Why is Japanese TV so bad?

[craftsman]

I end up watching far too much Japanese TV than is healthy for the long term survival of my brain. Some programs I enjoy, some make me laugh out loud and some are a source of good information. But try as I may, I can't get away from the fact that Japanese TV should be much better than it is.

I watch the news and the newsreader pulls out a piece of cardboard and tears strips of tape off it to reveal bits of information as they explain. I watch a drama and realise that it is the same story as last years' drama but instead of a school, it's now set in a college. And the acting. And the close-ups. And then the quizzes - is there any subject that can't be quizzed? Surely everything has been quizzed to death. And the food. The food. Is there anywhere on TV to escape the dreaded food? I could go on but I think you get the idea.

So, presuming that Japanese TV is bad when put on a world stage, I've been wondering why. I found a few articles on the subject and found some possible causes for why the content has not improved:

1. Is it bad because of a lack of technology?
Well – it seems pretty obvious that Japanese television has no technological barriers to improved content Many of the key components in television production in other countries are made in Japan. Sony, Hitachi, Matsushita and others are world-leaders in digital imaging and produce many of the world's editing suites.

2. Is it because of a lack of finance?
No, TV in Japan is one of the most profitable industries in the country. The television companies have huge revenues, a captive market, as cable services have made few inroads in the country, and very large audiences.

3. Is it because Japanese TV companies are intentionally producing low-quality content?
Ah! Could this hold the key to the dilemma?

But why on earth would TV companies want to do this?

Here's some theories:

a. Lack of ability: Japanese television creators are incompetent in creating better quality content due to lack of skill/craft in using the resources.

b. Consumer Pull: Japanese TV watchers want low-quality content and TV channels are creating content to their wishes.

c. Producer Indifference: Japanese television channels have a captive market, little competition from cable or satellite sources, and generally stable market stares, and therefore, have no real incentive to increase the quality of their content.

As far as a. is concerned one just has to look towards the film world to see examples of creativity of ideas and skills at producing world class movies. Also ads on TV have a professionalism and finish to them that suggests quality people behind them.

Now with b it would be easy to argue that Japanese people don't complain about the lack of good quality programs and therefore want mindless pulp. However, the option of having different programming is not offered to them due to the lack of a regular alternative like cable and also when popular shows like 24 or friends were aired they were incredibly popular. Having Japanese not complain about something they are not expecting in the first place is not the same as active approval.

So that leaves c. The argument then can go all over the place but here are a few points:

• Japanese network TV have no real rivals.
• There would be little to gain from change.
• Dentsu and Hakuhodo do not want to lose their monopoly on TV ad space nor see that monopoly ad space get devalued with lower ratings.
• Japanese Bureaucracy functions best with the population entertained with shows and sport rather than investigating why their lives are made so much harder by Japanese companies and the search for profits.
• As long as a healthy profit is to be made there is no incentive to change the status quo.

So if the last point is true I ought to get used to watching bad TV...

….and the terrible thing is…..I really am starting to warm to those quizzes and the food shows..someone…help!

 

[Goldiegirl]

It reminds me of tv in the 70's. I laughed at the news when they pulled out a cardboard tuna and peeled parts of it off to show how many tuna the Japanese eat compared to the rest of the world...and I could understand this without speaking any Japanese! It seemed so old fashioned, which is odd when I could barely figure out all the buttons on the toilet.

 

[Mikawa Ossan]

I would disagree with you Craftsman, in that, I think Japanese TV much better than most American TV at least.

Of course, as someone who watches neither, my opinion may not be of much value in this thread...

 

[craftsman]

It reminds me of tv in the 70's. I laughed at the news when they pulled out a cardboard tuna and peeled parts of it off to show how many tuna the Japanese eat compared to the rest of the world...and I could understand this without speaking any Japanese! It seemed so old fashioned, which is odd when I could barely figure out all the buttons on the toilet.

Yes. That's exactly it. There's a massive contradiction there between your toilet and your TV!

I would disagree with you Craftsman, in that, I think Japanese TV much better than most American TV at least.

Holy Crap! If that's true. It's a mad, mad world out there.

