Japan Media Review

Another one from my fellow student (also struggling with this essay):

Japan Media Review

I haven't had a look yet, but seems of interest.

Electronic Journal of Contemporary Japanese Studies

The site that the Black Truck article came from is actually very interesting - and run by a professor afilliated with Sheffield!

EJCJS

Black Trucks and Freedom of Speech

Media Intimidation in Japan: A Close Encounter with Hard Japanese Nationalism by David McNeill

A link passed on by a fellow student - a chilling account of how right-wing ultranationalism works, and the power of the black trucks.

Editor for a day...

"But this law [which enabled the authorities to silence the press in the Meiji era] had a considerable loophole: while it included provisions allowing the authorities to prosecute editors, it did not permit them to shut down papers that violated the law. As a result, the press began to hired so-called editors, whose main purpose was to serve the jail sentences handed down when their papers were caught having published offending articles." Closing the Shop, Laurie Ann Freeman, Princeton University Press 2000. p. 29

All the news that's unfit to print...?

お久しぶり。I'm just finishing up my second essay for the course, this time on the mass media and politics. Again, very depressing reading and making the thought of heading over there in a few weeks less rosy.

It only reinforces that feeling I get that Japan is a beautiful, enchanting, amazing place with the nicest people, but that it sometimes goes very bad just in the corner of your eye when you're not really paying attention.

But anyway. Lots of quotes to follow...

Word of the day!

A friend of mine just got back from Vancouver - at the limit of her physical strength, she excused herself to 爆睡!

Got to love that language.