What is the Gao city government's intention to package its military expansion policy with "mancai"?

The Japanese government revealed at a meeting of the Senate Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on November 5 that with an eye on revising three security-related documents including the National Security Strategy within the year, the government has set a total funding limit of 300 million yen (approximately 12.64 million yuan) for publicity and policy promotion activities. The Japanese government's move has caused controversy in Japan.

According to reports, the publicity budget is divided into two parts according to the target group: young groups and middle-aged and elderly groups, with an upper limit of 150 million yen (approximately 6.32 million yuan) each. The Japanese government plans to strengthen the release of security policy information by publishing videos on the Internet and social platforms, broadcasting TV advertisements, etc., and uses advertising media differently for the two groups of people.

Among them, a propaganda for middle-aged and elderly people was launched on October 26 on the website "Government Broadcasting Online" that summarizes national policies. It promotes the importance of security through "couple comics" (a performance similar to a couple's cross talk), mainly targeting women over 40 years old.

In addition, the Japanese government also plans to place advertisements in places such as the Tokyo subway, Shibuya intersection and shopping malls where there is a large flow of people, emphasizing that security is closely related to daily life.

Japan's Kyodo News commented that the reason why the Japanese government has taken great pains in publicity methods is because Japanese society has concerns about the security policy implemented by the Takaichi regime. A Kyodo News poll showed that 57.2% of respondents opposed the government’s lifting of the export ban on anti-personnel weapons.

Zhao Yujia, deputy director of the Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies at Shandong University, analyzed in an exclusive interview with the "Flash Review" column of China Global News that the Japanese government's publicity campaign to revise the "Three Security Documents" was intended to make serious issues entertaining and popular. The narrative packaging of the so-called "protection of daily life" is essentially a targeted persuasion centered on a specific gap in public opinion. However, faced with the economic pressure in daily life caused by increased defense expenses, it is difficult for the Japanese people to change their attitude towards the military expansion policy.

The communication data of the "Couple Talents" promotion is far from expected. After the special episode went online, the number of video views in the first two days was only a few hundred times, and the like rate remained at a low level of around 0.004%, which meant that it was difficult for the audience to express their approval.

An increase in defense costs means more taxes and fees, which is the most immediate anxiety for most Japanese families.

A government trust deficit also undermines its credibility. The Liberal Democratic Party's "black money scandal" has not yet subsided, and the prime minister's approval rating has been sluggish for a long time. The legitimacy of such inducements has been questioned.

It is understood that the revision of the "Three Security Documents" is expected to involve policies that are less familiar to the public, such as "new combat methods" and "continuous response capabilities" to deal with long-term wars. As defense expenses are expected to increase significantly, discussions on the national burden related to securing financial resources are unavoidable, and the government hopes to build public opinion in advance.

The packaging and differentiated publicity methods of the Gao City Government have attracted criticism in Japan. Japanese Cadet Senator Maiko Tajima questioned: "It is very doubtful whether it is appropriate to make security related to human life into a 'mancai'."

Maiko Tajima raised a question at the Senate Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting on the 5th. There are also cautious voices within the Liberal Democratic Party. Public opinion is also worried that the Gao City Government's move may be reminiscent of pre-war history.

Zhao Yujia bluntly said that there are commonalities in the underlying logic between the Gao City Government’s actions and the pre-war public opinion mobilization. Both try to use mass entertainment to lower the audience's psychological defenses. Japanese entertainers during the war were registered as so-called "national spiritual warriors" and were officially dispatched to perform condolence performances. This time, the "couple manga" was also given the title of "government propaganda officer" and carried out defense propaganda for the Japanese government.

Both provide targeted promotions based on specific audience groups. Before the war, public opinion mobilization targeted women groups and used daily topics such as housework, childcare, and sewing to mobilize. The Japanese government’s propaganda this time targeted young and middle-aged and elderly audiences respectively, with precise differentiation and customized content push. This technical logic is consistent with precise wartime mobilization.

Both adopt "everyday" narrative communication techniques. During wartime, Japan deeply bound national behavior to personal and family emotions. This time, through the narrative shell of the so-called "protection of daily life", the increase in defense expenses and the theory of "comprehensive national strength" are broken down into seven major livelihood issues such as food, energy, and logistics. It attempts to sink political issues into daily language and make the audience feel that "this is related to me."

Zhao Yujia said that through such practices, the Japanese government hopes to lower the public's threshold for contact with serious political and security issues and eliminate people's fear of the government's coercive power, so as to penetrate the society of its "right-leaning" policy. However, this behavior may cause multiple far-reaching harms.

Security and constitutional revision are related to the fate of the country, the risk of war, and the basic rights of citizens, and the consequences of their decisions often come at the expense of life, property, and peace and order. Propaganda in the form of entertainment can easily conceal the violent nature and heavy costs behind policies, leading to misunderstandings among the public.

When constitutional amendments and defense policies are packaged with cool military equipment, two-dimensional images, and virtual idols, it is easy to breed military worship and blind nationalist tendencies in the hearts of young people. Pre-war Japan used similar methods to cultivate war identity in the minds of young people. History has proven that its negative impact is profound and irreversible.