People Divided over Scrambled NHK Broadcasts: Jiji Poll

September 15, 2019

Tokyo- Japanese people are evenly divided over whether broadcasts by Japan Broadcasting Corp., or NHK, should be scrambled to make them available only to paid viewers, a Jiji Press opinion survey showed.

The poll found that 39.0 pct of respondents agree with scrambled broadcasts by the public broadcaster, while 37.1 pct disagree with the measure and 23.9 pct answered they are not sure.

In the July election for the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of parliament, NHK kara Kokumin wo Mamoru To (Party to Protect the People from NHK) won a seat campaigning for scrambled NHK broadcasts.

The Jiji poll showed that respondents supportive of the party fully back the scrambled broadcasts.

The proportion of respondents in favor of the measure was between 30 pct and 40 pct among supporters of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, its coalition partner, Komeito, the major opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and the Japanese Communist Party.

NHK opposes scrambled broadcasts, arguing that the measure runs counter to the principle of public broadcasting, which allows people to watch programs wherever they are in the country.

The survey was conducted for four days through Monday, covering 2,000 people aged 18 or older through interviews. Of them, 62.3 pct gave valid responses. Jiji Press