MediaInstitute21

Professor Naoki Monna

1. Posing an issueThe theme of this sub-group is ‘popular culture in Asia, globalisation, regionalisation, and localisation’. It is difficult to understand what this theme is intended to mean. However, considering today’s thinking, globalisation is synonymous with Americanisation, globalisation in Asia is bound up with the issue, “what is the Asian Culture,” against a Western Culture lead by the United States. I think.

   Now it is difficult to say what the Asian culture is in a word, as there are many differences amongst the regions of West Asia, South Asia, and the Far East, each varies considerably. Moreover, since the origin and structure, of politics and economy are different in each of the countries of these zones, the cultural situation is considerably diverse with respect to each country. .

   In order to approach this theme a number of case studies are required. Taking the culture of the Far East into consideration, Japan, South Korea, and China are made to contrast, and it becomes important to consider the difference of the cultural phenomenon, in these three countries by accumulating case studies. I think this theme is asking for the viewpoint which relates to the globalisation, regionalisation, and localisation of Japan in the Far East, and the Far East in the World.

   A research study of “foreigners” image, which appeared on Japanese Television, is to consider the feature, “Japanese Television Culture”, therefore it becomes a special research study. However, if there is a common concept, to a part of Japanese Television Culture, with South Korea and China, the local issue of Japan will expand to the regional one of the Far East. I believe that such a standpoint pursues the posture in the global viewpoint.

   In my country, the following is often said. “a viewpoint should be local, whilst a vision should be global”. In fact the word “glocalisation” was born by this catchphrase as Japanese-English. John Tomlinson, paying due attention to this Japanese-English, created a term “cultural imperialism”, and said as follows, “A local concept, is not opposed to a global one in culture, in fact they mutually influence and suit each other”, he had an idea that, “local contents, could or would, be changed, by being participated in globally within the world, although man’s life is fundamentally local. I would therefore be pleased if you would listen to the following report from Tomlinson’s view on a base. Japan is the setting for the case study, and I want you to think of it as if there is a common part in an example. If it differs, where is it different, I believe it to have a main point for discussion as the theme at this forum.

2. Image of “foreigner” and “foreign country” on T.V. CommercialFirst I have to explain that the following report are extracts of “The television and foreign media stereo typing research” (Dec 2004) by edit of Shigeru Hagiwara and Yoko Kunihiro who are Media Researchers in Japan. Even if it tells “the foreigner and foreign image” in television, the way is diverse. There is a way to use the methodology of the cultural studies, for problems of a political approach, an audience, gender, ideology or race which spreads in the whole world, yet grew in Britain in the 1970s. Moreover, there is a method of extracting the foreigner image, currently drawn in the news, a drama, music, and a documentary television programme.

   Now I am going to introduce how the foreigner, and foreign country, are drawn into Television Commercials concerning Japanese life, consciousness, and lifestyle, using the above mentioned work. Because of time limitations I will only report the outline.

   In the history of television commercials in Japan, although the Television Companies which appointed foreign talents were inconspicuous before the 1970s, after the 1980s, and the period which continues up until now, the foreign image symbolised by ordinary foreigners, foreign scenery, language and etc. came to be frequently used. In such a tendency, the dependence on the “Western Image” was very high in television commercials in Japan, these following matters were pointed out as features of the 1970s.

   1. Westernisation of the image for goods, origin, and advertising, for example, Western clothes, wine or whisky, rather than traditional Kimono, and Sake, those branded goods appeal to the western image in many cases
   2. The dependence on western commodities for everyday use, or necessary goods for daily life, and peoples personal belongings are low compared with the quality articles and luxury goods.
   3. In the quality articles and luxury goods, the rate of appointment as a model, is high for white people with high quality dresses, whilst low in the advertisement of quality cosmetics and hair products because of mental conflict or refusal from the feeling of inferiority by some Japanese. The people who appear on the screen are mainly Japanese supermodels, famous actors or actresses instead of white people.

   What I can say from the above results is that some Japanese had a yearning for the westerner on the one hand, whilst on the other they had a degree of inferiority complex to the westerner on the matter of physique. Hence they were seldom seen in adverts for cosmetic and hair products.

