The EU-Japan economic partnership agreement in Japanese print media: a “cars-for-cheese deal” or “the black ships of European cheese”?

IF 1.6 3区 社会学 Q2 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Tine Walravens, Ivar Padrón-Hernández
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

The EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EJEPA) entered into force on February 1st, 2019. The agreement was quickly coined the “cars-for-cheese deal”: Agri-food seemed to be the largest winner on the European side while Japan stood to gain most from automotive exports. Up until the final negotiations, however, agri-food was a major stumbling block. Through a qualitative content analysis of EJEPA coverage in five Japanese newspapers with different political and industry profiles, this article examines media treatment of food as a controversial part of the EJEPA. While narratives differed depending on political and industry leanings, we find that the perceived threat from the EJEPA regarding food was often placed within a larger social imagery of a new global order and disadvantageous trade deals, through a conflation with the recently established Trans-Pacific Partnership and its widely reported impact on agriculture. Lastly, beyond a strongly defensive or even victimized narrative in some specialized media, mainstream newspapers also divert attention toward the potential opportunities the EJEPA brings to Japanese exporters and manufacturers.

日本纸媒报道的欧日经济伙伴关系协议:“汽车换奶酪协议”还是“欧洲奶酪的黑船”?
欧盟-日本经济伙伴关系协定(EJEPA)于2019年2月1日生效。该协议很快被称为“汽车换奶酪协议”:农业食品似乎是欧洲方面最大的赢家,而日本则从汽车出口中获益最多。然而,在最后的谈判之前,农业食品一直是一个主要的绊脚石。通过对EJEPA在五家具有不同政治和行业概况的日本报纸上的报道进行定性内容分析,本文考察了媒体对EJEPA中有争议的食品的处理。尽管根据政治和行业倾向的不同,叙述也有所不同,但我们发现,通过与最近建立的跨太平洋伙伴关系及其对农业的广泛报道的影响相结合,EJEPA对食品的感知威胁通常被置于一个更大的全球新秩序和不利贸易协议的社会意象中。最后,除了一些专业媒体的强烈辩护甚至受害叙事外,主流报纸还将注意力转移到EJEPA给日本出口商和制造商带来的潜在机会上。
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来源期刊
Asia Europe Journal
Asia Europe Journal INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS-
CiteScore
2.90
自引率
6.20%
发文量
8
期刊介绍: The Asia-Europe Journal is a quarterly journal dedicated to publishing quality academic papers and policy discussions on common challenges facing Asia and Europe that help to shape narratives on the common futures - including both risks and opportunities - of Asia and Europe. The Journal welcomes academically and intellectually rigorous research papers as well as topical policy briefs and thought pieces on issues of bi-regional interest, including management and political economy, innovation, security studies, regional and global governance, as well as on relevant socio-cultural developments and historical events. Officially cited as: Asia Eur J
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