III. Democratization and Multi-party Competition
Effect on Political outcome in Japan (and increasingly in Taiwan)
• Today’s Faction: Small and numerous, flexible membership.
• Party Centralization Public Financing: mandated all private contributions only to
parties, Not to individuals
• Importance of party leadership: the rise of Koizumi and his relationship with the
media
Related YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJYUG1o22DI
Page 1
Electoral
Reform
aaa
New rules for
Choosing leader
Ignoring boss
1995
Intra-faction
Competition
1998
Result:
- Instant changes in in Individual electoral campaign, party leadership selection
- Later change in post allocation: Koizumi’s meritocracy
⇒ Today’s Faction: Small and numerous, flexible membership.
IV. Japanese Developmental Model and its Variants
Theory: if factions are by-products of intra-party competitions, it should be eliminated.
1. Fate of Factions
IV. Japanese Developmental Model and its Variants
2. Party Centralization
1) Public Financing: mandated all private contributions only to parties,
Not to individuals
2) Nomination: each party nominates only one person per district,
Stricter rules for the electability of its field of candidates (two chances)
⇒ Voters are now freed of choosing between same party competitors, can rely on the
general reputations and platforms of parties to guide their decisions. Party now
choose leaders who best represent and articulate unified message of the party.
Eg. Koizumi
IV. Japanese Developmental Model and its Variants
2. Party Centralization
3) Prime-ministerial leadership: increased authority and resources of prime-minister
(logical adaptation by politicians to new rule, institutional inter-complementarity)
- Eg. Revising cabinet law to empower prime minister to oversee the line ministries
Several new advisory councils responsible directly to PM Administrative Reform:
- Big Bang Reforms (1996): permits any type of financial institution to provide banking,
brokering, investment, or insurance; brokers’ commissions deregulated, entry into the
currency exchange business was liberalized.
IV. Japanese Developmental Model and its Variants
Before: MOF guaranteed bank solvency by limiting competition among financial
institutions. Consolidate the convoy system at the time of crisis.
3. The Big Bang
Banks sold large portions of their stable holdings of
firm share. Firms sold bank share as well. Foreign
ownership increase,.
⇒ More exits to external bonds and stock market, Negative
correlation b/w main bank and corporate profits (lowproductivity
firms depending on banks)
New Corporate
Governance
Labor Markets
IV. Japanese Developmental Model and its Variants
No more long-term access to fund caused no more longterm
contract
⇒ Especially in service sector companies in banking, insurance,
and commerce. Manufacturing firms continue lifetime
employment for their core workers as an incentive. Easy hiring
and firing practice led the increase of women employment
WEEK 3: MASS MEDIA, VOTING
BEHAVIOUR, AND PUBLIC OPINION
IN NORTHEAST ASIA
Government and Politics in Northeast Asia
(by Jaemin Shim)
II. MEDIA AND POLITICS: BASIC IDEAS
 Importance of Media in Politics
 People actually visit government web-pages or
receive government publications to update
themselves ?
 Agenda power and Framing
 “What” and “how” certain things are presented
 The media can exaggerate, add, and remove certain
facts to make readers recognise reality in the way
they want
II. MEDIA AND POLITICS: BASIC IDEAS
 Agenda power and Framing
 People take in the “framed reality” without being
critical (Nimmo and Combs, 1990)
 Discourses reflect certain groups’ power and, at the
same time, can be used to exercise their power
(Foucault , 1981)
 Examples based on my own work
 Work 1: Effect of media on inequality perception
 Work 2: Media and legislature on social policy issues
in Korea
II. MEDIA AND POLITICS: BASIC IDEAS
 Examples based on my own work
 Effect of media on inequality perception
 Inequality is equally worsening in South Korea and Japan
in the past two decades (measured by the GINI index)
 But various surveys show Koreans “perceive” the current
level of inequality much more “less acceptable” and “unfair”
 Why?
II. MEDIA AND POLITICS: BASIC IDEAS
 Agenda power and Framing
0
200
400
600
800
Right-wing, Korea
0
500
1000
1500
Left-wing, Korea
0
200
400
600
800
Right-wing, Japan
0
200
400
600
800
1000
Left-wing, Japan
II. MEDIA AND POLITICS: BASIC IDEAS
0
0.005
0.01
0.015
0.02
Right-wing, Korea (%)
0
0.005
0.01
0.015
0.02
0.025
0.03
Left-wing, Korea (%)
0
0.0005
0.001
0.0015
0.002
0.0025
Right-wing, Japan (%)
0
0.0005
0.001
0.0015
0.002
0.0025
0.003
Right-wing, Left (%)
III. MEDIA AND POLITICS: KOREA, JAPAN, AND TAIWAN
 Restrictions?
 Korea > Japan > Taiwan
 TV ads, Radio ads, Print Ads
 Campaign and expenditure restrictions
 Internet campaign restriction?
 Pros?
 Cons?
III. MEDIA AND POLITICS: KOREA, JAPAN, AND TAIWAN
 Americanization of media and politics?
 Election campaign advertisement…
 Korea: https://youtu.be/JOuTgtGCCts
 Taiwan: https://youtu.be/tv1ZCDoiovA
 How about Japan?
 Presidentialization of Japan after the electoral reform…
 Evidence?
III. MEDIA AND POLITICS: KOREA, JAPAN, AND TAIWAN
 From issue to person
III. MEDIA AND POLITICS: KOREA, JAPAN, AND TAIWAN
 From logos (logic) to pathos (emotion), e..g
political style of Koizumi
 Koizumi spoke to the public in a clear-cut language dubbed
‘one-phrase’
 His penchant for casting issues as matters of good and evil
 Press briefings were held twice a day, once at midday and once
in the evening (then broadcasted on the evening news
programmes)
 Koizumi favoured the weekly tabloid magazines and sports
newspapers
 Forced the cabinet press club to admit sports newspapers.
III. MEDIA AND POLITICS: KOREA, JAPAN, AND TAIWAN
THE END!!!
Government and Politics in Northeast Asia
(by Jaemin Shim)