   When Japan went on to become one of the world economic powers after the 1980s, television commercials which contained ordinary foreigners, foreign scenery and language began to increase.

   The survey is as follows:- Foreign scenery appearances in commercials in 1993 were 4010pcs In one month, which increased to 2330pcs, for one week in 2003.

   	2003	1993
   North America	21%	20%
   Europe	18%	21%
   West Taste	23%	–
   Asia	9%	8%
   Others	10%	16%

   In a high rate of dependence to Europe and American Scenery

   	2003	1993
   City	44%	31%
   Rural Countryside	12%	18%
   Resort	13%	17%
   Natural Environment, remote corner	14%	17%
   Others	9%	11%

   “City” is mainly North America and Europe. “Rural Countryside” is Europe. “Natural Environment, Remote Corner” is Asia. We can say that here a Western dependence is also high.

   “Age Bracket” group of foreigners on television is as follows

   	2003	1993
   Child	8%	9%
   Young Woman	19%	25%
   Young Man	22%	16%
   Middle Aged Woman	3%	3%
   Middle Aged Man	11%	14%
   Old Man	2%	1%
   Complex	35%	33%

   The following survey shows the items according to the race of the character which appeared on screen within 2003.

   	Child	Young Woman	Young Man	Middle Aged Woman	Middle Aged Man	Old Man	Complex
   White	10%	22%	22%	2%	13%	3%	28%
   Coloured	0%	0%	69%	0%	25%	0%	6%
   Oriental	2%	22%	13%	9%	11%	0%	43%

   The young age bracket shows a high rate, in the composition of the characters who appear in commercials. It is because commercials today are aimed at the young, and target the attractive as high purchasing consumers. Moreover, as for a coloured man’s case, young men occupy 69%, whilst Middle age is 25%, but Coloured Woman does not appear at all. For the appointment of the Oriental, there is a more complex combination regardless of sex and age. Sports advertising centres on Coloured Men because of the appeal of the “physical” body, whilst within this group, there are no appearances for food and drink commercials. However, many Orientals appear in commercials for food and drink, especially cases for China and South Korea, with all the family involved. These are becoming more common place.

   In the commercials for high class “liquor”, the rate of appearances of white and coloured, are three times more than the appearance of Orientals. Therefore the image of “high rank” favours the West, as the rate of appointment of the white and coloured are high when advertising good style, or portraying the sex appeal of the character. There is no appointment of the Oriental in this case.

   Now I will consider the feature and content of a commercial in which a foreigner appears, 51% of characters serve as a “smile, or sociability is good. 25% portray the expression of a pleasant sensation, and a further 20% a child’s prettiness. If we watch the image according to race, what kind of image does the white portray?, and to whom does it appeal?.

   1. “Upper class”, “high rank”, margin and ones own likeness or composure.
   2. The image of the forefront.
   3. The image of pursuing the beauty.

   In the case of the coloured man

   1. Power i.e.” Strength”
   2. “Big and “vitality”.
   3. Image of ignorance and childishness.

   If “white” and “coloured” are made to contrast, it is the White who will appear as the user or recommender of the goods themselves. They yearn after marvellous goods, or appear as those who admire them.

   Now to the case of the Oriental!. In an appearance by an Oriental, the signs as associated with a Japanese are differenciated in many ways. In one of the methods of showing, they represent the country itself. For example, when Chinese people appear on commercials for Oolong Tea, or Chinese Food, Chinese scenery appears on the background. It is far more appealing to justify the origin of the goods, and show the natural magnificence and length of history projected in the scenery and people appearing in it.

   An individual does not appear as a portrayal of the Orient, but a group depicting the representation of a “country”, they are not as interesting as an “individual”. Moreover the “Asia Orientalism” is emphasised on appearance of the Oriental, it is overlapped by the “gaze”, the narration proclaiming “the beautiful taste of Asia” in many cases, meaning a sample of Asia and its beauty. When Japanese interchanges with a spot on a street corner in Vietnam, appears in a commercial for noodles, he enjoys eating noodles with them. People in Japan remember the old times in which Americans were interchanging with them.

