International Symposium “Global Perspectives on Japanese Media and Popular Culture History: Critical Lessons from a Century of Broadcasting” co-hosted by the University of Amsterdam and Nichibunken (July 11-13, 2025)｜Topics｜International Research Center for Japanese Studies (Nichibunken)

International Symposium “Global Perspectives on Japanese Media and Popular Culture History: Critical Lessons from a Century of Broadcasting” co-hosted by the University of Amsterdam and Nichibunken (July 11-13, 2025)

2025.07.25

The International Research Center for Japanese Studies (Nichibunken) and the University of Amsterdam jointly organized the International Symposium “Global Perspectives on Japanese Media and Popular Culture History: Critical Lessons from a Century of Broadcasting” on July 11-13, 2025. It was a collaborative project between the two institutions, both of which are member institutions of the “Consortium for Global Japanese Studies.”

The symposium was held to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Japan’s broadcasting in 2025, and invited researchers from the Netherlands, the U.S., Korea, and Japan to engage in lively discussions from international and multifaceted perspectives on various media that have been developing along with popular culture.

On July 11, the symposium opened with a keynote lecture, “America in Japan 1825-2025,” by Prof. Toshiya Yoshimi, professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo and professor at Kokugakuin University. This lecture was open to the public, and 288 participants, including both in-person and online participants, attended the lecture.

The sessions on the following days, the 12th and 13th, were designed for researchers and sparked heated discussions through research presentations on various media-related topics.

For this symposium, we had the honor of welcoming researchers from prominent institutions, including members of the Consortium for Global Japanese Studies: the University of Amsterdam, Leiden University, and the Institute for Japanese Studies at Seoul National University. The symposium certainly played a vital role for Nichibunken in promoting cooperation with overseas member institutions of the Consortium for Global Japanese Studies.

Symposium information:
https://www.nichibun.ac.jp/en/research/kikan/2025/07/11/