Kakuei Tanaka, Hero of the People and Symphonic Poem of Popular Culture (1970s)

Kakuei Tanaka, Hero of the People and Symphonic Poem of Popular Culture (1970s)

Kakuei Tanaka gained widespread support as a popular politician in the 1970s and was deeply connected with popular culture. He loved ronikyoku and enka, and his speeches, especially those influenced by Torazo Hirosawa and Hideo Murata, captured the hearts of the common people with a familiar style that made use of regional dialects. He also skillfully utilized television and radio to appeal directly to his audience and establish an image of the common man. His policy of promoting regional development with his "Theory of the Remaking of the Japanese Archipelago," aimed at revitalizing regional economies with the support of Masaharu Goto and Masayoshi Ohira, garnered a great deal of expectation. While tackling issues of inequality and pollution during the period of rapid economic growth, his political career was overshadowed by the Lockheed affair, but his style of emphasizing the common man has been passed down through the generations as the symbol of the "common man politicia
n" in Japanese politics.