i don't really know what in my post constitutes an 'attack' unless you're very thin skinned and i am not sure how you decided that a single sentence about japan's 'xenophobic bubble' was actually a 'deep analysis of their society' that doesn't enter stereotypes and not just a really simplistic dismissal of an entire country and people. seems awfully generous to do that while writing off everything i've been trying to talk about as deflection. and saying that the idea of a 'bubble' around east asian countries is something that is absolutely rooted in orientalist rhetoric that has been used to justify and set apart western societies as more advanced than eastern societies and produce this idea of an isolated, alien culture to be analyzed and classified like zoo exhibits.
what i am saying is that we need to be very careful about how we talk about japan, or any east asian countries, because there are a lot of traps and pitfalls people fall into regarding the subject. it's akin to how anti-semitism manifests - it is not something that someone is intentionally reproducing but so built into attitudes and perceptions we should be vigilant about avoiding those pitfalls. we should not be treating people in a shared culture as a monolith and use their mass media as the ultimate arbiter for what everyone in the country more or less agrees on, especially not the most outrageous examples of it. we certainly cut ourselves more credit.
I am not harmed by the attack, but counteracting "Japan is racist" arguments with "if you think so you are suffering from orientalism" its an ad hominem fallacy, trying to attack the person without considering the opposing argument.
In general, we can treat people in a country as a monolith (and we fucking do everywhere) when talking about things that have permeatted into the general conciousness.
i am not saying japan does not have racism, it has quite a lot of it. much of it is absolutely institutional. against koreans, the ainu, foreigners and foreign workers, against the black people born and raised in the country, mixed japanese, okinawans, yes, there is a lot. it is even fair to say that there it is worth talking about that fact while acknowledging that we are not the only ones talking about it. that there is a sizeable amount of people in japan interested in changing the country and that it's not collectively disinterested in racial equity and justice. and we can talk about the institutional problems and unjust structures that exist in japan without implying every single japanese person is culpable for it and stands by it, the fact that this cartoon got pulled at all seems to be proof that there are many people in japan who do not occupy a 'bubble'. it both flattens and subsumes the causes inside the country fighting for their rights into a mysterious xenophobic whole and it simplifies and misdiagnoses the causes of racism in japan. there is not institutional racism in japan because there is some race force field around the country, a lot of these attitudes have long histories and context that we erase (and thus render those perpetuating it less culpable) by saying japan is racist because it's bubbled in.
Let me go to an extreme example:
There are many feminists in Saudi Arabia, but we still say Saudi Arabia is a misogynist place.
I can go to less extremes examples, such as being able to say ACAB even if a sizeable amount (lets say 10-20%) are good people. Or that white people are trash, even if 40% of them aren't.
Once something has permeated into most of the population in the way for micro-racism conduct (aka, without conciousness being racist) are common, you should be able to call the society out for being racist as we do with many countrie aroudn the world. Yes, there are people trying to make changes of it BUT THAT IS THE CASE IN ALL PLACES IN THE WORLD.
Trying to save Japan from critic because of how linked someone is to their culture is orientalism as they believe Japan is a unique case in the world (when it isnt) that needs special treatment. I enjoy Japan culture but I am also able to understand its flaws (the same with my home country btw).
There is institutional racism in Japan , you can easily find it if you see the how the Ainu are treated, or how the Philipinno people are treated in there. About it requiring special context, well, it can be done everywhere. Institutional racism in Israel needs context to understand the issue between arabs and jews. Institutional racism in South Africa during the Apartheit needs context to understand the issue between the white and black population and how it ended up being tehre. Institutional racism in the USA has a long history and context, and you see a ton of people saying that USA is racist.
I would also say in general that Japan has been moving mostly in the "wrong" direction with xenophobia and nationalism for the last few decades, hardening their stand and institutionalizing some racism (against South East Asian mainly) more.
also, i'm korean, so i assure you, i am quite sensitive to both the racism that occurs in japan and the violent history of the country. i am not ok with it. regardless i'm not really sure why you think NHK being a national broadcaster is particularly important to know or how that's especially condemning. BBC is another national broadcaster and it's published plenty of inane and offensive shit over the years, i might bring it up to talk about how the mass media in britain has been used as a cudgel by the establishment to downplay or dismiss the left but i'm not gonna cite a single shitty BBC article and say that's what britain's like. just because an organization is publically funded it doesn't mean all of its' programming has the public's stamp of approval. again, the reception to this cartoon seems to validate my point.
Regarding the importance of NHK being a national public provider, a national public provider is supposed to give a more fair and neutral view. That NHK routinely falls into racist stereotypes just helps portray that in general, the average Japanese is OK with those stereotypes (which is also further supported by many studies over the decade) as it has permeated the general conciousness.
The BBC turn to the right wing (and previously general bad treatment of foreign minorities) is also a problem that can also be linked to the pretty right wing turn of british society and the increase of xenophobic attacks inside the country, so yes, point out BBC problems and I think most left wing brits will agree with you on those issues.