Who initiates a global flow? Japanese popular culture in Asia

Abstract

This article examines the diffusion of Japanese television programs in Hong Kong and China. It demonstrates how dramas designed for the Japanese younger generation proliferated in the form of pirated video compact disks (VCDs), without being on the air and without marketing campaigns. Far from being cultural imperialism pushed from the economic center, the Chinese people have actively initiated the in-flow of these dramas. The complex combination of local demand, digital technology and the Chinese people’s highly developed literacy in regard to Japanese popular culture made this flow possible. Tokyo was not even participating in the diffusion when the dramas crossed the border into China. To better illustrate globalization processes, this article argues that we should not focus solely on the story of corporate-led cultural flow, but should also examine its twists and turns from the perspectives of unforeseen consumers and unauthorized intermediaries.

The Reception of Japanese Animation and its Determinants in Taiwan, South Korea and China

“…The first Japanese animation formally aired on Chinese television was Astroboy (1963)(1964)(1965)(1966)(1980)(1981), in December 1980. It was not only the first Japanese animation but also the first foreign animation aired in China (Nakano, 2002;Zhu, 2011). In Taiwan, martial law ended in 1987 and was followed by a period of fast democratisation.…”

“…Nevertheless, the key role of Japanese cultural industries as pioneers in the reconfiguration of occidental capitalism and modernism in an East Asian context, introducing new lifestyles, fashions and trends that have shaped the basis for today's consumerism has often been stressed (Iwabuchi, 2002(Iwabuchi, , 2005Lee, 2004;Nakano, 2002).…”

Studies of Japanese Society and Culture: Sociology and Cognate Disciplines in Hong Kong

“…In turn, the dissemination of Japanese television dramas in Hong Kong has been studied by Nakano (2002) and Fung (2007). Nakano (2002) has relied upon document analysis and interviews to study the diffusion of television dramas designed for Japan's younger generation to Hong Kong and China.…”

Traditional and popular cultural discourses within the post-war development of Japan’s cultural diplomacy

“…In spite of this, the popularity of modern Japanese culture, such as the content industry (manga, anime, computer games, cinema, J-pop, etc.) and so-called 'life culture' (生活文化 seikatsu bunka) embodied in fashion, food, and other aspects of daily life, sharply increased both in East Asia (Nakano 2002) and in the West (Hoshibe 2009). In just 10 years, Japan evolved into an important global cultural actor (Nye 2007), in some fields even able to compete with the USA, the world's major global actor in popular culture.…”