Tuesday, October 15, 2024
A series of signs along U.S. Highway 10 about five miles west of Waupaca drew the attention of a Japanese news crew.
The signs, which first began appearing in May, have messages such as “Vote” and Why Vote?” They also express values such as “Respect” and “Honesty.”
“Concerned about the political climate in Wisconsin and caring about our values, our neighborhood-friends’ group decided to take action,” according to Anita Olson, one of the group responsible for installing the signs in the town of Farmington.
“The signs were designed to challenge those who read the signs to think for themselves and vote their values,” Olson said.
Olson said a four-person Japanese news team was visiting central Wisconsin when they noticed the signs’ relevance to the 2024 election.
“Investigating further, they arrived at the home of Carol Falks on whose property the several signs are placed. They spent three hours talking with Carol and her neighbor Nancy Rosenbacher, asking about the signs and about the 10 neighbors and friends who have been placing a variety of signs along Highway 10 during the past months,” Olson said.
On Tuesday, Oct. 1, the camera crew met with the entire group of neighbors and friends who were helped create and install the signs in the town of Farmington.
The camera crew works for NHK, Japan Broadcasting Corporation.
According to Mariko Fukuyama, a contract researcher and producer who accompanied the crew, they were filming for a 60-minute documentary program, “NHK Special.”
As part of a series called “Century of Turmoil,” NHK sent camera crews to Russia, Ukraine, Poland, UK, Turkey, China and Taiwan for previous episodes.
“This year, NHK decided to focus on America as they have a presidential election in November,” Fukuyama said. “We wanted to let our viewers know the real America,” noting that the united States is often presented as a caricature.
In July, NHK visited the red state of Indiana and spoke with undecided voters.
In October, they came to Wisconsin, “primarily because purple Wisconsin is now one of the most crucial swing states in the 2024 election,” Fukuyama said.
“Not very many Japanese ... news media write stories or broadcast pictures of Wisconsin, so we wanted to come here to hear what real Wisconsinites think about the current political situation and their society and culture,” Fukuyama said.
Yusuke Ogishima is the cameraman for the Japanese news crew. This was his first time in the United States and Wisconsin was the only state he visited while here.
“I used to think Americans were very practical and businesslike, only cared for making money and profits. We are so used to watching the news about ‘political divisions’ in America,” Ogishima said.
“I am pleasantly surprised to learn that Americans actually care for the surrounding natural environment, and Wisconsin has such a beautiful natural environment. I am also happy to see American people care for one another with warm hearts. And they are very friendly, too,” Ogishima said.
When asked why the yard signs attracted their attention, Fukuyama said, “The Japanese people usually don’t express what they believe or endorse publicly, especially in political candidates, such as with yard signs, so we think that is very American.”
Fukuyama said people in Japan were concerned about whether the new American president would get along with the Japanese prime minister.
“Historically speaking, Republican presidents have been much friendlier to Japanese leaders,” Fukuyama said, noting the friendly relationship between Ronald Reagan and Yasuhiro Nakasone in the 1980s, “Democratic counterparts have been rather cold towards Japanese.”
Fukuyama described Japan as a very conservative country, pointing to the positive relationship between former President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
“The Japanese are also concerned about climate change and global security issues, such as the threats from Russia, China, and North Korea, which are so much closer to us geographically,” Fukuyama said.
When asked about Japanese views of American politics, Fukuyama said, “At first, we thought the ‘political division’ was only an American thing with more expressiveness invited those conflicts. However, we are now seeing similar trends in Japanese voters with verbal and sometimes physical violence. We don’t know if they have anything to do with people using more social media or if political violence is somewhat contagious.”
Fukuyama said the news crew came to Wisconsin looking “for some answers, if not a hint of hope for unity. Those people we met in Farmington gave us a very positive outlook.”
