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AKB48 may represent Japanese culture, but underage girls in sexy clothing … to me it’s basically legal child porn.

20 Comments

Yukio Kobayashi, president of Tokyo music agency 3rd Stone From The Sun (Christian Science Monitor)

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20 Comments
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Indeed - says something about Japanese society. Don't get me wrong, Britney also grossed me out but she didn't have scores of sexless, gross 40 year old men following her around like some of these groups do.

1 ( +5 / -4 )

Tell us more about what goes on in Mr Kobayashi's mind than it does about Japanese society.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

interesting comment coming from a man whose country (Japan) along with Russia are the worlds two biggest producers of actual child pornography...

4 ( +6 / -2 )

Not all underage fro a start. and this is a feature of socienty, not just AKB. they are a manifestation, not a cause. What acts does this guy's gency have on its books?

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Here here!!! About time someone in Japan spoke out of what millions of us normal people think this AKB and similar girl groups really are. And make Japan (parents specially) open their eyes and see for what it really is. Who in their right mind would want a bunch of untalented, ditsy, not sexy , under age girls represent their country by pransing around in mini-skirts and having fans (like old 35 year old otakus still living with their parents having their whole room filled with mini girl figurines or 40 year old salary men) ughhhh gross.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

At long last we the non AKB enthusiasts have got a voice

4 ( +4 / -0 )

It's not just AKB...there are lots more to include mangas that advocate legal child porn.

My kids and I were watching an older Doraemon movie the other day. They were showing what the characters were doing now. Nobita was sleeping or getting beat up, Gian was singing or beating someone up, Suneo was playing with an expensive toy or bullying with Gian and everytime they showed Shizuka-chan, it was her taking a shower. I was like, "Really?!"

4 ( +5 / -1 )

It says that Japanese culture is ok with a limited degree of kiddy porn. It is a sad but inescapable truth. Not only AKB but many other things including all the magazines that show very young girls in swim wear or anime porn with school girls.

Like it or not Japan, this is a part of your modern culture that is really not very admirable. And it is probably the cause of all the child sex issues you have here.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Forgot to mention that AKB is also an abomination for music. And I use the word music very liberally here. If the kiddy porn aspect isn't enough to end the AKB reign, then the total lack of talent and quality should. Then again I suspect the older male fans of these bands are what really keep them going. Sick, sick and sick.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

They should be phased out ASAP! It's embarrassing and degrading to such a beautiful county with traditions and politeness...it doesn't fit....extremes!!!

3 ( +5 / -2 )

To add...manga sex comics in the shelves of all convenient stores ...phased out please!!!!!

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Leave the girls alone. Better to "exploited" singing and dancing in clothes that can be seen on the streets of any major Japanese city than to be working in some awful big corporation being groped by olderc olleagues or being in some porno or skin mag or one of the pink page mags........ And not just Japan. K Pop has many bands trying to be like AKB

-6 ( +1 / -7 )

This prompted me to look up how old the AKB48 "singers" really are, and I was shocked to find some were as young as 13! I'm not a fan, so I really don't pay much attention to them otherwise.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

to me it's basically legal child porn.

Well, there's actually legal child porn in JP. I once saw DVD's of underage girls (12 years old) posing in bikini at a store. Sure girls in bikini isn't porn but the fact that this store was a porn store makes it totally wrong.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

uhm...this is old news

sure there's child pornography in the rest of the world but none and flagrantly open and accepted as in japan

in fact, it seems to be a celebrated and endorsed cultural perk

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

Now why are people so surprised Japanese women feel so oppressed and marginalized in Japanese society?

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Good to hear some Japanese voices speaking out against this. Even if some of the AKB girls are over 20, the adult age here, or even 18, the adult age in most other developed countries, the fact that their image is "cute/sexy high school girls" and they portray themselves as being young, it's just disgusting. Not saying what they're doing should be illegal, but people who get off on this stuff seriously have issues, and it's all too accepted in Japan. '

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Hmmm. So it's now "child pornography" for teenage girls to wear "sexy clothing"... This coming from a talent agency president who is so full of originality that he took the name of his company from the title of an old Jimi Hendrix song. Or maybe it's only "child pornography" when the act is managed by another music agency? Hmmm... one wonders.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Please, someone explain this to me, he says:

"AKB48 may represent Japanese culture, but underage girls in sexy clothing … to me it’s basically legal child porn."

What is the word "but" doing in that sentence? Nothing has ever been more honest about japanese culture... does he actually think it is a well kept secret?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

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