Popular media representation
Images created in media
by Saneo
Introduction
Previously, we see the roots and categorization of Toyoko-kids: they are originally derived from community called selfie neighbors (自撮り界隈) and they were firstly called “kids” by hosts and hostess in Kabukicho. Admittedly, they are doing minor illegal or extralegal behaviors, such as, drinking and smoking in the public, but these deeds are done by other community as well. Then, why is the media making such a big deal about Toyoko kids? What is the problematic part of Toyoko-kids? In this part, images created in media will be shed light on and this page figures out basic or commonly recognized characteristics which consist of a public figure of Toyoko-Kids through media review.
Broadcasted Images
Mental Instability
Self-harming
One of the prominent images of Toyoko kids are self-harming behaviors, such as cutting their wrists, legs, and overdosing and such behaviors are really into in the communities. The motivations encouraging them to conduct such behaviors varies depending on each individuals: some of them regard the self-harming behavior as kawaii and other group wheras the other group considers self-harming behavior to relieve their stress. One specific example braodcasted in Gendai Business (Utagawa, 2022, p.2) famous web media, is one female Toyoko kids states that she overdose everyday, when a lot of bad things happen to her, she gets a tight feeling in her chest and she don't know what to do. When she is in pain but can't do anything about it, she finds herself overdosing. She further specifies bad things as the situation that she was convinced of her boyfriend’s cheating by founding two toothbrushes in his house. This information creates the image that self-harming behaviors are regularly conducted within the community, and entails the possibility to create public image that the community is self-harming community.
Some of them are mentally instable and conduct self-harming behavior, such as, wrist-cutting, leg-cutting, and overdosing and usually described as “pienkei” or “menhera.” Based on the media, they are mentally instable due to various reasons, such as being subject of domestic violence and ill-treatment in schools. In fact, Toyo Keizai (Nemoto, 2021, p.1) reports through an interview to a male Toyoko-kids that originally, one guy invited mentally instable girls to the community around Kabukicho, and, currently, although not entire group of girls in the community is mentally instable, still, the core members are mentally instable and afflicted with multiple problems, such as domestic violence and so forth. However, the interesting fact is that , in mass media, above-mentioned terms refering to mentally instable mainly applied not to male but to female. The point will be specifically discussed in later section on the page.
One of the Medicine used for overdosing (Nemoto, 2021)
Retrieved from
Yami-culture
This overlaps to a certain extent to mental instability, but, according to media, mental instability is seen as cute and fashion in the community: such fashion called Yami-culture. As stated in the definition section, one of the biggest objectives for them to gather at the hiroba is to meet their favorites and a certain portion of girls within the community regard behaviors to contribute to their favorites out of depression as emoi, meaning emotional or sentimental. The way they contribute to their favorites is giving them presents or money, and how the girls in the community purchase such presents or money is sometimes devoting themselves to illegal labors, such as working in hostess clubs despite not reaching appropriate age, with adults who are usually starangers and encounter via SNS, and so on. Such mentally instable girls working for their favorites without expecting returns are called “Pienkei”. The typical appearance is that they are high likely wear “Ziraikei Fashion” and hold a can of alcohol with a straw.
Pienkei is introduced as a part of Yami-culture, where being mentally instable is highly evaluated as cute or sentimental. In one video by Abema, live streaming format Internet TV platform, video-on-demand service (2021), one girl who conducted self-harming behaviors is introduced in the program as a girl who enjyos Yami-culture as a fashion icon, creating realistic impressions and the image that Yami-culture is really prevailing within the community.
Emphasized Abnormality
This is also correlated with other figures expressed on media: the information widely broadcasted is mainly their crimes, self-harming, behaviors, problematic social backgrounds, and extralegal and illegal behaviors, for instance, catches, illegal businesses, and so forth, which mainly seen as morally abonormal and media treat them as abonormal existences alienated from what they think ordinary children. For example, one article on web media, FRIDAY (Chiwawa, 2022) reported female Toyoko-kids are engaged in obligatory labors which the business was managed by another male Toyoko-kids, and the guy managed the business got arrested. The incident created the image in the media that Toyoko-kids community entails delinquency and illegality.
Identity Seeker
They are portrayed in media as people who seek where they belong to, or the place where one can be oneself. In addition to the nature of Adolesence his is strongly fostered by situations where they are placed in; some of them are mentally instable and seek for the community where mentally instable people gather at; others have severe domestic violence and seek for the community that can be a substitute of family and provide the sense of security. In the same video by Abema (2021), the community is depicted as the thrid place, emphasizing the image that community is indispensable exisistence for Toyoko-kids.
