Japan Press Weekly

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2013 December 18 - 24 [POLITICS]

Abe pressures NHK to be non-critical: former NHK director

Akahata Sunday edition

Toward the close of the latest Diet session, several commercial TV stations aired programs revealing the dangerous nature of a state secrecy bill, which was too little, too late. The bill became law on December 6. In the meantime, NHK acted as if it were a government spokesman.

“One of the reasons for this is pressure brought to bear by the Abe government,” said Tosaki Kenji, a former NHK director, about the absence of a critical spirit in NHK.

Tosaki pointed out that Abe is extremely sensitive about media coverage of his government. The ex-director explained that Abe often dines with media executives; he has shut out TBS reporters because of a comment that disfavored the ruling party made during a TBS news show; together with some other right-wing politicians, he has forced NHK to alter the contents of a program dealing with the Japanese Imperial Army’s sex slavery system; he sent a person close to him into the NHK management committee as the NHK chair during his first administration (2006-2007); and this year again, he appointed four of his close friends as NHK top executives.

Regarding the role of news reports, Tosaki said, “The important thing is to reach the truth through reporting facts. Journalism should never neglect this aim in the name of objective reporting.”

As for NHK, he said, “If NHK reporters had collected all the facts, they would have inevitably reached the conclusion that the state secrets protection law is potentially dangerous.”

He went on to say, “During the war, NHK played the role of helping to mobilize the people for the war of aggression under the control of the imperial government. After the war, NHK restarted its broadcasts based on deep remorse of its collusive past history. I want NHK to go back to this restarting line and keep an eye on excesses of power in the public interest.”