11. The United States & Japan: Allied Against Disinformation
- Author:
- Akira Igata, Morihiro Ogasahara, and Christopher Paul
- Publication Date:
- 07-2023
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Pacific Forum
- Abstract:
- In our 21st century information age security does not start with weapons or with the armed forces who wield them. A range of non-traditional security issues has arisen to test even the oldest and closest of alliances—including that of the United States and Japan. Disinformation is among these issues, and this paper series, carried out with the generous support of the US Embassy Tokyo, highlights the specific challenges that disinformation presents. The good news is that Japan, at least so far, is not demonstrating exceptionally high difficulties with disinformation so far. However, as the paper by Prof. Morihiro Ogasahara demonstrates, there are specific demographics and specific types of news consumers in the country who are vulnerable, and Dr. Christopher Paul’s findings indicate that Japan could very well find itself under a more sustained attack by adversaries wishing to weaken its relationship with the US in the future. We at Pacific Forum hope that these papers serve as a wakeup call for policymakers, and lead to proactive solutions not only for this alliance, but which may be modeled for US relationships throughout the region.
- Topic:
- Security, Alliance, Disinformation, and Information Warfare
- Political Geography:
- Japan, Asia, North America, and United States of America