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Probably "French researchers invent electric chopsticks". The fact we can identify "Japan" as an entity says a lot about the cultural weight it holds. Not a ba

Probably "French researchers invent electric chopsticks". The fact we can identify "Japan" as an entity says a lot about the cultural weight it holds. Not a bad thing.

Markoff 5y ago
What if some of these "French researchers" are let's say Chinese citizens residing in France since finding homogenous research team is very unlikely? I'm quite annoyed with these constructions as foreigner living outside my home country when politicians/media always say Czech citizens this, Czech citizens that as if there were no residents with other citizenship affected by new laws/decisions.
- yreg 5y ago
  - French company invents… - French lab invents… - Researchers in France invent…
- ricardobeat 5y ago
  They are still "french researchers" since they are doing their research in France. That's reading a bit too much into it in my opinion (also an expat).
- twoxproblematic 5y ago
suction 5y ago
The bad thing is that the cultural weight Japan holds is based on myths, hearsay, misunderstandings, or lack of deep insights due to the language barrier. The image of Japan in the US and to a lesser extent in Europe is very far removed from reality.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- jollybean 5y ago
  And everyone else thinks America is what they see on TV. It's not important, unless there are wars about it.
  - suction 5y ago
    I have to disagree that it's not important.
  - OJFord 5y ago
    As a Briton, I see an awful lot more of America on TV than Japan. As a result then it's surely inherently more (likely to be) balanced/matching up with reality? Compared to Japan; the only show I can think of that I've seen that's even sort of set there was The Man in the High Castle!
    - djrogers 5y ago
      > As a result then it's surely inherently more (likely to be) balanced/matching up with reality? I see almost nothing on TV that matches up with the actual daily life in America, so no - seeing more US TV doesn't help in that respect.
      - suction 5y ago
        That's a very subcomplex idea of how media works. Of course, everybody understands that there is a difference between fiction and reality. And "reality TV" is fiction as well, even if some people might still be fooled by that. Still the reality of US life does reveal itself simply by the "what" and "how" Americans create their media, like TV, movies, radio, podcasts, web video, and so on. Or put in terms an American with a tech background would understand: Everybody knows Walter White is not a real person, and Breaking Bad isn't a documentary. Yet the reality of American-style healthcare and personal financial ruin for many people who are misfortunate enough to get cancer and have it treated, is not fiction.
    - ineedasername 5y ago
      it's surely inherently more (likely to be) balanced/matching up with reality? Not really. TV/Movies are stereotypes & caricatures. News media shows mostly the extremes, or anything violent. Think of native British shows you might watch: are they accurate portrayals of day to day life? (Besides Dr. Who, which I'm pretty sure is a documentary.)
LudwigNagasena 5y ago
Of course it is a bad thing. It is treated as a homogenous blob, an “other”.

Probably "French researchers invent electric chopsticks". The fact we can identify "Japan" as an entity says a lot about the cultural weight it holds. Not a bad thing.

Markoff 5y ago

What if some of these "French researchers" are let's say Chinese citizens residing in France since finding homogenous research team is very unlikely? I'm quite annoyed with these constructions as foreigner living outside my home country when politicians/media always say Czech citizens this, Czech citizens that as if there were no residents with other citizenship affected by new laws/decisions.

yreg 5y ago
- French company invents… - French lab invents… - Researchers in France invent…
ricardobeat 5y ago
They are still "french researchers" since they are doing their research in France. That's reading a bit too much into it in my opinion (also an expat).
twoxproblematic 5y ago

suction 5y ago

The bad thing is that the cultural weight Japan holds is based on myths, hearsay, misunderstandings, or lack of deep insights due to the language barrier. The image of Japan in the US and to a lesser extent in Europe is very far removed from reality.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
jollybean 5y ago
And everyone else thinks America is what they see on TV. It's not important, unless there are wars about it.
- suction 5y ago
  I have to disagree that it's not important.
- OJFord 5y ago
  As a Briton, I see an awful lot more of America on TV than Japan. As a result then it's surely inherently more (likely to be) balanced/matching up with reality? Compared to Japan; the only show I can think of that I've seen that's even sort of set there was The Man in the High Castle!
  - djrogers 5y ago
    > As a result then it's surely inherently more (likely to be) balanced/matching up with reality? I see almost nothing on TV that matches up with the actual daily life in America, so no - seeing more US TV doesn't help in that respect.
    - suction 5y ago
      That's a very subcomplex idea of how media works. Of course, everybody understands that there is a difference between fiction and reality. And "reality TV" is fiction as well, even if some people might still be fooled by that. Still the reality of US life does reveal itself simply by the "what" and "how" Americans create their media, like TV, movies, radio, podcasts, web video, and so on. Or put in terms an American with a tech background would understand: Everybody knows Walter White is not a real person, and Breaking Bad isn't a documentary. Yet the reality of American-style healthcare and personal financial ruin for many people who are misfortunate enough to get cancer and have it treated, is not fiction.
  - ineedasername 5y ago
    it's surely inherently more (likely to be) balanced/matching up with reality? Not really. TV/Movies are stereotypes & caricatures. News media shows mostly the extremes, or anything violent. Think of native British shows you might watch: are they accurate portrayals of day to day life? (Besides Dr. Who, which I'm pretty sure is a documentary.)

LudwigNagasena 5y ago

Of course it is a bad thing. It is treated as a homogenous blob, an “other”.