Censorship in Japan

Description

This book explores censorship, particularly film and video censorship, in Japan in modern times. It shows how most censorship has been the film and video industry exercising self-censorship and how this system has been problematic in that it has allowed dominant players in the industry to impose their own standards and exclude independent filmmakers. It outlines notable obscenity cases and discusses how industry self-censorship bodies have been undermined both by industry outsiders setting up their own alternative regimes and by the industry self-censorship bodies themselves being prosecuted for obscenity. The book also examines the conflict between the obscenity law, introduced in Meiji times when Japan was importing Western models, and the freedom of speech law, which was put in place by the US occupation administration after World War II. The book concludes by assessing the current state of censorship in Japan and likely future developments. Cover Half Title Series Page Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents List of figures List of tables Acknowledgements Chinese glossary Japanese glossary Chapter 1 Introduction Major analytical themes Conceptual schemes Methodology Organisation of the book Notes Chapter 2 A brief history of censorship in Japan Introduction Early censorship in imperial Japan Meiji period Taishō and Shōwa periods Post-war Japan From state censorship to self-regulating or industrial inspection After all, what is waisetsu? Conclusion Notes Chapter 3 What are Japanese adult videos? Introduction A brief history of Japanese adult videos Tantai and kikaku AVs The saviour ideology Conclusion Notes Chapter 4 The society of the Japanese adult video industry: AV studios, regulators, and distributors Introduction The organisation of AV makers as a society of industry Small AV studios Wholesalers and rental shops Biderin as the most dominant self-regulatory body in the AV industry Conclusion Notes Chapter 5 How the Biderin regime was founded: Biderin as the self-regulatory body in the AV industry in the 1980s and 1990s Introduction Biderin as a self-regulatory body The organisation of Biderin The relationship between Biderin and the state (police) Control of wholesalers and rental shop owners Biderin and AV makers Inspection process Conclusion Notes Chapter 6 Medirin: The emergence of a new regime in the AV industry Introduction The concept of social drama The breaching stage The crisis stage: Medirin getting recognition Conclusion Notes Chapter 7 From Biderin via Medirin to Eizōrin: The collapse of Biderin and the return to order Introduction Redressive phase: The Biderin Incident in 2008 The new ‘censoring’ body: Eizōrin Reintegration The search for a new order Play and games Conclusion Notes Chapter 8 Adult video inspection at Eizōrin Introduction Inspecting adult videos at Eizōrin Conclusion Notes Chapter 9 Changing landscapes: The emergence of a new categorical classification of Japanese AVs Introduction Medirin and AVs-for-sale as radicalisation and genre reunification of kikaku AVs The changing AV landscape Conclusion Notes Chapter 10 Conclusion Bibliography Index