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Article Evaluation: Cool Japan

This article is lacking in Material. It does not include any history related to the Cool Japan movement and only lightly touches on why Japan began to undergo a process to change how they are perceived in the International community. In addition to this a few of the resources provided on the page are from popular news papers as opposed to peer edited sources meaning that the information may be somewhat incorrect or biased. The article, in order to be thorough, should include the reason the Soft power was used, which of course was to improve Japans reputation after its militaristic past. Beyond this the article is highly dependent upon the argument of one individual: Douglas McGray. Beyond this the critique of Cool Japan needs some work. There is nothing describing the issues regarding minorities being swept under the rug as a result of the image that Cool Japan brings forth.

Cool Japan Editing Exercise:



Origins
In a 2002 article in Foreign Policy titled "Japan's Gross National Cool", Douglas McGray wrote of Japan "reinventing superpower" as its cultural influence expanded internationally despite the economic and political problems of the "lost decade". Surveying youth culture and the role of J-pop, manga, anime, fashion, film, consumer electronics, architecture, cuisine, and phenomena of cuteness such as Hello Kitty, McGray highlighted Japan's considerable soft power, posing the question of what message the country might project. He also argued that Japan's recession may even have boosted its national cool, due to the partial discrediting of erstwhile rigid social hierarchies and big-business career paths. Japan proceeded with a foreign policy focusing on the soft power of Cool Japan. It was used as a method to share Japanese ideas and culture with the rest of the world.

Adoption
Taken up in the international media, with the New York Times running a retrospect "Year in Ideas: Pokémon Hegemon", an increasing number of more reform-minded government officials and business leaders in Japan began to refer to the country's "gross national cool" and to adopt the unofficial slogan "Cool Japan". In a 2005 press conference, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs linked the idea to Bhutan's concept of Gross National Happiness.

The phrase gained greater exposure in the mid-noughties as NHK began a series Cool Japan Hakkutsu: Kakkoii Nippon! which by the end of 2009 had reached over a hundred episodes. Academic initiatives include the establishment of a "Cool Japan" research project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, while some western universities have reported an increase in the number of applicants for Japanese Studies courses due to the "cool" effect.

Criticism
A 2010 editorial in the Yomiuri Shimbun argued that the government was not doing enough to advance the country's business interests in this sphere, allowing South Korea to emerge as a competitor. The editorial highlighted structural inefficiencies, with the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry promoting "Cool Japan", the Ministry of Foreign Affairs responsible for cultural exchange, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in charge of Japanese foods. Lecturer Roland Kelts has also suggested that a failure to fully distinguish, brand and engage the overseas audience and market may mean that "Cool Japan" is "over". Laura Miller has critiqued Cool Japan campaign as exploiting and misrepresenting youth subcultural fashion and language. Benjamin Boas points out that Cool Japan-branded efforts are often promoted without participation of foreigners, leaving out the perspectives of the very foreigners that they are trying to target. Nancy Snow refers to Cool Japan as a form of state-sponsored cultural retreading she calls Gross National Propaganda. Japanese singer-songwriter Gackt criticized the government for having set up a huge budget, yet "have no idea where that money should go. It’s no exaggeration to say it has fallen into a downward spiral of wasted tax money flowing into little known companies", and that such lack of support is causing Japan to "fall behind its Asian neighbors in terms of cultural exports".



Seo Taiji and Boys
Draft:

Prior to Seo Taiji and Boys the Korean Music industry was primarily influenced by American and Japanese folk music due to the colonial roots of South Korea. This music would dominate the Korean music industry until the country lifted the travel ban they had in place in 1988. This would allow musical elements from foreign countries to become more accessible. In the 1990’s Seo Taiji and Boys would begin to use the MIDI technology to begin incorporating westernized music elements such as rap, rock, and techno into his music. Seo Taiji and Boys would also begin incorporating the English language into their music a popular trend in South Korea that resulted due to increased reliance on the United States for economic stability. By incorporating these music elements into Korea’s more ballad like music Seo Taiji and Boys would provide the basis for the hybridization of Koreas music with that of the outside world, this would result in the foundation of Modern Korean Pop music. This hybridization of music would be one of the fundamental reasons for the popularity of Korean pop music, as it also promoted Korean pop music ability to penetrate foreign markets in what has become known as the Korean Wave. Seo Taiji and Boys acted as an instrument of change within Korea, challenging censorship laws as well as the television networks hegemony over the music market. In 1995 the Korean Broadcasting Ethics Committee demanded that Seo Taiji and Boys change the lyrics to Shame the Times. This would incite protests and result in the abolishment of censorship in Korea. Seo Taiji also did not have to rely on television networks due to the fact that he owned his own studio, this would begin a waning in the power over the television networks ability to dictate when artists appear on shows.

Choose Possible Topics
Topic 1: As mentioned above Cool Japan could be a topic that I could edit using the resources from class.

Resources Include:

Brasor, Philip;Masako, Tsubuku. Idol Chatter. Japan Quarterly; Apr 1, 1997; 44, 2; ProQuest pg. 55

Allison, Anne. Millennial Monsters, edited by Anne Allison, University of California Press, 2006. ProQuest Ebook Central,

Topic 2: Seo Taiji and Boys

The article describes the band but it does not actually describe how they influenced Korean Pop Music. The article does not discuss the bands impact at all, it should include information such as the effect they would have on censorship.

Possible Resources Include:

Oh, Ingyu. “The Globalization of K-Pop: Korea’s Place in the Global Music Industry.” The Institution of Korean Studies, Vol.44, No. 3, autumn 2013, pp. 389-409.

Shim, Doobo. "Hybridity and the rise of Korean popular culture in Asia." Media Culture & Society, vol. 28, no. 1, pp. 25-44

Topic 3: Anime