 

[leonmarino]

Ok, my impression of Japanese TV is not so positive either. It's filled with game shows featuring celebrities doing the most ridiculous stuff and answering the most stupid questions, and food programmes. The food programmes are fun to watch at first, but after the zillionth "OOOooOooOOo.. Oisiiiiii!!!" the fun wears off. I have rarely seen an educational programme like we have here (Discovery, National Geographic). Even the News is of very low quality. I was in Japan during the Joan Benet-case (no idea how to write it), and although I find it a very, very sad happening, I have no clue as to why the Japanese media was on it like that!! The news started with it and ended with it.. I failed to see the connection between that case and Japan, but still it was broadcasted a lot.

So.. Why is this? I have no clue. I have a vague idea about the lack of criticism of the viewers being responsible for this, but can't put it to words properly..

 

[firefly]

I really get into some American TV Series, like Lost, Heroes, etc - Japanese TV just gives me a headache.

I do however LOVE the commercials, always more than the main show itself.

 

[MajideSaiaku]

The best thing about Japanese TV was finding a channel showed the A-team at a certain time every day....and that I could change it back to the original English voices.

Otherwise it was pretty damn boring.

 

[gaijinalways]

Some of the dramas are sometimes entertaining, but they generally only run 3 months (which could be good or bad). The 'wide' shows are generally crap, with little or no real interviews with real celebs (people with a real talent rather than just being a talent). They do have a few good documentaries, more the travel type, but they can be interesting. As to the alluded 'foodie' shows, they are generally very missable.

 

[doinkies]

I would disagree with you Craftsman, in that, I think Japanese TV much better than most American TV at least.
Of course, as someone who watches neither, my opinion may not be of much value in this thread...

Yeah...there's plenty of doinky shows on American TV too (mainly doinky sitcoms and doinky reality shows). Other countries probably have lots of doinky shows too. I generally subscribe to Sturgeon's Law, "90% of everything is crap", and that goes for TV too, anywhere in the world.

Most of the people posting in this thread might think I'm a big doink for this, but doinkies actually likes quite a few of the variety shows. The food shows do get a bit tiring after a while though, the only one I really liked was 新どっちの料理ショー and that's cancelled now...

I also do generally like J-dramas, though I have seen my share of doinky ones. *remembers the overhyped doinkiness that was クロサギ and 野ブタ。をプロデュース* Probably my favorite one this year was 「結婚できない男」.
As for documentaries, I think there are more documentaries on NHK than there are on other channels, on various topics.

Anyway, now that I've used the word "doink" a billion times in this post, I guess I should end this post here. XD

 

[misa.j]

I think TV and media in that respect, are universally awful and going down hill.

 

[Iron Chef]

Eh... same tired old "talents" making the rounds on the telly. Seriously, I get sick seeing the same faces day in day out every time I click on my tube. I do enjoy the food and travel segments though, and sometimes there are nice human interest stories but aside from that an the occasional K-1/Pride televised event or musical performance, i'm bored with quiz show-style trappings (enough maru/batsu plz...). Ever noticed the outlandish sets and decor they use for "panel" discussions? Same set designer must work with the slot/pachinko developers I swear.

 

[Davey]

I don't think Japanese tv is bad (Australian tv is worse in my opinion), but I definitely think it can be better. A country the size of Japan should have more quality tv programs ( Indeed all the food programs can be a bit boring after the while, and also the Oishii is driving me nuts), then I also think that they should have more tv programs (for example in the Netherlands we have over 15national channels, plus a big range of other European channels), so maybe some CNN and National Geographic kind of channels would be great... But you have to pay for that now.

If they would change the Pay tv (sky perfect) into free tv, problem solved.

But for the rest, I think they have a lot of comedy on tv, music programs, and late-night commercials (joke...)

The best thing about Japanese TV was finding a channel showed the A-team at a certain time every day....and that I could change it back to the original English voices.
Otherwise it was pretty damn boring.

The Miami Vice series was on tv last summer... That was the first time for me to watch it, and I loved it

 

[xerxes99]

Another thing I've noticed, is that there seems to be only about 10 people on Japanese TV. The same people are on show after show!

 

[yukio_michael]

I think what everyone has said thusfar is fairly true. [One sees] The SAME tarento, over and over and over. Why? Because these faces sell ad space, and the Japanese entertainment industry, more than many I think, is not at all worried about beating a dead horse when it comes to entertainers and idols...

