No matter where you go in Japan, it is hard to see street smoking. You can see that smoking areas and booths have been installed. Many Japanese people are very good at following these rules and orders.
However, in Korea, smoking booths are insufficient, and they are easy to see at airports, and they are hip-hop in the city center. However, a Japanese announcer came to Korea to cover the visit of Major League Baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers) recently, and smoking in a non-smoking area was criticized by the public in his country.
What triggered the controversy was an article by a Japanese man who recently visited Korea. According to the online on the 26th, A said on his X (X, former Twitter) on the 20th, “A Japanese journalist was scolded by a security guard right away while smoking at the baseball stadium.” He added that he witnessed the scene when he visited Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul to watch the “2024 MLB World Tour Seoul Series.” A posted another post a moment later, saying, “I was scolded for smoking on the street a little while ago, but I am smoking in a different place. Why are you here in Korea? Staff who are not paying attention are also a problem,” and released a video he took himself. The video showed a man wearing an LA Dodgers uniform and a hat smoking an electronic cigarette. Gocheok Sky Dome has a separate smoking booth. The man who smoked turned out to be Seiji Miyane, 60, a Japanese announcer. It seems that he visited Korea to cover Shohei Ohtani. Miyane began his career as an Asahi reporter in 1987 and is currently working as a freelance announcer. When he reported that a statue of a Japanese Military Sexual Slavery was erected in front of the Japanese consulate in Busan in 2017, he lashed out at Korea, sparking controversy over anti-Korean sentiment. The Japanese criticized Miyane’s actions as “a disgrace to the country” or “a shame.” More than 4,000 comments were posted on Yahoo Japan. Most of them criticized Miyane. As the controversy grew, Miyane apologized directly on the broadcast. “I had the opportunity to broadcast in Korea yesterday, and I smoked e-cigarettes in a non-smoking area,” he said on Japan’s Yomiuri TV “Information Live Miyaneya” on the 21st. “I’m sorry. I’ll go back to my original intentions and do my best. I’m very sorry.” He bowed his head.
EJ SONG
US ASIA JOURNAL
