Long-time Foreign Resident in Japan Defends Japan from Fear-Mongering "International" Media

It's just sad.

Daniel Kahl is an American whose Yamagata dialect Japanese became quite popular among the Japanese that launched his career as business owner (translation company) and TV "talent" personality in Japan.

This is his video from May 2011, berating the "international media" without identifying which one for reporting only the bad news about the radiation contamination in Japan, and telling people that the strict testing by the government cleared the agricultural produce in the disaster affected Fukushima and Miyagi. We now know how "strict" those tests were (one produce, in one farm plot, in one city).

His youtube video description:

I am sick & tired of the int'l media's constant stream of negative news on Japan. They purposefully select to broadcast ONLY negative items coming out of Japan, even though the situation is improving in many ways. Please do not allow yourselves to be fooled by scaremongers. They are NOT telling you the WHOLE truth.

I also sadly recall some "gaijin" (foreigners, in Japanese) sites that attacked any journalist or blogger inside and outside Japan back in spring and early summer last year for reporting the not-so-rosy news about the Fukushima accident, the radiation contamination, and the Japanese government's response to the nuclear disaster.

Saddest of all, Mr. Kahl seems to think that the "international media" actually reports something about the nuclear accident or the radiation contamination in Japan on a regular basis.

Uh... no.

My blog does, in a very small way, but almost all my news is from the Japanese media.

He has the uncanny timing, though. He uploaded this video on May 12, 2011 upon detection of radioactive cesium in teas grown in Kanagawa Prefecture. From that day onward, the detection of radioactive cesium in teas in all growing areas in Kanto ensued one after another.

He has another video, again ranting against the "international" news of radioactive cesium in Fukushima rice. The video was uploaded on November 18, 2011. Two days prior, 630 becquerels/kg of radioactive cesium was found in rice grown in Onami District of Fukushima City. It was treated as "exception". Then on November 25, 1,270 becquerels/kg of cesium was found in the same district. So much for "exception".

His November video, this time in Japanese (I wonder why), calls Dr. Chris Busby a fear-mongering scam artist. I'd suggest he say the same in English so that Dr. Busby would understand what he's saying.

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