By Kosuke Jimbo
Public relations as a profession had not been established until the 20th century. Sure, building a mutual communication stream with the public had long been practiced at a political level, but let’s just remind ourselves that the industrial revolution didn’t occur until the 19th century. That means we were finally figuring out ways to manufacture and distribute daily necessities in a structural manner, never mind branding or CRM.
Skip forward to postwar Japan, where GHQ (General Headquarters, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers) demanded to found the Public Relations Office (PRO) in an attempt to establish means for local governments to communicate the newly established laws to their citizens, and also give people the chance to manifest their opinion as well. This was quite a change for the nation and its people, as Japan had been under a militarist regime for… who knows when. Especially in the Far East where Confucianism is deeply embedded in our roots, the thought of a subordinate voicing his opinion to his superior was unthinkable.
Welcome freedom and public relations to the land of samurai, right? Well, not quite. PR in Japan, as it is for most things, made a distinctive turn and twist to become something a bit different from the rest of the world. And you’ll know why by learning its history.
1945 – 1950s Lost in Translation
When the PRO was founded, the officials translated it as Koho-Kocho, Koho meaning “inform widely” and Kocho meaning “listen widely”. Not a bad translation, eh? However, it was a bit too long for people to use in a daily conversation, and soon became abbreviated to Koho. Words shape the way we think, and naturally, many Japanese people started to interpret public relations as “a series of activities aimed to communicate their message to the public”. This is true up to this day, and many companies in Japan still believe that PR is about making their voices heard, not listening to them.
This was probably quite convenient for many businesses, as communication in Japan had always been from top to down, it was difficult for the public to voice their opinion. The whole society functioned better when people were told what to do or buy. This trait also led to the emergence of early house journals to raise the morale of employees.
Late 1950s-1960s Cross Ownership and PR Agencies
As the nation started to recover from its postwar damages, the media industry met the biggest turning point of the 20th century, television. Japanese newspaper companies who had started to build their own radio networks by the late 1950s, picked up on this global phenomenon quickly and opened their television network which still remains a powerhouse in mass media.
This method of a media company investing in another media company of different medium is called a media cross ownership. There are several cases of this in the world, like The New York Times’s former ownership of WQXR Radio, but in Japan, only five media conglomerates run the newspaper, radio, and TV nationwide. The emergence of these five media empires caused a boost in channels and media options for people to enjoy, which then led to the establishment of Japan’s earliest PR agencies.
1970s Economic Miracle and Social Responsibility
By the 1970s, the archipelago was about to go into a period we now know as the Japanese Economic Miracle. Japan had rapidly grown to become the second largest economy in the world, and businesses were expanding at a speed the world had never seen before. Large factories were built in urban areas, electronic companies were having the time of their life with exports increasing every year, and people finally seemed to find happiness after a tragic war.
However, this came with a cost. As companies started mass producing and population boosting, environmental pollution became a global issue. Companies that had been exporting goods, making the nation wealthier were now at the spot to be questioned about their social responsibility.
This is when the Japanese people started realizing the true value of PR that had previously been focusing solely on selling products. Companies were held accountable for their influence on the society, and were expected to bring a positive impact to the community. Naturally, demand for PR professionals rose and many companies established their own PR division.
1980s Bubble Economy and Corporate Identity
1980s Japan was about to enter its bubble era. This was the time when consumption was at its peak, and you’d see Lamborghinis and Mercedes running around town. Companies were richer than ever, and took on to philanthropic activities to better the society. With money in their hands, major corporations also started investing in fine arts, as these non-profit activities had become the scale to determine corporate value.
Accordingly, PR focused more towards establishing new corporate identities than selling products. Many corporate slogans and commercials were made during this era, also as an attempt to impress newly graduated students who would be willing to join the company.
However, as major corporations investing in various activities started to go out of hand, countless scandals emerged which kept many PR representatives busy during this time.
1990s Bubble Burst and Windows 95
By the 1990s, the Japanese economic growth had ended with the burst of the bubble. Major corporations were suddenly held accountable to explain their next plan to the furious stockholders, and PR agencies were booking press conferences all year long. Criticism towards companies was at its peak, and it could be said that many PR practices that we use to this day were established during this period.
In 1995, a game changing product that revolutionized the whole landscape of, not just PR, but every human activity was released. That is, Windows 95 and the internet. Suddenly, every office desk was equipped with a computer, and everything was digitalized. The biggest change for PR in Japan, was that the internet allowed companies to release their official releases without the help of the media giants that had controlled mass media. This also meant that PR agencies, which had been fully dependent on these media conglomerates had to adapt to this change.
2000s – Present Social Media and Sustainability
First two decades of the 21st century has seen a drastic change in the media landscape. First, with the emergence of social media, sending a message to the public was no longer a privilege held by media corporations. This means that PR agencies can no longer depend heavily on mass media, and have to find ways to get heard on their own. PR agencies established social media divisions devoted to getting their clients’ message heard on the platform.
Second, is that listening to people’s voices matters more than ever. Now that everyone has a social media account to voice their opinion, companies cannot ignore these voices, and it has become extremely important for companies to acknowledge and act accordingly to these people. This means that PR representatives and the companies have to be more honest and faithful to their customers than they have been before, and make sure these voices are heard internally.
And the last, is sustainability. Ever since the Cold War ended, there has been a rising demand for every country in the world to cooperate and contribute to make the planet a better place. Currently, many Japanese corporations are trying to meet the goals set by the United Nations known as SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), and this should shape the PR landscape for the next decade at least.
Hope this helped you get a better understanding of PR in Japan!
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