   In the Oolong Tea commercial, a young Chinese couple who divide one lunch packet between them are picked up, a train bends down to pass under a farm village, and a new bridge is crossed in the scene. A developing city scene appears. A slight uneasiness is evident in the woman’s profile, neat with expectation. Such a way of drawing overlaps with the image of the Japanese in the 1970s when they aimed at economic growth. The figure which Japan has lost is now overlapped, and “Asia Orientalism” invites Japanese nostalgia. In this commercial the Oriental who appears is always “pure and beautiful”, and is drawn as the “starting point” to which Japanese should return.

   Television Commercials appeal to the different races in different ways, for example, to the White viewer the commercial is made to appeal to the beauty of the subject, the Coloured person is in favour of the physical capability, and the Oriental by unsophistication. Thus the Japanese have a “yearning” in the T.V. Commercial where a foreigner, or foreign country appear. Nowadays simple Western inferiority complex, like ancient times, has gone. Companies are taking the characteristics of white, coloured, and oriental into consideration when making commercials. There is an increase in more recent commercials being set in South East Asia, China, and South Korea, this practice will consequently raise the profile, and appreciation, of the Asian Orientalism to the Japanese people.

3. ConclusionSpeaking of “orientalism”, the person is reminded of the view expressed by E.W. Saeed, who said, “Orientalism is the work which creates the idea that the “East” as knowledge, or a pattern to control reconstruction and coercing the orient”. There is a degree of confrontation by people toward being controlled by a ruler, and it is said, but I do not know if it is true, that Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain, and Iran have forbidden the import of satellite antennae and decoders, and that the Iranian authorities issued the following statement.

   “the ban on import is one method of suppressing the attack on our culture. We show our resistance to the world, especially to the western culture”.

   This viewpoint can be accepted, as it is a challenge to the cultural imperialism by western global media, and through the locals by raising the identity of the national culture. But at the same time, it leads to closed orientalism, and it is important that orientalism is not opposed to the west, but show that it is necessary to create an open orientalism to the world.

   Two million foreigners are now living in Japan, therefore the Department Stores in Ikebukuro, where our University is, give guidance in Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean and Spanish. Spanish is used because of the large number of migrant workers from South America. Although these many different languages are being used, we do not consider that Japanese National Identity will collapse, in fact it consolidates the idea that we live together in one community with Chinese, Koreans, and the labourers from South America beginning to grow gradually among the Japanese People.

   From the white, coloured, and oriental who appear in T.V. Commercials in Japan, the message is sent to a Japanese consumer by the image in the feature of each race. From these images it can be said that “the western inferiority complex that the Japanese people once had, is now seldom seen. To be sure , as the yearning for the beauty of the European and American scenery come out, so to, and no more, the yearning of the coloured man for attractive physique. To the oriental, they are wanting to regain the feeling of unsophisticated pureness which was lost in the process of gaining economic power.

   Surfing the Internet, we can find out the minority cultures which, neither the mass media, nor big business pay much attention to. Information dispatch is no longer the monopoly of advanced countries, developing countries can also dispatch information. Under these circumstances, the true meaning of globalisation came to be understood, as a process in which social interaction develops. I n other words, if people see globalisation as a process which mutually influences through various languages, as Anthony Giddens says, “it will become, what globalisation builds the paradigm of the social participation, which is concerned about the release from unfair treatment, and subordination, for as long as it is accompanied by a localised dialectical process.”

   Nowadays the foreigners who appear in commercials in Japan are drawn beyond the colour of skin. There is no longing by the present young Japanese people to the one sided formation of the western culture my generation had. Young people go abroad freely and come into contact with people in their own countries, and learn their sense of values. Such being the case, the foreign image drawn by the commercials also cannot but change.

   Incidentally, it is a fact that there are many Europeans who embrace non western religions, such as Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism in the present age, and that western politicians and financial experts observe the politics, economy, culture and so called self reliance of the Asian Peoples. Further studies are being made into, the value of family sense, and the communal society, in order to learn, if these contribute to the rapid development of Asia.

   Although it does not mean that non western culture tends to replace these facts with western culture, it is an indication that the interpenetration of culture is weakening the western cultural hegemony.

   With the advent of the age of the Internet, just the very free exchange of the mass media between the West and the Non West will give vital power to change the present world, and it is important that the activity of the mass media should be released from the frame of national regulation for that purpose.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 17th, 2005 at 8:13 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.