People get the idea that Japanese consumers are fickle, that idols can be flashes in the pan, due to market boredom. This isn't exactly a truthful representation of what is going on. For one, the idols are often simply similar copies of other more popular idols, they aren't all that talented... They may have a single and ride that success for a little while, but then, poof! they disapeare, because frankly, they really only had one gimmicky single in them.

How many times can you hear Razor Ramon go "fuuuuuuuuuuuuu" before you start to get bored. Seemingly much longer than I initially thought--- Then there are the gaijin tarento, who more or less serve as stereotypes for the Japanese to gawk at, especially those whom happen to be black.

In the United States, on public broadcasting, you'll expect to see a wide variety of programming on many different subjects. Sadly, I didn't see any of this on Japanese television... Japanese TV runs something like this, during a day...

Children's programming in the morning
Relaxation-programming (music with pictures of waterfalls, etc)
mid-day housewife programming, and dramas, such as Waterboys, and older Samurai dramas w/ Sonny Chiba in them...
Evening news & more doramas....
variety & music programs
sometimes a foreign movie in dual-audio
english infomercials dubbed into Japanese...
dross....

It's pretty grim, but I'm also sad to say that I got pretty addicted to watching Japanese television, myself.

 

[ArmandV]

When in Japan, I've watched some television despite not understanding the language. It is pretty strange, but interesting anyway. I am not a fan of U.S. television programming either and seldom watch it, unless it is news or a documentary or biography. There's nothing but mindless sitcoms and useless celebrity-driven crud.

 

[taehyun]

I got rid of my TV 3years ago and I feel great. Some of my colleagues and my professor don't have TV too.They say it hepls for Japanese language studies, but no thanx ,I prefer not to study THIS kind of Japanese language.

 

[GaijinPunch]

Japanese are talented at many things. The "TV programming gene", they definitely lack.

 

[japantvhost]

Japanese TV is not bad compared to ????? Some would some American TV or Australian TV or TV in China. It's all relative. But, Japanese TV commercials are much better than Western ones.

 

[Fluwten McGunch]

All Japanese TV producers should have a tuna stuck up their bunghole.

 

[yukio_michael]

Japanese are talented at many things. The "TV programming gene", they definitely lack.

I don't know... there's a certain charm to the brand of "cruel abuse" that they heap upon their tv talent that doesn't seem to be duplicated anywhere outside of Mexico...

Filling a man's nose with ants and then trying to get an ant-eater to eat them out of it (I am NOT making this up)... Now, that is must-see tv.

 

[gotoh]

As for criticism, I've read somewhere on the Net (sorry, can't remember the source) that there is a lack of good consumer protection outlets (in magazines, TV, etc) to review Japanese products because most Japanese fear legal action. Japan is a free-speech society (I guess) but it seems that Japan corps. invented the concept of SLAPP way before the American corporations used them in recent years.
In short: can one demand better TV without touching the sponsors and fear legal action ?

 

[Mikawa Ossan]

Last night I saw on TV at the gym a programme that detailed the process of childbirth, starting at conception. It was thoroughly entriguing, and well done, I think.

Of course I only saw it in minute long chunks, but still!

I like the fact that you can see sports on regular TV in Japan like volleyball and table tennis.

 

[doinkies]

As far as doinky shows go...

One of the variety shows that doinkies used to like was ミンナのテレビ, which changed its name to 歌笑HOTヒット10 and finally to ウタワラ. In its ミンナのテレビ incarnation, it had some funny skits, a nice mix of タレント, and some good covers of J-pop songs. Though it wasn't exactly high comedy, doinkies enjoyed it anyway. And then, it changed its name to 歌笑HOTヒット10 and focused more on a "tarento covering the top 10 songs of the week" format. The first few episodes were OK, and I liked one of the new segments that had 80s idols performing their hits, but the show began to decrease in quality, and "jump the shark". Also, every episode focused more and more on KAT-TUN, who had also been regular hosts of ミンナのテレビ along with some other singers and タレント. The other hosts of the show began to get less airtime, and I began getting sick of KAT-TUN and wished the producers would pay more attention to the other hosts once in a while.

In the end, doinkies stopped watching it, and didn't bother paying attention to it when it got its THIRD name change. The エロかわいい special segment scandal finally proved to doinkies that it had jumped the shark for good.