A Content Policy for 100 Years

Cool Japan and others have looked at the content policy put forth by the government and asked, “Is that something that the government should be involved in?” Manga, anime, and games are popular overseas, but they are subcultures and it’s questionable as to whether or not the government should try to interfere in them.

Personally I believe that the government should be involved. The content policies aren’t meant as training measures for specific industries. It’s just that the external effect of promoting content is huge. The goal is not to improve the sales of the content industry. Rather, using content as a catalyst, the real aim is to improve the sales of the electronics, food, and tourism industries, thus improving the GDP. Of course, the soft power that Professor Nye speaks of also involves using cultural charms to influence other countries in political ways as well.

However, it’s important to use caution when it comes to spending money. Criticisms of the content policy are mainly directed at the budget. By inserting money into an industry incorrectly, it could serve to preserve bad practices. For example, in the past the government was criticized for building an “Anime Hall of Fame” because the money went not to content and creators but to buildings and hardware.

I am also opposed to industry protection and subsidies. It would be best to make announcements (for emotional support), relax regulations (concerning airwave use and copyrights), and offer tax incentives. Things like this will motivate the private sector to take action voluntarily, and will serve to promote “creation” over “construction.”

It would be a good thing to invest money in infrastructure (digital environment) and human resources (education). If just 10% of the road budget were spent on education, it would make a huge difference. Better to create knowledge and the ability to create than to increase the number of high-speed expressways running through regions.

What’s more, in comparison with other countries, Japan’s cultural budget is low. Japan’s cultural budget of 0.13% is much lower than the 1% available in France and Korea. Now is a good time to decide how we want to prioritize culture in our national policies.

One criticism is that the citizens don’t necessarily see the government as a “connoisseur” capable of judging how the money should be distributed. A bureaucrat is not necessarily qualified to judge the worth of content. Any manner of “council” on which “authorities” were gathered to make such judgements would be met with raised eyebrows.

I’ve been saying for quite some time that Japan should form a Ministry of Culture. It would serve as a kind of “control tower” to form policies that clarify our national culture, including policies for culture, intellection property, and IT. However, when it comes to pop culture, the rules for that which is made by “everyone” should be thought of by “everyone.” I want the policymaking to be participatory.

Something that a coworker said to me when I was tasked with studying and forming cultural policy in the government 20 years ago still sticks in my head. “We should either make a policy that will be earnestly followed for 100 years, or do nothing at all.” My response was, “Yes, let’s make a policy that will continue for 100 years.”