Ducking and Diving

How Political Issues Affect Equivocation in Japanese Political Interviews

Bibliographic Data

ID6277654
AuthorsOfer Feldman (0000-0002-1274-8783), Ken Kinoshita (0000-0003-1010-0550, University of York), Peter Bull (0000-0003-4739-2892)
Year2016
Volume17
Issue2
Pages141-167
Publication date2016-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJapanese Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1468-1099 • E-ISSN: 1474-0060
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s1468109916000013
OpenAlexW2342506563
LanguageEN
Citations received9
References cited12

This paper examines how Japanese leading politicians cope with the communication problems posed during televised political interviews. Based on data gathered during the year 2012–13, the paper replicates and modifies the Theory of Equivocation to detail the responsiveness of national and local level politicians (and for comparison also of non-politicians) to interview questions. Its main focus is on the extent to which Japanese politicians equivocate during televised programs, and the reasons underlying this equivocation. Overall, the paper aims to identify the motives behind interviewees’ equivocation, thereby to also assess the significance of these talk shows in the broader context of political communication in Japan

Affect (linguistics · Context (archaeology · Epistemology · Equivocation · Focus (optics · Geography · Political communication · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Sociology · Communication · Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Law · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Media and Politics · Social Psychology