On Saturday, November 5, 2016, Seijo University’s Center for Glocal Studies held a public lecture titled “Soft Power is an Illusion, or a Critique of Glocalization, Globalization, Cultural Imperialism, Cultural Proximity, Creolization, Resistance, and Hybridization,” in the large conference room (3F, Building 3). The lecture was delivered by a guest speaker, Wong Heung Wah, an associate professor of the University of Hong Kong’s School of Modern Languages and Cultures and the program director of the university’s Global Creative Industries Program.
Associate Professor Wong began the lecture by introducing examples of the cross-border migration of Japan’s popular cultural products, e.g., anime, manga, sushi, and udon. He then argued that the globalization of these cultural products cannot simply be labeled as a homogenization or creolization process. He challenged the concept of soft power, arguing that the notion of Japan creating affinity among other countries through exporting popular cultural products does not necessarily reflect reality.