Actors' and Actresses' Frank TV Discussions--A Sense of Distance and Distrust (ca. 1970)

Actors' and Actresses' Frank TV Discussions--A Sense of Distance and Distrust (ca. 1970)

Around 1970, television in Japan had completely become a central device in the lives of the masses. It was the fruit of Japan's rapid economic growth that reached households, and for entertainers it was a place of exposure and a stage on which the value of their products was determined. At the same time, however, television had become so large that entertainers themselves began to be wary of its influence.

The comments of the actors and actresses in the survey reveal more of an enlightened distance from television than a simple attachment to it. Mariko Kaga's comment, "It would be too convenient if we could just get away with saying that TV has made us morons," is both an ironic comment on the theory of moronization itself and a rejection of the idea of shifting the blame to television. The very idea of blaming the media for the cause of people's dullness is already tinged with a suspicion that it is a deception.

What makes this statement symbolic is that the entertainers were aware of television as too influential. Television certainly changes people. However, it is not simply a matter of right or wrong, but can be changed in any way depending on the attitude of those who watch and appear on TV. Kaga's words reflect a calm sense of reality that neither overconfidence nor underestimation of television.

A similar sense of distance can be seen in the attitude of Maeda Bibari. She views television as an extension of her work and refrains from discussing it in depth. This is a clear indication of her sense that television is a dangerous place to talk about her personal life and thoughts. Television is a place of expression, but it is not a place to entrust one's inner life. This line was being shared among the actors of the time.

A further indication of this distrust is a comment made by Akako Maeda, who said, "Television is not something to watch, but something to leave. I realized that TV is not something to watch, but something to appear," which is tantamount to a declaration that one does not trust TV as a viewing device. Here, the TV is perceived not as a mirror reflecting reality, but as a machine that processes reality.

Around 1970, with the expansion of late-night programming and the establishment of ratings supremacy, television mixed entertainment and news reporting, politics and private life, rapidly blurring the boundaries. Entertainers became entities to be sold off at the boundary between human beings and commodities, and the more the parties involved in the field, the less they believed unconditionally in the reality that television was telling them.

The frank discourse of the actors and actresses is less a criticism of television than a warning against excessive expectations of television. Television is not a panacea and does not accept responsibility. That is why they distanced themselves in the form of sarcasm and jokes, and tried to protect their own thoughts and lives. This attitude is a clear indication of the mature media sensibility that emerged in the period around 1970.