Kirk here with an update on Ms. Le Thi Thuy Linh’s case. If you are unfamiliar with it, please see these previous posts:
https://www.facebook.com/page/123734781033296/search/?q=%20Linh (The link is a search for “Linh” on this page and should take you to three previous posts.)
The main bit of news is that arguments in her appeal have concluded and she must now wait for the judge’s decision.
Although I can’t take the time to translate all of the points that have come up in media reports, I’d like to observe that the reports by KKT and RKK (both local TV stations) constitute a study in contrasts. KKT was very favorable to Ms. Linh while RKK was not at all so. I could make up a long list of differences in the coverage but one very simple one is how Ms. Linh was referred to in the two reports. While KKT described her as a “Vietnamese intern” (ベトナム人実習生), RKK called her a “Vietnamese woman” (ベトナム人の女). In English, “woman” is not, of course, a term of disparagement but in Japanese “no josei (の女性)” is neutral whereas “no onna (の女)” is quite derogatory – a term more-or-less reserved for criminals. For discussion see the following:
https://www.facebook.com/Kumamotoi/posts/5690746317665420
RKK’s coverage can be viewed here:
https://rkk.jp/news/index.php?id=NS003202111121915170111
The fact that KKT and RKK used strikingly different language in describing the same bit of news is a clear indication that the language that is used is not determined by Japanese culture or broadcasting norms – it’s an editorial decision. I used to be a member of a committee set up to evaluate the quality of programming at RKK (番組審議会). I’m no longer a member so I have no special influence now but if I had noticed something like this when I was on the committee I would have asked them about their choice of language and other aspects of the treatment of Ms. Linh in their coverage.
At the moment, the best information regarding the current status of the case is all in Japanese. Again, I don’t have time to translate but I can recommend the following article for those of you who read Japanese:
https://news.yahoo.co.jp/byline/mochizukihiroki/20211110-00267322
