videos relating to the song are usually played on a screen while the singer sings along with the words on the screen (Sugimoto, 227).

Karaoke allows the singer to live out the fantasy of singing like the stars they hera on the radio or watch on television. While karaoke in some other countries, like the United States, has evolved into a bit of a performance with participants often hamming it up for bystanders, karaoke in Japan has never really been like that. Although karaoke began in bars and is still available there, karaoke singers face the screen and turn their backs on the audience. Those people waiting to go next busily scan the song list to choose a song and really do not pay much attention to the present singer. In spite of this, the audience still usually claps. As a reflection of the personal nature of karaoke, karaoke boxes have become widespread in Japan. Karaoke boxes are small, self-contained rooms for that usually fit between one and twenty people. The rooms are rented out and singers can let loose without being in a public environment. Karaoke allows the singer to engage in an alternate reality in a similar fashion to how much of the mass media does (Sugimoto, 227-229).

Advertising

Advertising is present in nearly all walks of modern Japanese life and is found in large amounts through the various mass media. It is projected that in 1999, advertising spending in Japan will total $35.7 billion; second only the United States, with its astronomical total of $117.01 billion. Japan’s total is nearly seven times larger than those of Australia and South Korea, the next highest ad spenders in the Asia-Pacific region. In 1997, $296.9 was spent on advertising in Japan for each person (Advertising Age International Supplement).

Not surprisingly, 44.3 % of advertising money in Japan is spent on television advertising, while 27.2 % is spent in newspapers, 13.7 % on outdoor ads, 9.8 % in magazines, and 5.0 % on radio advertising. Three of the top five companies that spend the most money on advertising are automobile companies, led by Toyota, which topped all companies by spending $769.9 million on advertising in 1997 (Advertising Age International Supplement). The largest advertising agency in Japan, Dentsuu, has been in business since 1907 (Ivy, 242).

While Japan has yet to reach U.S. standards of advertising spending, it is not as far away as it may seem. While the total amount of ad money spent by the U.S. is more than triple that of Japan, Japan’s per capita amount is more than half as much. Advertising, especially in mass media, is a very real presence in Japan, and it is certain that advertising spending in the country, by both foreign and domestic companies, will continue to grow.

Women and Mass Media

The treatment of women in Japanese mass media is similar to the treatment of women in the mass media of many other industrialized nations. Partial nudity on Japanese television is not too rare, though pubic hair is never shown in mainstream media, since it is considered vulgar. In any case, women are shown sexualized and in states of undress almost exclusively. Few males are ever shown this way in the mainstream media.

Magazines targeted at young women and girls feature the same topics featured in similar magazines in Europe and North America. Cool Girls Japan, a web-based magazine, includes sections on topics such as fashion, beauty, shops, cool guys, models, music, love, and dance clubs (Cool Girls Japan). Despite these trends, however, women can play a strong role in the production of mass media in Japan. Female manga artists, for example, have played a significant role in that industry (Sugimoto, 226). Naoko Takeuchi, the creator of Sailor Moon, and Rumiko Takahashi, creator of Ranma ½, have both created strong female characters. Sailor Moon even includes a lesbian couple as two of the main characters, in a very non-sexualized way, and several of the main characters display traditionally male qualities. Interestingly enough, however, the episodes of the Sailor Moon television series that include the lesbian couple have never aired in the United States. While the mass media in Japan allow women an increasing number of opportunities and while manga and anime often portray strong female characters, an unbalanced sexualization of females versus males still occurs. While the sexualization of women may or may not serve to let men vicariously live out fantasies, there are few instances of the opposite scenario (though there are anime and manga that feature cute and/or handsome male characters that are specifically targeted to women and girls).

Underground Music and Culture

While the dominant forms of capitalistic mass media are widely accepted in Japan, there is resistance. Much of this resistance, not surprisingly, comes from young people. There is a solid underground music scene in the country, including a large following of punk, noise, and grind music. An essay found on a web site promoting underground culture typifies the feelings of much of this resistance. At one point the essay states, "In Japan, everyone's a capitalist, including the musicians and bands who preach about being oppressed and scream 'justice and liberty' to their so-called government." In a slightly more hopeful tone, the essay also excalaims, "There is, however, a core and dedicated scene still surviving in Japan, untouched by capitalists and not being exploited" (J Underground). Despite this, the dominant, capitalist mass media still thrives and has begun to market music styles such as ska that were previously considered to be underground.

XIII. Conclusion

At first look, the mass media of Japan seems very much like that of the United States. In many ways, that is indeed true. The influences of the United States during the Meiji Restoration and the post-World War II Occupation were massive and undeniable. Still, while many other countries have either relied heavily on the United States for mass media influence and popular culture or tried hard to resist such influences, Japan seems to have struck a unique balance.

Movies and consumer goods from the United States are very much a part of the Japanese economy. In turn, Japan has exported many mass media products to the United States and throughout the rest of the world. While Japan may have the only mass media more violent than that of the United States, the dynamic of how this violence interacts with Japanese society is very different based on the opposite cultural values of U.S. and Japanese society. Japan internalized many mass media practices brought in by the U.S. during the occupation, but has used them in its own ways.

Japan, therefore, must be considered as a very different case in terms of mass media than any other industrialized country. As the leader in mass media, pop culture in trends in its region, it plays a role similar to that of the United States relative to most of the world. Unlike other countries that are world leaders in mass media and popular culture, Japan is a society with a rich visual tradition of story telling, making the popularity and mainstream acceptance of anime and manga in the country a natural occurrence. Its unique culture and traditions among such countries signifies Japan’s sharp contrasts to most other industrialized countries. As the world we live in becomes more unified and interdependent, it will be interesting to see whether the influence that Japanese mass media has on the rest of the globe will continue to grow or whether it is swallowed up by the ever-expanding U.S. mass culture.

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