9 January 2007, 12:21 PM
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Aso eyes comic-book heroes to rescue diplomacy
01/08/2007
BY HIDEAKI ABE, THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
It's not without good reason that the chief of the country's foreign policy has been pushing his favorite manga comics on his staff at the Foreign Ministry.
Japanese pop culture, according to Foreign Minister Taro Aso, is the way forward; the future of Japan's foreign cultural diplomacy. And he wants to ensure his staff are familiar with it.
According to Aso, it's the country's anime, or animated films, along with manga, J-pop music and girly fashions that will draw overseas interest well into the future.
So sure is he of this notion, that a cultural diplomacy strategy focusing entirely on Japanese pop culture has been drawn up.
Bureaucrats and diplomats have even been formally asked to study manga in earnest as part of their "awareness training."
Evidence of Japanese pop culture's growing influence worldwide supports Aso's new line.
A three-day Japan Expo in Paris last July that focused on manga and anime drew some 60,000 visitors, far surpassing the expectations of the French organizers.
Across the Atlantic, popular Japanese singing duo Puffy has hit the big time in the United States.
The duo's animated television series, "Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Show" runs on the popular Cartoon Network and enjoys a massive following.
Japanese fashion magazines that target the younger generation, meanwhile, are selling well in a number of Asian countries.
Even the Japanese language is enjoying a global boom.
According to the Japan Foundation, 980,000 people around the world studied Japanese in 1990.
By 2003, that figure had grown to 2.35 million.
"Kids first pick up Japanese by reading walk-through manuals for video games," says Aso. "Then they listen to the anime show tunes in Japanese. That is why we are seeing a growing number of children who have a keen interest in studying Japanese now."
The big question, though, is how to translate the popularity of Japanese "software" into a full-blown interest in Japan.
The Council on the Movement of People across Borders is an advisory council of the Foreign Affairs minister, headed by Fujio Cho, chairman of Toyota Motor Corp.
Last November, the council's special committee on pop culture compiled a report regarding the application of Japanese pop culture to promote cultural diplomacy.
Specific measures and policies include a program to designate young and upcoming anime creators and dispatch them abroad as "cultural ambassadors."
Another plan is to create a "Japan manga grand prize," a competition targeting foreign artists.
A total of 12.4 million yen has been budgeted for fiscal 2007 for such programs.
There are, however, some big hurdles to be cleared, especially in regard to securing partnerships between the public and private sector.
As Yasuki Hamano, a professor at the University of Tokyo's Graduate School, points out, while the new game plan demands collaboration between the two sides, the government needs to remember that some aspects of Japan's pop culture are less than wholesome. And it won't be able to hide that fact.
"Pop culture is not all snow-white--there is a down-and-dirty side, too," says Hamano, who also chairs the ministry's special committee on pop culture. "But the government should not be censoring its content."
At the same time, the private sector has high hopes that government intervention through its diplomatic negotiations will not only ease intellectual property right issues, but also smooth the entry of Japanese anime into some of the more highly regulated foreign markets.
Another obstacle is that few officials high up in the diplomatic ranks are well-versed in Japanese pop culture. Most admit they never read manga, and they don't watch much television, either.
One senior government official admitted: "Our (pop culture) knowledge base is far weaker compared to the private sector." The official added he is now diligently working through the manga best-seller list as the first step to catch up.
Despite the work needed, Aso is standing by his "hip to be cool" message.
"We live in such times where the popular voice coming from the general public could sway a country's foreign policy. I'd like to make sure that our robust pop culture is on our side." (IHT/Asahi: January 8,2007)
Aso eyes comic-book heroes to rescue diplomacy
01/08/2007
BY HIDEAKI ABE, THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
It's not without good reason that the chief of the country's foreign policy has been pushing his favorite manga comics on his staff at the Foreign Ministry.
Japanese pop culture, according to Foreign Minister Taro Aso, is the way forward; the future of Japan's foreign cultural diplomacy. And he wants to ensure his staff are familiar with it.
According to Aso, it's the country's anime, or animated films, along with manga, J-pop music and girly fashions that will draw overseas interest well into the future.
So sure is he of this notion, that a cultural diplomacy strategy focusing entirely on Japanese pop culture has been drawn up.
Bureaucrats and diplomats have even been formally asked to study manga in earnest as part of their "awareness training."
Evidence of Japanese pop culture's growing influence worldwide supports Aso's new line.
A three-day Japan Expo in Paris last July that focused on manga and anime drew some 60,000 visitors, far surpassing the expectations of the French organizers.
Across the Atlantic, popular Japanese singing duo Puffy has hit the big time in the United States.
The duo's animated television series, "Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Show" runs on the popular Cartoon Network and enjoys a massive following.
Japanese fashion magazines that target the younger generation, meanwhile, are selling well in a number of Asian countries.
Even the Japanese language is enjoying a global boom.
According to the Japan Foundation, 980,000 people around the world studied Japanese in 1990.
By 2003, that figure had grown to 2.35 million.
"Kids first pick up Japanese by reading walk-through manuals for video games," says Aso. "Then they listen to the anime show tunes in Japanese. That is why we are seeing a growing number of children who have a keen interest in studying Japanese now."
The big question, though, is how to translate the popularity of Japanese "software" into a full-blown interest in Japan.
The Council on the Movement of People across Borders is an advisory council of the Foreign Affairs minister, headed by Fujio Cho, chairman of Toyota Motor Corp.
Last November, the council's special committee on pop culture compiled a report regarding the application of Japanese pop culture to promote cultural diplomacy.
Specific measures and policies include a program to designate young and upcoming anime creators and dispatch them abroad as "cultural ambassadors."
Another plan is to create a "Japan manga grand prize," a competition targeting foreign artists.
A total of 12.4 million yen has been budgeted for fiscal 2007 for such programs.
There are, however, some big hurdles to be cleared, especially in regard to securing partnerships between the public and private sector.
As Yasuki Hamano, a professor at the University of Tokyo's Graduate School, points out, while the new game plan demands collaboration between the two sides, the government needs to remember that some aspects of Japan's pop culture are less than wholesome. And it won't be able to hide that fact.
"Pop culture is not all snow-white--there is a down-and-dirty side, too," says Hamano, who also chairs the ministry's special committee on pop culture. "But the government should not be censoring its content."
At the same time, the private sector has high hopes that government intervention through its diplomatic negotiations will not only ease intellectual property right issues, but also smooth the entry of Japanese anime into some of the more highly regulated foreign markets.
Another obstacle is that few officials high up in the diplomatic ranks are well-versed in Japanese pop culture. Most admit they never read manga, and they don't watch much television, either.
One senior government official admitted: "Our (pop culture) knowledge base is far weaker compared to the private sector." The official added he is now diligently working through the manga best-seller list as the first step to catch up.
Despite the work needed, Aso is standing by his "hip to be cool" message.
"We live in such times where the popular voice coming from the general public could sway a country's foreign policy. I'd like to make sure that our robust pop culture is on our side." (IHT/Asahi: January 8,2007)
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