Hikari Ota's If I Were Prime Minister... Secretary Tanaka
Encyclopedia
Debate
Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
variety show
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
broadcast on Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
's Nippon TV. The show, starring the owarai
Owarai
is a broad word used to describe Japanese comedy as seen on television. The word owarai is the honorific form of the word warai, meaning "a laugh" or "a smile". Owarai is most common on Japanese variety shows and the comedians are referred to as owarai geinin or owarai tarento...
duo Bakushō Mondai
Bakusho Mondai
is a Japanese comedy duo consisting of Yūji Tanaka and Hikari Ōta under the entertainment agency, Titan Inc. The comedians first met when they were students in the Department of Fine Arts at Nihon University, and they formed Bakushō Mondai in 1988 after dropping out of school...
started out as a special presentation on October 15, 2005, and has been broadcast during prime-time on Fridays since April 7, 2006. Due to the extremely long title, the show is usually referred to as .
The setup
Hikari ŌtaHikari Ota
is a Japanese television comedian.He is most famous as one half of the owarai duo Bakushō Mondai along with Yūji Tanaka, where he acts as the boke.- Unique character :...
, who is a comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, usually takes the position of Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
, and puts forth to the assembled guests a manifesto
Manifesto
A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...
, generally of a very radical, sometimes even ridiculous nature. In the video introduction that follows, Ōta's manifesto is explained, and a brief (and humorous) proof is given for how this particular manifesto will bring peace to Japan, and/or the world. The guests are then divided into those who propose and oppose the manifesto, and debating starts with an introduction by the "Prime Minister". The discussions, though generally civil, can often produce high tensions between debaters, even those arguing on the same side, and Speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
Fumi Mori (who is actually an announcer
Announcer
An announcer is a presenter who makes "announcements" in an audio medium or a physical location.-Television and other media:Some announcers work in television production , radio or filmmaking, usually providing narrations, news updates, station identification, or an introduction of a product in...
for Nippon TV), sitting above the assembly, often exercises her power to halt discussion and gives individuals a chance to speak freely.
Hikari Ōta's partner in comedy Yūji Tanaka
Yuji Tanaka
is a Japanese comedian. He is best known as half of the owarai duo Bakushō Mondai along with Hikari Ōta. He also played Mike in the Japanese dub of the Pixar movie Monsters, Inc. and Br'er Fox in the Japanese dub of the Disney movie Song of the South -References:...
, acting secretary, doesn't participate in discussions and instead spends the entire show in the "Prime Minister's office" with Eriko Kumazawa (acting second secretary, though she is a model) eating foods given as gifts from the other guests and generally laughing whenever the debating gets hot. There is also a bench for "neutral" participants in the discussion, but guests who choose not to take sides are not often given a chance to speak.
At the end of the debate (always announced by the Speaker, usually before any form of consensus is made) guests must give their final decision (to approve or reject the manifesto) to the Speaker. Manifestos that are approved by the assembly are proposed to the National Diet of Japan.
The "manifestos"
With Ōta (and occasionally a guest) as Prime Minister, the subject matter of the show varies widely from that of typical Japanese political debate shows. Whether Ōta actually believes what he proposes or not is debatable (he is known to take the opposing side of an argument for the sake of arguing), many of his manifestos are quite extreme, and the majority of his manifestos are not approved by the assembly. That being said, many of his manifestos deal with extremely important and difficult national and international issues, and though the tone of the show may be light with jokes and taunts being thrown around without consequence, the discussions are often very serious, and tears and lost tempers are not rare.A few notable manifestos that have been approved (and thus sent to the Diet) are:
- Remove all support for NEETNEETNEET is a government acronym for people currently "not in education, employment, or training". It was first used in the United Kingdom but its use has spread to other countries, including Japan, China, and South Korea...
individuals (PM: Ōta) - Make a statement in the constitution stating that psychic phenomenon don't exist (PM: Ōta)
- Remove the salary of members of the official opposing political party (PM: Ōta)
- Make the days of Japan's World CupFIFA World CupThe FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
matches into national holidays (PM: Various) - Force doctors to take a license renewal test every 5 years (PM: Etsuko Namikawa, actress)
A few notable manifestos that have been rejected are:
- Create history textbooks in cooperation with other east AsiaEast AsiaEast Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
n countries, as done in FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(see Japanese history textbook controversiesJapanese history textbook controversiesJapanese history textbook controversies refers to controversial content in government-approved history textbooks used in the secondary education of Japan...