Deprived Children
The Toyoko kids figures portrated in media are mainly socioeconomically deprived in multiple ways: some of them are deprived of education, money to sustain their lives, places to stay, wholesome mental and physical health, love from their parents, and so forth. These deprivations are derived from further subcategorized factors. One figure reported by Gendai Business (Utagawa, 2022, p.3) is one female who receives domestic violence from an actual mother in her house. She has only mother who is depressive , and everytime she came home, she told her “die you ugly bitch" and cut her with a kitchen knife. The other article by Toyokeizai (Nemoto, 2021, p.2) reports that they are ill-treated in school and some of them give up receiving education. Such deprivations leave them no option but to commit illegal or extralegal activities. In fact, article by bunsyun online (2022) reveals that a man who cooperated with an interview stated that he actually purchase labor of one female Toyoko-kids who are strayed and do not have fixed place to stay. These broadcasted incidents create the image that Toyoko kids are byproducts of social issues deeply rooted in Japanese society, which the government should tackle with.
Maintaining Proper Distance
In terms of proximics, based on one of the net news mentioning their distance within the groups they do not necessarily invade personal space; the interviewee take into consideration that he avoid to contact other member deeply. This is because majorirty of members have been deprived and they avoid that and reach the hiroba.
Impolite way of Speaking
In terms of language they use, media portrayed their speaking languages as not polite Japanese, or so-called Tame-go, which is used for someone with same status. Furthermore, the media implicates that the To-yoko kids community is a factor to change their way of language use. In the article provided by NHK (2022), one girl called Yume appears. For the first time the interviewer met the girl, she speaks really polite way and she was so different from other To-yoko kids interms of language use. However, after a month later, her way of speaking drastically changed into so-called To-yoko styles, which is described in the artilce and probably refers to impolite way of speaking. From this fact, it can be said the environment of the community altered her way of speaking. This is just a guess but the there are descriptions that interviewees’s speaking tone got stricter when they speaking about adults; considering the facts, through encountering adults especailly males in everyday life, To-yoko kids’ style of speaking evolve in order not to be looked down by adults.
Commonality
Putting Emphasis on Females
The majority of media representation concentrates on female figures in the community rather than males. This is probably because media try to generate larger scale moral panic. The following is the definition of moral panic.
Moral panic is defined as condition, episode, person or group of persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests; its nature is presented in a stylized and stereotypical fashion by the mass media.
(Cohen, 1972; Erich & Nachman, 1994, p. 155).
Although large numbers of people may spontaneously feel fear or dread about a given agent or threat, to become a moral panic, this fear must be sharpened, broadened, articulated, articulated, and publicly expressed by organized, movement-like activity launched by middle-level interest groups.
(Erich & Nachman, 1994, p. 168)
The media is capable of creating moral panics to direct public attitude towar a centain way.
Moral panics occur in troubled times. As we observe the public and political venom that is directed toward children and youth, and as we contextualize society, we are left with the gnawing question of “what is going on” at this particular time. (Schissel, 1997, p. 168).
As abovely mentioned, scenes that children have undergoes sufferings and felt depressed due to socioeconomical issues existing in the nation draw public attention toward children and let them wonder the ongoing situation, leading to gather more public attitudes to the media compared to conveying other topics. Furthermore, by and large, the typical figures conveyed through media regarding deivant youth is mainly male; in the case of Toyoko-kids, female characters are shed more light on rather than male, and female are mainly introduced as representation of devaint youth in Kabukicho in media, leading public to be more astonshied. As a result, the information on media causes a greater scale of moral panic, and media comes to garner more attentions from public. In other words, it can be speculated as media’ s strategies to heghiten its recognition.
Problematic image (Negative Impression)
All of the images introduced on media is negative image and they are described as problematic images. From these media, audience can hardly observe positive aspects of the community or any other types of subgroups of people in the commuity which are not problematic and are not involved in any illegal or extralegal activities.
Conclusion
In this section, multiple images created in media were explored. The created images diverge into 6 images, which are mental instability, self-harming, Yami-culture, emphasized abonormality, identity seeker, and deprived children, though each of them overlap with and correlate to a certain extent. As to commonalities between them, the braodcasted images center the female figures rather than male figures. This can be interpreted as media’s marketing strategies to garner more public attentions by utilizing moral panic effectively. Moreover, almost all of the data describes the negative aspects and positive data can behardly observed on media. This point will be clarified in the next section.
Sections
Popular media representation