The CFP for the June 2022 Mechademia Conference, held in Los Angeles, CA, is now available. The conference theme is “Migration and Transition.” The conference will be held in person, with options for scholars to present virtually via Zoom. We are excited to take up residence in LA, at a […]
Galbraith, Patrick W. Otaku and the Struggle for Imagination in Japan. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2019. Caitlin Casiello Since the emergence of anime as the vanguard for Japan’s battle for cultural relevancy through “Cool Japan” soft power, the “otaku” has loomed large as a figure of mystery, infamy, and […]
Yasar, Kerim. Electrified Voices: How the Telephone, Phonograph, and Radio Shaped Modern Japan, 1868-1945. New York: Columbia University Press, 2018. Patrick Carland-Echavarria Kerim Yasar’s Electrified Voices is a fascinating study of how soundscapes in Japan were transformed by the introduction of audio technologies including the telephone, telegraph, phonograph, and radio […]