Newspapers in Japanese Studies Research
Call for Opinions and Interest

With the recent publication of Japan's Local
Newspapers: Chihoshi and Revitalization Journalism, I have been discussing with colleagues one of the central themes of the book: using newspapers as an integral part of researching contemporary Japan.

I have used my local newspaper numerous times to investigate local social processes, in thematic areas as diverse as local volunteerism and agenda setting, Newspaper in Education and local identity building, the social construction of local cultural commodities, and information dissemination in the period preceding the Heisei municipal mergers. I know of several other social science researchers who have likewise turned to the contemporary newspaper at one level or another and in one form or another for their window on some specific social phenomenon occurring in Japan. On that basis, I am asking for opinions and expressions of interest regarding a publication project taking up a more systematic and detailed consideration of the use of newspapers in Japanese studies research.

What I am proposing is a journal special issue or possibly an edited book bringing together descriptions of various projects, disciplinary viewpoints, research methodologies and outcomes that are based on use of newspapers and therefore highlight the contribution, extent and potential of newspaper based research, in this case in Japanese Studies-related themes. Such a project is personally motivated by my interest in local newspapers of Japan - even though I expect that much of the research that has been based on use of newspapers will have used national-level papers. Such a project is also motivated by recognition of the evolving place of the newspaper in contemporary society - I see it as a timely, but highly stable starting point for any research project. However, in this sense, my viewpoint is highly contemporary, rather than historical. Other viewpoints and opinions?

Should this project progress, the papers that would constitute such an issue or book would be less 'research papers' than 'descriptions of the value and potential of the newspaper in research that has been conducted.' In that sense, I am not asking to re-report the research; rather I am seeking to present how the newspaper made the research possible. This explorative stage will tell me whether there is value in proceeding with such a project, based on the opinions received, the level of interest, and the number of potential contributors. Please contact me off-list with opinions and expressions of interest regarding the theme and participation. I am not setting a deadline, but rather will be looking for responses until early-July.

Anthony S. Rausch

Associate Professor

Hirosaki University, Faculty of Education

asrausch[at]cc.hirosaki-u.ac.jp

Author of Cultural Commodities in Japanese Rural
Revitalization: Tsugaru Nuri Lacquerware and Tsugaru Shamisen (Brill, 2010) and Japan's Local Newspapers:
Chihoshi and Revitalization Journalism (Routledge Contemporary Japan Series, 2012) and co-editor of Japan's Shrinking Regions in the 21st Century:
Contemporary Responses to Depopulation and Socioeconomic Decline (with Peter Matanle and the Shrinking Regions Research Group, Cambria, 2011).