Muneo Kaigo

Ethos in Chaos? Reaction to Video Files Depicting Socially Harmful Images in the Channel 2 Japanese Internet Forum

Channel 2 (ni-channeru) is the single most widely known free access Japanese Internet bulletin board forum, with over five million people accessing it each month. With its many dysfunctional aspects, Channel 2 is a synonym for the chaos of the Internet in Japan. This study analyzes the dynamics among users of the Channel 2 forum, focusing specifically on the dissemination of alarming images and video files of the October 2004 Japanese hostage murder in Iraq. An examination was conducted of November 2004 Channel 2 threads and entries about the dissemination of images and video files of the hostage murder. Our analysis reveals how content that highly violated moral principles appeared and how a self-regulating mechanism by the user community functioned pro-socially in an uncontrolled, anonymous Internet forum. These findings contrast with previous studies that predicted asocial or antisocial behavior in anonymous online environments.

Who Leads Advocacy through Social Media in Japan? Evidence from the “Tsukuba Civic Activities Cyber-Square” Facebook Page

Although the importance of advocacy activities by civil society organizations (CSOs) in policy and decision-making procedures has been greatly emphasized in the literature of political science and social policy, we have relatively little understanding of the relevance and impact of the leading actors who structure the diverse networks and discourses through social media; further recognition is needed in both fields. The purpose of this study is to analyze civil society organizations at the local government level involved in advocacy activities through the use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Our study focuses on a specific Japanese Facebook community page—the “Tsukuba Civic Activities Cyber-Square”—aimed at enhancing civil society activities in Japan. This page is operated by the municipal government of Tsukuba, in collaboration with the University of Tsukuba and Intel Corporation. Our findings indicate that social networking services such as Facebook can provide civil society organizations with: (1) more political opportunities to advocate; (2) more chances to connect with the local government; and (3) create opportunities to exert greater presence, despite their limited financial and political resources.

Japanese Local Government Facebook Profiles

Through a text mining of all 425 of the available Facebook pages run by Japanese local governments, this chapter examines how these social networking sites are being used by local governments to create a more collaborative relationship between the private sector and what policy areas tend to get attract fans/followers and engagement on Facebook. The chapter shows how the number of fans/followers and level of engagement of Facebook pages run by Japanese local governments are determined by the policy areas with which they are concerned.

Japanese Japanese Local Government Facebook Facebook Profiles

Through a text mining of all 425 of the available Facebook pages run by Japanese local governments, this chapter examines how these social networking sites are being used by local governments to create a more collaborative relationship between the private sector and what policy areas tend to get attract fans/followers and engagement on Facebook. The chapter shows how the number of fans/followers and level of engagement of Facebook pages run by Japanese local governments are determined by the policy areas with which they are concerned.

Local Government Profiles

Through a text mining of all 425 of the available Facebook pages run by Japanese local governments, this chapter examines how these social networking sites are being used by local governments to create a more collaborative relationship between the private sector and what policy areas tend to get attract fans/followers and engagement on Facebook. The chapter shows how the number of fans/followers and level of engagement of Facebook pages run by Japanese local governments are determined by the policy areas with which they are concerned.

The Japanese Japanese Internet Internet Environment

This chapter offers readers a diverse introduction into the unique social media environment of Japan and the cultural norms that surround Japanese social media. This chapter focuses on the elements that contributed to the hesitancy and the sluggish adoption of information and communications technology (ICT), the Internet and social media in Japan. It explains how low self-efficacy (or nigate-ishiki in Japanese) has been a major element and other cultural norms. The chapter also examines access and other various elements have contributed to shying away from using the Internet.

The JapaneseInternet Environment

This chapter offers readers a diverse introduction into the unique social media environment of Japan and the cultural norms that surround Japanese social media. This chapter focuses on the elements that contributed to the hesitancy and the sluggish adoption of information and communications technology (ICT), the Internet and social media in Japan. It explains how low self-efficacy (or nigate-ishiki in Japanese) has been a major element and other cultural norms. The chapter also examines access and other various elements have contributed to shying away from using the Internet.

The JapaneseJapaneseInternetInternet Environment

This chapter offers readers a diverse introduction into the unique social media environment of Japan and the cultural norms that surround Japanese social media. This chapter focuses on the elements that contributed to the hesitancy and the sluggish adoption of information and communications technology (ICT), the Internet and social media in Japan. It explains how low self-efficacy (or nigate-ishiki in Japanese) has been a major element and other cultural norms. The chapter also examines access and other various elements have contributed to shying away from using the Internet.

The Japanese Internet Environment

This chapter offers readers a diverse introduction into the unique social media environment of Japan and the cultural norms that surround Japanese social media. This chapter focuses on the elements that contributed to the hesitancy and the sluggish adoption of information and communications technology (ICT), the Internet and social media in Japan. It explains how low self-efficacy (or nigate-ishiki in Japanese) has been a major element and other cultural norms. The chapter also examines access and other various elements have contributed to shying away from using the Internet.

Civil Society , Social Media and Facebook Usage by Local Governments : Birth of the Tsukuba Study and the Tsukuba Civic Activities Cyber-Square

This chapter introduces the Tsukuba case study and social media usage. It discusses the possibilities and problems of complementary communication channels such as social networking services for promoting civil society activities and linking civil society organizations. The chapter focuses on the first phase of the Tsukuba Civic Activities Cyber-Square [Tsukuba Shimin Katsudō no Hiroba] on Facebook Experiment from early in 2012 and how it functioned during and after the May 6, 2012 Tsukuba city tornado disaster for subsequent relief and support activities.