Japans very own FCC

Recently, I came across an article on www.broadcastingcable.com that said that Japan was pondering whither or not the should have their own FCC. Representatives from NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corp.) were in Washington this week to interview current leaders of the FCC such as former Republican FCC Chairman Dick Wiley, former Democratic Chairman Reed Hundt and current senior Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell. Japan. Japanese representatives told B&C that a Japanese FCC might be able to maintain “to a certain degree” consistent broadcast and telecommunications policy independent of political power struggles. This is the reason Japan is thinking about adding their own FCC. Right now, Japan’s Internal Affairs Ministry oversees broadcasting and telecom for their country. It is something that has been working for many years but as senior media analyst Atsushi Shibata says, “it may be time for a change.”

For years, the FCC has been a force in American media, basically controlling what can and cannot happen. According to the textbook, “Media Society’ by David Croteau and William Hoynes the FCC regulates according to the public’s interest. This means that the FCC has the power to, in a sense, go against the first amendment if deemed necessary. For example, the FCC has the power to control what can and cant be shown on TV. There are certain things that you will never see on cable television, such as nudity, because the FCC prohibits it. But this is an issue that Japanese leaders had when discussing weather or not to have their own FCC. Japanese leaders wanted to know what the relationship between the FCC and the courts was? The FCC’s rules or orders are not always final and decisive, Broadcasting companies often appeal to courts. A perfect example of this would be CBS’s infamous “wardrobe malfunction.” In this case, CBS was fined by the FCC for indecency, but CBS later appealed to the courts because they claimed that because the event was live, they had no control over the incident. (That case has not been ruled yet) Japanese leaders wanted to know why the FCC, with all of its power, wasn’t the deciding factor when it came to media? Why was the court able to interfere? Theses questions are ones that will have to be answered before Japan makes any final decisions about adding their own FCC.

Because I don’t know much about Japanese media, I don’t know if adding a FCC would be a good idea or not, but it is still interesting to know that Japan is thinking about adapting to one on America’s systems. I think it cool that other countries take notice on customs here in the United States. I wonder what American customs were originally from another Country’s, if any? It seems to me like America wants many countries to adapt to some of the things we do, but I never hear any news about how America chooses to adapt to a custom from another country. Maybe we do.. I just have to do more research =)

David S.