Japanese Government hiring "agents" to monitor Twitter and personal blogs

[Generic Other]

Since March 11, 2011 it has been frequently reported that YouTube videos containing footage or comments unfavorable to Tepco or the Japanese government have been removed within several hours of their posting. Examples of offending YouTube videos include excerpts of TV shows with controversial comments, footage showing smoke emitted from the nuclear reactors, an ex-Tepco employee speaking on his Fukushima experiences etc.

Also, “agents” would show up in engineers-only internet forums, and interrupt with completely off-base pro-nuclear politically motivated comments. Likewise, Twitter accounts with too much content regarding nuclear power and radiation issues have been disrupted.

<...>

The Contractor is required to monitor blogs on nuclear power and radiation issues as well as Twitter accounts (monitoring tweets is essential) around the clock, and conduct research and analysis on incorrect and inappropriate information that would lead to false rumors, and to report such internet accounts to the Agency. When the Contractor becomes aware of such incorrect and inappropriate information, it is required to publish correct information in Q&A form on the website and Twitter account of the Agency, after consulting with experts and engineers if necessary. The Agency is to be notified of ANY consultant experts and engineers in advance.
The Contractor is required to keep the Agency well informed on the internet accounts and keywords used in the blogs and Twitter accounts that are posting incorrect and inappropriate information. The Contractor is required to maintain sufficient number of personnel for around-the-clock monitoring. The Contractor is required to submit report on internet accounts via CD-R.


http://blog.safecast.org/2011/07/japan-govt/

[Generic Other]

1. What is the distinction between "incorrect" information and "inappropriate"?

I feel the shadow of trolls lurking behind me breathing down my neck....

[iemitsu]

2. K & R

[Bonobo]

3. In literally 1 second, I got the following videos by searching

in Japanese for terms "Fukushima" and "kemuri"

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%E7%A6%8F%E5%B3%B6%E3%80%80%E7%85%99&aq=f

Please take a look and answer whether or not you can really say that the report seems to be true.

Wouldn't the want to block this one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sE6050Vhh0

Or how about this one about a former TEPCO worker spilling the secret beans?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AZL_geylCc&NR=1

How about this one speculating that an elementary school child died of radiation poisoning??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWc_cT2kVvQ&feature=related

Damn, those agents have to work a little harder!

By the way, I could post thousands of videos like this.

Japan is an open and free society no matter how little that is understood by Murkans.

[Generic Other]

4. What happened to the angry French ex-pat's videos?

He stated on Youtube that all his Fukushima videos had been removed.

Are you saying the Japanese government did not pass this law?

<snip>

More recently, “The Computer Network Monitoring Law” was passed by the Japanese Parliament on June 17 2011

This law make it possible for police to obligate internet servers to store someone’s communication for three months for monitoring purposes without obtaining a court warrant. Prof. Ibusuki of Seijo Univ. Law Dept. comments that “The Computer Network Monitoring Law” will enable the police to monitor anyone’s internet activity without restriction.

<snip>

Have they not suppressed information all along? Some of us have been paying attention. And even though I was born in Japan, no I do not trust the government any more than I trust the US government.

[Generic Other]

5. And how is this disinformation campaign any different than what BP did ?

It is about minimizing the extent of problems through lies, distortions and lack of information. Ridiculous to just assume there are not paid trolls. They seem to be everywhere these days trying to manipulate opinion and redirect discussions.

[Bonobo]

6. I don't know but that guy was a ranting jerk.

I believe Japan passed the law but I also believe that information is flowing as freely as in the good old US of A.

It is not wholly one thing or another, so you and I are not that far apart on our outlooks.

Info is suppressed to some degree in Japan as well as the USA.

I wanted to, however, balance out the statements made in your OP with some evidence of how its claim is not to be taken too strongly.

[Bonobo]

7. Here are some angry Frenchmen videos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ix4-72sausA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBY_OgXhd_8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnXLJxmzXa0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFbMhD8nJjA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36yrMKhNIa8&feature=related

And there are many more.

[Generic Other]

8. These are all reposted by others

He said Youtube took his videos about Fukushima down. I thought it was posted here on DU.

[Bonobo]

9. Yes, but YouTube takes down lots of videos.

Alex was a cursing, ranting madman. I'm not surprised they were taken down.

He also had ZERO information so what was being censored that was information-based? Nothing?

My point is that there is no lack of real information. I am agreed that Japan or forces representing Japan may have asked. MAY HAVE ASKED for his threatening and panic inducing and hateful rants to be removed, but that is not censoring info and it can not be laid in Japan's lap.

Name a topic and I will find you correct info on it.

But the fact that someone asked Alex the angry Frenchman to get removed is not proof to me that Japanese govt. is censoring real info.

[Generic Other]

10. Well here are the facts on the Youtube link you gave me

He said Youtube took the French guy's videos about Fukushima down. And he also says the Japanese government has asked other countries to censor information about Fukushima.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZjAzBKBxuo&feature=channel_video_title

The video was reposted. Here's what the poster says about this video:

All the video from Alex alias Playbacklapompe (channel) were delete by YT (or others LOL) censorship or hacking. And i'd like to save the most part of his videos. That's the point
Neodragon1213 1 month ago

[Generic Other]

12. And isn't it odd the Japanese governemnt denies censorship?

Japan denies censorship over nuclear crisis

TOKYO — Japan on Friday denied that a government project to monitor online news reports and Twitter posts about the Fukushima nuclear crisis was an attempt to censor negative information and views.

