Ai Haruna

Television perpetuates outmoded gender stereotypes

Gender used to be binary—male and female. For better or for worse, that clear-cut simplicity is gone. Sexual orientations proliferate, each claiming its own separate identity. You’d think television, whose “tarento” pool is so open to novelty, would be at the vanguard of a fight against gender bias.

It isn’t so, says Waseda University gender researcher Junko Mitsuhashi in Shukan Kinyobi (June 12). In fact, she argues, television is mindlessly perpetuating the outmoded stereotypes.

The tip-off is a tendency she finds in her students to lump TV personalities Osugi and Ai Haruna, both of whom trade on their unconventional sexuality, in one category. And yet surely Osugi and Haruna are more different than alike. Osugi is gay, Haruna transgender. Osugi, Mitsuhashi explains, is feminine in his talk and gestures, but his clothing and his body are unmistakably masculine, whereas Haruna, though born male, is physically female following a sex change operation a decade or so ago.

Why would anyone think of them as birds of a feather? “Because TV does,” is Mitsuhashi’s answer.

The catch-all word is “okama,” which in pre-modern Japan meant first anus and later male prostitute. Today, the term refers broadly to men who do not fit traditional standards of manliness. “It has clear discriminatory implications,” says Mitsuhashi, “and yet the TV industry has not banned it.” On the contrary, some TV stars flaunt okama-hood as the source of their appeal.

Tossing Osugi and Haruna together into the okama grab-bag is to Mitsuhashi the equivalent of “an American saying, ‘To me, all Orientals look alike.’ Surely that’s offensive to many Japanese, Chinese and Koreans.”

If TV in some cases fails to make distinctions that are there, in others, Mitsuhashi finds, it insists on distinctions that shouldn’t matter. “Let’s compare,” she says, “the way TV treats Ai Haruna and Ayana Tsubaki.”

Both are TV personalities, both were born male, both were operated on and became female. And yet the personas they exploit—or have foisted on them—are very different, Haruna inhabiting a kind of sexual limbo between masculinity and femininity, Tsubaki being accepted as a woman like any other. The difference turns out to hinge on age—Haruna is 36, Tsubaki 24; Haruna had her operation in the 1990s, Tsubaki had hers in 2006.

A decade ago, gender identity disorder was little understood. Haruna, unlike Tsubaki, underwent her operation without being diagnosed as suffering from the syndrome. It seems a minor technicality, but it has had important ramifications. The diagnosis enabled Tsubaki to change her gender designation on her family register. Haruna was not so fortunate. Officially, she remains a man named Kenji. Thus, in order to thrive in a medium that imposes stereotypes even as it seems to defy them, she is obliged to play up an ambiguous sexuality which Tsubaki is free to cast aside.

“Being a mass medium, television maybe has to reflect popular mores,” Mitsuhashi concludes. “But with misconceptions proliferating concerning sexual identity, it should at least make an effort to straighten out distorted perceptions.”

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sk4ek at 07:57 AM JST - 19th June

While there are plenty of "regular" gay guys on TV (you straight viewers just don't know who they are), the only ones who are "out and about" openly on variety shows, etc. are the flaming queens, because they're the only ones with any real entertainment value (never mind what one may think of that value...). You get a bunch of regular gay guys up on the screen and they'd be no different from anyone else.

The only reason all of these transgendered "tarento" have become so ubiquitous on the boob tube (no pun intended) is that at one point the government declared gender identity disorder a real "syndrome", so of course, anyone who is certifiably "sick" becomes an object of interest and--gasp--a twisted sort of compassion, and not something socially unacceptable. The fact that a lot of gays and transgendered folk also happen to be particularly good at laughing with their audience and at themselves probably makes the transition to television that much easier.
ritalynn at 08:52 AM JST - 19th June

HonestDictator, I didn't mean that anyone who thinks of themselves as a woman should be seen as one, I was talking about the ones who went all the way to have the changes to become one.

I do understand what you were saying though, but it would be just as hard for them to used the men's room, especially if they no longer look like one.
Tetsujin at 12:58 PM JST - 19th June

Both these men/women mentioned in this article still have obviously male bone structure. Its kind of disgusting when you recognize it... I feel sorry if a guy accidentally hooks up with one of them.
Wakarimasen at 01:31 PM JST - 19th June

THis guy should have done some of his research in Motown in Roppongi. That might have changed his views a bit.
HonestDictator at 01:32 PM JST - 19th June

Actually the problem Tetsujin is when a transgender individual intentionally tries trick a straight person into accepting them as something they were not.

If a man or woman wants to hook up with someone who is transgender there is no problem, but when a transgender person decieves a person looking for the opposite sex (born as, not surgically altered) that is the transgender persons fault for attempting to force their opinions on a person that is not interested in such a relationship. You can't force a person to feel a way they do not feel.
terebiko at 01:34 PM JST - 19th June

Sorry Stonecoldsoba, but homophobia is correct, as Osugi, who is mentioned along with Haruna, is gay, not transgender. But generally speaking, it seems to me that both of these groups, gay or trans, are more readily accepted in the J-media. Have to agree also with what sk4ek wrote.
Dubya at 06:14 PM JST - 19th June

"Transgender" is a totally bogus term for people who have had (or hope to have) themselves mutillated. If ever I run into one, I make a scene to point this out. SOMEONES has to do it! There are two genders - male and female. Anything else is just perversion.
fatfrenchfool at 10:42 PM JST - 19th June

