FOCUS: Japan's imperial family eyeing social media to stay in touch - Kyodo News
Agency to beef up online PR activities for imperial family | The Asahi ShimbunShunning social media, Japan's imperial family has long been reluctant to open up about the daily lives of its members, but the year 2023 could be a turning point with the agency in charge of the family's affairs set to explore the potential use of social media platforms as part of a new approach to public relations.
With experts in agreement that an overhaul by the Imperial Household Agency of its communication style, including giving increased exposure to the family, is long overdue, the agency said in late December that it will set up a formal public relations office in April after its budget request to hire more staff was approved by the Cabinet.
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Some conservatives in Japan are opposed to shining more of a light on the lives of imperial family members and bringing the emperor, once deemed a god, too close to the people. Under the Constitution, his role is defined as being "the symbol of the state and the unity of the people of Japan."
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But Yohei Mori, a professor of media history at Seijo University with expertise in imperial family matters, says the agency's manner of communicating with the public "remains at the level of the first half of the 20th Century" in an age increasingly dominated by social media.
He said the agency believes people will fully and immediately understand if it communicates the right information in the right way and does not take into account the fact that there are always people who will not understand or will misinterpret it.
"Just shifting output channels to social media won't change anything," Mori said.
The family and the agency need to start repeating key messages so that more people can understand what they want to say, a style that has become more common with the spread of social media, he argued.
Naotaka Kimizuka, a professor of British political and diplomatic history at Kanto Gakuin University who has written books about the British royal family, agreed that the Japanese imperial family should have started utilizing social media long ago, especially earlier in the pandemic when people could not go outside.
He stressed the family should "even go as far as expanding their official duties" so they have more to communicate about to the public, calling them important figures in society who are capable of highlighting various issues.
The dearth of communication has apparently not worked in favor of the imperial family, as seen especially in the way Japan's tabloid magazines have covered the scandal involving former Princess Mako and her husband Kei Komuro.
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The imperial family and the agency chose not to refute the reports even though they were considered libelous, saying that calling out one report would make others appear true.
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Kimizuka warned that Japan's imperial family, already distant from the public and dwindling in number with fewer successors, could "disappear quickly" unless they establish themselves in people's consciousness through social media.
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But better communication through social media could be a way to mend such a divide, he said, adding the agency and the family need to drop efforts to convey only the "right" image.
"People are talking about imperial family members as they like, even though they don't know what the members are actually thinking," Mori said. "The family members should show themselves from different angles" and show their human sides more to gain people's empathy.
The Imperial Household Agency will establish a public affairs office in April to handle online information about the imperial family in a way that will prevent defamatory comments in social and other media.
About 10 individuals will be assigned to the office that will mainly deal with posting information on the agency’s website about the activities of imperial family members.
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The revamped website will provide more detailed accounts of their activities, including the posting of photos and videos in a timely manner after an event, according to high-ranking agency members.
The work on the new website will be the first step toward providing more information to help make imperial family members more familiar to the general public.
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The hope is that transmitting more accurate information about imperial family members will lead to a decrease in baseless reports or postings.
While members of royal families abroad have their own social media accounts, agency officials said there was a greater hurdle in Japan in allowing imperial family members to take such a step.