The anti-censorship campaign stance of Japan House of Councillors candidate Taro Yamada appears to have resonated strongly with his constituents, as it has been reported that Yamada has won his bid for election.
Yamada’s election campaign greatly focused on standing against the censorship of comics, manga, and video games, appealing greatly to the otaku community. During his campaign, Yamada further courted the otaku community by playing a custom vocaloid theme song, “Yamada Taro no Uta” or “Yamata Taro Song” from the speakers of his campaign cars:
聞くと癖になると評判の「山田太郎の歌」の動画を撮りました。ご査収ください！#山田太郎53万票プロジェクト pic.twitter.com/0iblUYHT1v
— 温泉半熟卵⋈日曜日西し34b (@UL14_MITINOKU) July 6, 2019
In addition to standing against censorship of media, Yamada also focused on issues such as internet privacy and freedom of expression on the internet.
On July 21st, the NHK declared that Yamada, formerly a member of the House, had regained his seat. Dan Kanemitsu, the translator for the recent Netflix dub of Neon Genesis Evangelion, notes that the resonance of Yamada’s message and its translation into a political victory election could be a preview of the “clout otakus will have in national politics of Japan in the future”:
Taro Yamada, former member of the House of Councillors (the upper house) of the Japanese National Diet has been declared by NHK to have regained his seat. Yamada campaigned on the platform of fighting censorship against manga and anime, among other topics.https://t.co/x4htWapNrg
— 兼光ダニエル真 (@dankanemitsu) July 21, 2019
Yamada made it very clear that he wanted to fight efforts within the LDP (the currently ruling party of Japan) that would damage the freedom of manga and anime, and worked hard to cement trust with the otaku community. His landslide victory is expected to have a profound impact.
— 兼光ダニエル真 (@dankanemitsu) July 21, 2019
It looks like he outperformed many other LDP candidates at the ballot box by a huge margin. The votes he received will directly translate into how much clout otakus will have in national politics of Japan in the future, so this is number to watch for.
— 兼光ダニエル真 (@dankanemitsu) July 21, 2019
Upon achieving victory in his election bid, Yamada noted that he was able to win without the major financial backing and support other candidates have access to, thanking his supporters and stating that he “will do [his] best to realize the policy [he] promised to [them]”:
第25回参議院議員普通選挙にて、全国比例候補者として、報道各社から当選確実が出ました。全く支援団体や寄付も頂かず、ネットを中心として表現の自由を守る事を訴えて来ました。
皆さまに約束しました政策を愚直に実現していく所存です。今日がスタートです。引き続きご支援をよろしくお願いします。— 山田太郎 ⋈（前参議院議員・全国比例）3日目西し35a (@yamadataro43) July 21, 2019
Manga, Anime, and video game censorship has become a growing concern. Sony recently confirmed they have a censorship policy to the Wall Street Journal. The paper reported their guidelines entail:
A Sony spokeswoman confirmed the company has established its own guidelines “so that creators can offer well- balanced content on the platform” and gaming “does not inhibit the sound growth and development” of young people. She declined to say when these guidelines were introduced or to discuss them in detail.
However, this would be contradicted by a Japanese Sony spokesman who indicated these are not new guidelines. They did confirm that executives will review games on a case by case basis for content that “may be considered offensive and unsafe.” The spokesman also noted that Sony looks “toward their global standard” when executives are reviewing content in question.
Not only has Sony’s recent censorship decisions brought this subject to the forefront, but the United Nations has proposed guidelines in order to restrict “Loli” and “Shota” animation.
What do you make of Taro Yamada’s win?