A disgruntled viewer is suing Japan’s national broadcaster for “mental distress” caused by an excessive use of words borrowed from English.

Hoji Takahashi, 71, is seeking 1.4 million yen ($14,300; £9,300) in damages from NHK.

“The basis of his concern is that Japan is being too Americanised,” his lawyer Mutsuo Miyata told the news agency AFP.

English became more prevalent in Japan after World War II during the US-led occupation.

This was followed by a growing interest in American pop culture.

The country’s modern vocabulary is littered with borrowed words, many of which are changed to fit the Japanese phonic structure.

Complaint

Mr Takahashi, who is a member of a campaign group supporting the Japanese language, highlighted words such as “toraburu” (trouble), “risuku” (risk) and “shisutemu” (system) in NHK’s news and entertainment programmes.

He accused NHK of irresponsibility by refusing to use native Japanese equivalents.

“With Japanese society increasingly Americanised, Takahashi believes that NHK, as Japan’s national broadcaster, shouldn’t go with the trend, but remain determined to prioritise the use of Japanese, which he thinks would go a long way toward protecting Japanese culture,” Mr Miyata told the Japan Times on Wednesday. More.

See: BBC

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