Political Corruption and Scandals in Japan

Matthew M. Carlson; Steven R. Reed

Published by Cornell University Press 2018

Political Corruption and Scandals in Japan

Matthew M. Carlson and Steven R. Reed

https://doi.org/10.7591/9781501715679

Overview
Contents

About this book

Combining history with comparative politics, Matthew M. Carlson and Steven R. Reed take on political corruption and scandals, and the reforms designed to counter them, in post–World War II Japan.

Political Corruption and Scandals in Japan makes sense of the scandals that have plagued Japanese politics for more than half a century and attempts to show how reforms have evolved to counter the problems. What causes political corruption to become more or less serious over time? they ask. The authors examine major political corruption scandals beginning with the early postwar period until the present day as one way to make sense of how the nature of corruption changes over time. They also consider bureaucratic corruption and scandals, violations of electoral law, sex scandals, and campaign finance regulations and scandals.

In the end, Carlson and Reed write, though Japanese politics still experiences periodic scandals, the political reforms of 1994 have significantly reduced the levels of political corruption. The basic message is that reform can reduce corruption. The causes and consequences of political corruption in Japan, they suggest, are much like those in other consolidated democracies.

Author / Editor information

Matthew M. Carlson is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Vermont. He is author of Money Politics in Japan. Steven R. Reed is Professor of Policy Studies at Chuo University. He is author of many books, including Making Common Sense of Japan.

Reviews

Robert J. Pekkanen, Professor, Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies, University of Washington:

What’s either the most significant or just your personal favorite Japanese political scandal? Either way, the competition is pretty fierce. Scandals have rocked Japanese politics throughout the post-war period, toppling Prime Ministers and even shaking the LDP’s near-perpetual grip on power. Matthew M. Carlson and Steven R. Reed have written a book that will probably seem especially timely no matter when the reader comes to it. Even better, they have an important argument here: even as scandals have become more prominent in Japanese politics, corruption has been reduced as politicians and parties learn to avoid scandal-provoking behavior.

Ellis Krauss, Professor Emeritus, School of Global Policy and Strategy, University of California, San Diego:

Political Corruption and Scandals in Japan is a very creative analysis of political scandals and corruption in a country with a bad reputation for them. With detailed empirical case analysis, the authors make a convincing case that different means are needed to combat each type of scandal or corruption. Carlson and Reed have produced an excellent systematic study of corruption and scandal and how to deal with it.

Raymond Christensen, Associate Professor of Political Science and Coordinator of International Relations at Brigham Young University:

Political Corruption and Scandals in Japan breaks ground in new and interesting areas of analysis in Japanese politics and comparative corruption. Carlson and Reed have a practicality and clarity in both their writing and their insights that make the book refreshing to read.

This book is a tour de force, with an ambitious scope and complex analytical objectives.

The narratives give nuance to the analytical framework in dialogue with the evidence and bring forth newer types of scandals to give us a historically grounded and plausible assessment of how corruption evolved and was gradually transformed and reduced in Japan.

A must-read for scholars of Japanese politics and those who study corruption in other places and times.

Carlson and Reed offer a persuasive argument that structural reforms adopted in 1994 have improved Japanese politics, with greater transparency helping the media in its ability to reveal—and thereby discourage—political scandal.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	v
Figures and Tables Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	vii
A Note on Proper Names and Transliteration Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	viii
List of Abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
Introduction. Political Corruption and Scandals in Postwar Japan Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. Understanding Corruption in Japanese Politics Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	11
2. Scandals in Early Postwar Japan, 1948–1978 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	25
3. Scandals and Reform, 1979–2001 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	45
4. Scandals and Reform, 2002–2016 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	68
5. Bureaucratic Corruption and Political Scandals Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	92
6. Sex and Campaign Finance Scandals Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	113
7. Election Law Violations as Political Corruption Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	131
Conclusion. The Evolution of Political Corruption and Scandals Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	151
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	165
Appendixes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	167
References Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	175
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	185

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Audience: General/trade;
Pages
- Main content: 204
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 7
- Tables: 5
- Other: 5 tables, 2 graphs
Keywords: political reform; liberal democratic party; political history; social science

eBook

Published: March 15, 2018
ISBN: 9781501715679