The Americanization of Japan continued. Last week the Japanese Diet passed a. bill licensing ten private, commercial radio stations throughout the country.
About 55 enthusiastic free enterprisers promptly applied for the ten licenses. They included a dozen newspapers, two chambers of commerce, the Tokyo Stock Exchange, a brewery, two Christian groups, and an organization called the Buddhist Broadcasting Co. Co-existing with the new private stations is government-owned, non-commercial Nihon Hoso Kyokai (Japanese Broadcasting System), noted before the war for propaganda, folk songs (Naniwabushi) and horrendous singing programs for children. NHK is now dedicated to popular music, variety shows, quiz programs and drama,
...
