Reporter Notes Japan’s Democracy, Journalism Changes
Yohtaro Hamada, a Japanese journalist, responding to the PJNet’s Restoring the Trust IM interview with Buzz Merritt, tells us about shifts in Japan’s democractic processes and in public journalism.
Here is what Hamada writes:
I am a reporter for the Japanese newspaper, Asahi Shimbun, based in Tokyo.
I just would like to say hi to Len and Buzz, both of whom I interviewed back in 2002, when I was a Fulbright scholar in Minnesota.
In fact, I interviewed many of those journalists and scholars who have participated in public journalism movement. I just would like to let all of them know that I am still alive and still trying to practice public journalism.
Our paper is a huge organization with a circulation of 8 million. Mainstream reporters in our newsroom are busy gaining access to the powerful figures in central government and ruling parties.
Yes, I have to do some of that. In fact for a year, I covered the prime minister’s office resided by Mr. Koizumi, a good friend of GWB.
That was a valuable experience because I now understand better how “conventional” political reporters think and act, which in many cases run counter to the philosophy of public journalism. They tend to treat readers just as spectators of political fireworks by trying to be “entertaining”.
Recently, Japan is trying to decentralize and give more power to local governments where people could decide what they need and how much they pay for that. It is reaction to the fact that, in as long as history of modern Japan, political power has been concentrated in the central government. I believe it is a serious movement of democracy. And for news media, it is a wonderful opportunity to reinvent itself and be “useful” for our readers who have potential to participate in public sphere when power and responsibility are given back. I think that ideas of public journalism could be very useful and relevant when our society is trying to change, possibly in very fundamental ways.
I dare say public journalism has taken a root in our newsroom. But I am still here to spread viruses. And it is a good time to do so.
Here, here and here are some of Hamada’s earlier writings on public journalism and civic engagement.
Editor’s Note: I am old enough to still be amazed that by sitting at my computer, today in my backyard in Marietta, Georgia, I can and do reach a worldwide audience. Hello Yohtaro and please keep the updates coming. We can benefit from your experiences and the experiences of other scholars and journalists around the world. Thanks.
October 2nd, 2004 at 2:43 pm
Isn’t that worldwide audience astounding? I was linked to this morning from Sweden! No idea what they were talking about, but they were quoting me and it was very cool!