) (PM: Ōta) - PrivatizePrivatizationPrivatization is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency or public service from the public sector to the private sector or to private non-profit organizations...
the government of prefectures and cities (PM: Ōta) - Charge ¥Japanese yenThe is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
100 for each character of input on the internetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
(PM: Ōta) - In future, refuse to give any money to the US government (PM: Ōta)
- Force homeowners to open their curtains during the afternoon (PM: Tōru Hashimoto, LawyerLawyerA lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
)
The guests
Ōta is known for his strong debating skills, and so as not to be strong-armed, a unique assembly of well-known guests from various walks of life are featured as regulars on the show. About a third of the guests are usually members (occasionally leaders) of major Japanese political parties, and the rest are usually a mix of famous tarentoTarento
is a Japanese rendering of the English word "talent" and is used as a catch-all term for mass media personalities who regularly appear on television. Detractors of the phenomenon have referred to it in an English sense as "famous just for being famous" because many that fall into this career line...
and prominent foreign personalities. While some of the regulars and guests are also strong debators, many (especially some of the tarento) do not tend to participate much in the heated talks. Quieter participants may be given a minute to speak their opinion in between major points of a discussion, and their straight opinions often help to keep the discussions focused.
The show's regulars are:
- Katsuei HirasawaKatsuei Hirasawais a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party , a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet . A native of the village of Shirakawa, Gifu and graduate of the University of Tokyo, he jointed the National Police Agency in 1968, attending Duke University in the United States while...
(平沢勝栄), LDP member - Hideaki ŌmuraHideaki Omurais a Japanese politician, the governor of Aichi Prefecture. He was a former member of the Liberal Democratic Party, also a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet . A native of Hekinan, Aichi and graduate of the University of Tokyo, he joined the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and...
(大村秀章), LDP member - Akira AmariAkira Amariis a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party and a member of the lower house. He was the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry from 2006 to 2008 and is currently Minister of State in charge of Administrative Reform....
(甘利明), LDP member - Kazuhiro HaraguchiKazuhiro Haraguchiis a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan , a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet . A native of Saga, Saga and graduate of the University of Tokyo, he was elected to the assembly of Saga Prefecture for the first time in 1987 as a member of the Liberal Democratic...
(原口一博), DPJDemocratic Party of JapanThe is a political party in Japan founded in 1998 by the merger of several opposition parties. Its socially liberal platform is generally considered center-left in the Japanese political spectrum...
member, often supports Ōta - Yoshizumi IshiharaYoshizumi Ishiharais a Japanese weather forecaster, TV personality, and actor. He is the second son of Tokyo governor Shintarō Ishihara, and brother of politicians Nobuteru Ishihara and Hirotaka Ishihara.-Biography:Ishihara was born on 15 January 1962 in Zushi, Kanagawa....
(石原良純), actor, tarento, and weathermanWeather forecastingWeather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a given location. Human beings have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia, and formally since the nineteenth century... - Lasa-R Ishii (ラサール石井), comedian and actor
- Kevin Clone, American-born Japanese international columnistColumnistA columnist is a journalist who writes for publication in a series, creating an article that usually offers commentary and opinions. Columns appear in newspapers, magazines and other publications, including blogs....
, usually opposes Ōta and has an extremely strong debating style - Saya Kazuki (和希沙也), idolJapanese idolIn Japanese culture, are media personalities in their teens and early twenties who are considered particularly attractive or cute and who will, for a period ranging from several months to a few years, regularly appear in the mass media, e.g...
- George Takahashi (高橋ジョージ), rockRock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
vocalist, often supports Ōta - Hirotada Ototake (乙武洋匡), sports writer
- Akiko Matsumoto (松本明子), tarento and actress
- Kazuyo Matsui (松居一代), tarento, actress, and essayist
- Pa-kkun Ma-kkun (パックンマックン), Japanese and American comedy duo
In total, the show usually features more than 30 guests. The narrator of the show is Kiyoshi Kobayashi (小林清志).
Reaction
Though political discussion is not rare on Japanese television, direct political satirePolitical satire
Political satire is a significant part of satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics; it has also been used with subversive intent where political speech and dissent are forbidden by a regime, as a method of advancing political arguments where such arguments are expressly...
is almost non-existent, and Ōta himself has expressed worries about the future of the show in an interview with New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
editor Norimitsu Onishi
Norimitsu Onishi
is a Japanese Canadian journalist. He currently heads the Southeast Asia bureau of the New York Times.-Career:Onishi was born in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. At the age of four, Onishi and his family immigrated to Montreal, Quebec, Canada...
, Ōta reportedly will not touch upon certain topics, namely the imperial family and North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
, because of the complex nature of the issues and a general lack of public understanding.
Regardless, Ōta doesn't appear to be backing down as he says,