Some Western online reports have charged that Japan had passed a law with the intent of "cleansing" the Internet of negative reports and commentary about the accident at the tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi atomic plant.

Chikako Ogami, a spokeswoman at the energy agency of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), told AFP: "Our government will never censor information at all. These are erroneous news reports."

Ogami said the agency had set aside funds in the nation's disaster reconstruction budget for a project to monitor "inaccurate" online information that may lead to harmful rumours against residents of Fukushima.

"But we will never ask Internet providers or web masters to delete such information or pin down the senders," Ogami said. "We will simply explain our thoughts on our own website and our own Twitter account."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jQbpwIB-kqCksgK-gXM_frjdxv9w?docId=CNG.6b44e7e4e2bbd63a32abdf8eea663c41.221

Now that sounds like damage control to me.

[Bonobo]

14. I have no answer, GO.

Japan is big, the govt. is huge and different people undoubtedly say different things.

Do I believe that Japan is concerned about panicking everyone so that tourism shuts down and all foreigners leave the country? Absolutely.

Are they trying to do what they can do prevent that without doing censorship of legitimate information? Yes, I believe that as well.

Are those things REALLY mutually exclusive?

[Generic Other]

17. Tourism in Fukushima?

The foreigners are leaving because it is unsafe. My mother has cancelled her annual trip to Ibaragi. Mostly she fears being a burden at a bad time for our family, but the fear of radiation is real. I have mourned the loss of my family's farm, livelihood, ancestral home for the past three months. I don't think they can recover.

My relatives tell me they will grow rice4 no one will buy. That they will eat what they grow. No matter what the cost. This makes me want to rant and rave like the angry French guy. He's kind of fiery for a luthier! But I understand his fear.

And I understand your feelings. Still, I do not think it means criticism of any Japanese citizen to criticize the government's policies and actions.

[Bonobo]

18. No, tourism to all of Japan.

There have been voices saying that they would not step one foot in ANY part of Japan or buy a single product from the whole country.

Japan has been in a recession for over 15 years and the export business which drives its economy is dying with a 76 yen to dollar ratio!! Do you know how terrible that is!?

Japan desperately fears panic and rightly so. who can blame them for that?

I feel so bad for your family. I saw their wonderful website and I could feel the love they have for their products.

That is what is happening to all of Japan and the over-the-top panic only exacerbates it.

I do not want true info shut down but seeing the predictions on DU of 500,000 deaths or the claims that Japan is finished made me twice as angry as that Frenchman.

[Generic Other]

21. I understand -- all of Japan is not 100 km from Fukushima

And I am looking for the news every day but only get half of it and only understand half of that.

I really appreciate your comments, Bonobo. I don't want to run and shout like my hair is on fire.

[Bonobo]

13. I understand. Please see my below post.

I'm just saying that he may have been black flagged for his errr, acerbic personality.

He literally rants and curses and rants more about how Japanese are liars and the govt. is hiding the truth and just dumbing people up with stupid Japanese TV shows.

He probably pissed off a lot of people.

[Bonobo]

11. BTW, a small group of people could have blackflagged his videos to get them removed.

Imagine "unrecs" and "alerts" on DU. Now imagine a Frenchman ranting about how stupid and lying Japanese are. Imagine the guy is getting 65,000 views and picks up 1,000 black flags...


THAT'S your censorship. And it is YouTube, not Japan.

[Generic Other]

15. I do not ever recall him calling the Japanese people names

I do recall he was angry at the government's slow response and at their reluctance to be upfront at the start. The Japanese government has stonewalled from the start as has TEPCO. They have admitted as much. They are still doing it.

I think the evidence of an ongoing plan to disrupt and insinuate oneself in conversations on the internet as a way of controlling the direction of the conversation is a form of psy-op propaganda. More insidious than simply banning.

A lot of people on DU are sensitive to the fact we have "visitors" at times who clearly seem to have agendas other than discussing current events. They wish to control the conversation. Often to minimize wrongdoing or mistakes of government leaders.

When the US government lies to its citizens, I get very angry. I feel the same way toward any other country's government.

[Bonobo]

16. Like I said, Alex did not really have any information though.

It is my guess that he was black flagged by YouTube users for his angry rants that could be viewed as very anti-Japan.

At the same time, I can find rock solid information and criticism on any subject, in Japanese, that you choose to bring up.

I could post video after video after video of criticisms, insiders speaking out and the like.

I do not see an invisible hand, united, and formed by the Japanese government that is working to censor actual information or data.

[Generic Other]

19. I have seen some videos of angry citizens yelling at politicians at town meetings

They did not seem at all afraid to voice an opinion. I agree that the people are not afraid to speak out.

It appears that it is the government that is afraid. Seemingly more afraid of bad publicity than correcting the problems their gamble with nuclear energy created.

I am most concerned because it impacts my family directly. One of my cousins is having a baby in October. Not more than 100 km from Fukushima. No way to minimize the fears.

Beyond that, I want to make sure my government rethinks their nuclear energy policies in light of Japan's horrific experience.

[Bonobo]

20. I am in complete agreement and hope that all nuclear power plants disappear.

It is stupid madness.

Hopefully, this hot summer, Japan is learning to make do with less power usage while at the same time moving away from nuclear power. I think they are perhaps.