There are two genders - male and female. Anything else is just perversion.

biologists and the laws of nature would disagree with you. read up on it
HonestDictator at 01:22 AM JST - 20th June

As far as humans go, there is only male and female (And the occasional natural born hermaphrodite ). We're not talking about frogs/fish/reptiles on TV lol.
jacquii at 08:35 AM JST - 20th June

I agree with the comment about tv having a long way to go in Japan - I have been back after a 6 year break, & I must say that tv is as mindnumbing as ever!!! I guess that's what a humdrum day-to-day worklife will do to you...make that kind of tv interesting???
Azrael at 05:59 PM JST - 20th June

Laws of nature? Nature is pragmatic. A species that does not reproduce dies out. It's as simple as that. There is no such thing as a third sex.

Biologists uphold the simple fact that there are only two genders, male and female, with specific biological functioning and documented differences in metabolism and even differences in reactions to medical treatments, psyche and longevity. Anything claiming to be in-between is an abnormality which is bound to happen because such "errors" are the base from which evolution happens. Biologically speaking, homosexuality is a dead-end because beings attracted to their same sex would not mate. A trans-gender trying to hide his biological sex from doctors/paramedics would be taking a tremendous risk. There is no such thing as a "third sex," the deviations are too varied in their characteristics to pretend to lump all in-betweens into a single "inter" category. Either male or female (I am not referring to the natural hermaphrodites, whose condition does not necessarily makes them homosexual, transexual or other), it's plain old nature. I would say transexuals are more of a mental condition than physical. The need for physical change by surgery is brought about by their mental condition, to supposedly "match" the inside and the outside. I think it's dangerous to indulge without exhaustive examination by psychologists and psychiatrists first, and even then a traumatic change to the body to force it to be what it is not decrees a life of hormonal treatment and the painful and taxing task of preventing the body to heal properly (as in, closing an artificially created vaginal cavity by daily use of inserted objects and medications) not to mention the long monetary costs of the hormones. It's like giving yourself a life-long condition along with lifelong treatment and medical costs. In summary, it's not for the faint of heart and such self-aggression is not absolutely necessary.

That said, television may suck but it's also a reflection of the viewers. Ratings determine television business. The shows on TV reflect what the majority of the people want to watch. In all countries, occasionally people organize and protest when TV steps too far but the larger question for this article is, what do Japanese people want to watch? Japanese TV is highly ritualized and presents stark stereotypes we could almost call "dumbed down" for the viewers. Ultimately, the two transgenders mentioned in the article are making money out of the image they sell of themselves; the agree to be seen like this and benefit from it. That is another point to think about.
iraqisurvival at 11:04 AM JST - 22nd June

In my opinion, Japanese TV is more open-minded that US channels today, the fact there are more feminine (real feminine) characters on the Japanese TV and as some people call it "parading", because Japanese society is not yet flooded by exaggerated sensitivities and censorship as in states . In sum, feminine characteristics can be easily observed in Japan than in the US, perhaps due to the fact, the religious oppression against women is not present in Japan .

Some Americans, unfortunately, taught that everything in the US is better than anyone else, and everyone should take from them. but that's not correct. you need to understand each society has different background, history and therefore different reactions and solutions.

For example, American TV showed a breast hardly can be seen (Janet), it was the end of the world, everyone outraged. in Britain, in Japan, that's not a big deal.

and regarding the subject matter, the TV everywhere should display more respect to women and LGBT and minorities,
jonnyboy at 05:33 PM JST - 22nd June

i'm all for transgender if that person truly wants it and understand the full physical and emotional implications of the procedure, and especially is not suffering from any emotion trauma (silence of the lambs, anyone?) but i would have to agree that the deception HonestDictator mentions is problematic and quite common (go to thailand and tell me it isn't)
Fadamor at 03:06 AM JST - 26th June

The U.S. (especially the New England area) was founded on a platform of religious zealotry. 350 years later that puritanical influence still remains and you will have any number of religious leaders loudly voice their outrage whenever something like the "wardrobe malfunction" happens in public... especially on broadcast TV.

Japan should be thankfull for their more open society, though I guess it results in more inanity on TV.
Monrovian at 03:59 AM JST - 30th June

"There are two genders - male and female. Anything else is just perversion." Basically, yes there are two genders. But perversion? One may be attracted to members of the opposite gender or maybe not. The majority orientation of one group does not make the orientation of the minority a perversion (P.S. the world is not flat nor does the sun revolve around the earth). Scientific American published an article on July 10, 2008 regarding this so-called "perversion" that is found among 1,500 species of animals. Sex is not solely a procreative act--even among heterosexuals. "Biologically speaking, homosexuality is a dead-end because beings attracted to their same sex would not mate" was posted earlier. Obviously, this would be true if everyone were gay. But the same thing could be said for people who are asexual, or people who are born with traits that would lessen their abilities to procreate. Really though, if you're straight, get off the gays and trannies and try focusing more and being loving hetero moms and dads. May come in handy when your own child comes out of the closet some day. Regarding the gays/gals/trans etc. on TV, they add some comic relief to the mindless "entertainment" of other gender stereotypes (i.e. mindless bimbos in bikinis, greasy-hair old farts chasing after the mindless bimbos, etc.)