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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 May 2025
The internet has become an increasingly influential medium throughout East Asia. In this article we examine the case of Kenkanryu (‘“Hating ‘The Korean Wave’“), a manga published in 2005 in hard copy, but available online as a web comic for many months prior to print publication. We argue that the content, while nationalist, xenophobic, and ‘toxic’ is only one of a number of other, media-related reasons for the sales success of this comic in Japan. Other factors are the influence of online chat groups, the web as a means of communicating and selling ideas and products, and the internet-savvy way in which supporters of the views expressed in the comic communicated with online readers. In the context of increasing fears that Japanese youth are becoming more ‘nationalistic’ we argue that it is important to examine the medium as much as the message in assessing whether we are witnessing the emergence of a significant and dangerous social movement, or something rather different.
[1] The title means “Hating ‘The Korean Wave’“ rather than ‘The Hating Korea Wave’, as indicated by the different color and font used for the letter ‘ken’, or ‘hate’).
[2] While such figures are not huge in the context of Japanese manga sales records, they signify a relatively large audience.
[3] This genre started with Kobayashi Yoshinori's Gomanizumu sengen (Proclamation of Arrogance, 1998). Other examples include Akiyama Joji's Chugoku nyumon (Introduction to China, 2004) and Hatake Natsuko's pithily titled Hyakunin-giri hodo o kiru - teki wa shina chu-kyo seifu to waga kuni no henko masukomi da (Slashing the report on the ‘one-hundred men head-cutting competition - our enemy is the communist Chinese government and the prejudiced mass media in our country, 2004).
[4] We need to note, however, that ‘them’ or the ‘Other’ is not always geopolitical ‘Korea’ or ethnic ‘Koreans’ but more like ‘pro-Korea’ position and ideas. In other words, ‘Korea’ in this comic has become an abstract sign for the anti-Japanese Other.
[5] Kaneshiro Kazuki (2000), GO, Tokyo: Kodansha; Sagisawa Megumu, Kimi wa kono kuni o suki ka (Do you like this country) (1997) Tokyo: Shincho bunko, Use of a zainichi character to critique zainichi victim consciousness and to introduce an argument for ‘naturalisation’, in itself, is not problematic. Critique of North Korea and Korean discrimination of zainichi, too, are found in Kaneshiro's GO, a bestseller in 2000 which was also made into a film. The fundamental difference, however, is that GO deconstructs and relativises both ‘Korean’ and ‘Japanese’ whereas in Kenkanryu, the self-evident category of ‘Japanese’ itself is never challenged.
[6] Kenta Tanimichi, ‘The youthful face of Japanese nationalism,’ Far East Economic Review, November 2005; Norimitsu Onishi, ‘Ugly images of Asian rivals become best sellers in Japan,’ New York Times 21st November, 2005; Associated Press ‘Nationalist comics become popular in Japan’ 1st December 2005; Matthew Rusling, ‘Comics stoke JapanKorea tension’, Asia Times Online 21 April, 2006.
[7] The ‘liberal history’ group is a misnomer, generated to incorporate sympathy from those who believe that Japan has moved on from its Pacific War phase, which really incorporates a perspective that is anything but liberal. ‘New history’ is simply an oxymoron.
[8] Kobayashi himself has differentiated his position from that of Kenkanryu, criticizing in particular the anonymity of Yamano, as well as the lack of evidences of research beyond the Internet.
[9] The presumption that the validity and believability of an idea comes from the strength of the argument and effective presentation of evidence rather than the status or identity of the source is something that Kenkanryu shares with internet forums with anonymous participants.
[10] See, for example, the proliferation of entries in the user-based Wikipedia website (both in English and Japanese), that are largely unmoderated.
[11] In this case, too, the critique of and challenge to the mainstream media was one of the factors.
[12] A ‘novel’ that started as postings on a BBS and then was published as a book. It was also made into a film.
[13] Anyone can edit Wikipedia, and the changes made to the English Wikipedia entry on Kenkanryu that prompted an accusation of it being ‘vandalism’ does not fit the definition of vandalism in the official policy of Wikipedia (deliberate attempt to compromise the integrity of Wikipedia - often includes such action as addition of obscenities, page blanking or insertion of jokes and nonsense). However, our point here is that Kenkanryu has established a presence in English-language media and web.
[14] We bought copies after all!
[15] Moreover, consider the Japan Student Movement of the 1960s - an extreme, nationalist (if Marxist) movement that became violent in an effort to protect peace. Current views are, by comparison, comparatively mild, and action is virtually non-existent.
[16] Sasada, Horinori ‘Youth and Nationalism in Japan’. SAIS Review vol. XXCI no.2 (Summer-Fall 2006) pp. 109-122)
[17] It has to be said, though, that often official agencies ‘get it wrong’ in their approach to using the internet to influence youth. For example, in Australia it is the year of a federal election. Recently the Prime Minister has begun to use YouTube to counter views of his opponents about his policies. This in turn has made Mr Howard a target of media manipulating by web-savvy users who have dubbed and re-dubbed his speeches, and reposted the often very funny new pastiches. While he may be able to say that he's using YouTube to communicate with youth, in practice he has become an object of fun to users who have countered his positions, and lampooned the technology.
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