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Ashita, Mama ga Inai: The Drama within the Drama
- The drama started airing on January the 15th, 2014 on the following day January the 16th, Jiei Hospital, which is located in Kumamoto City and represents Japan’s only baby post box which takes in children abandoned by anonymous parents and raise them until they grow up, expressed its displeasures and objections about the ongoing NTV drama that’s based on children from welfare homes and demanded the termination of the drama immediately. They also threatened to file a motion against NTV and the drama with Broadcasting Ethics & Program Improvement Organization (BPO).
- Apparently what Jiei Hospital found an insult was the way the treatment of children was over dramatized and the characters’ nicknames such as “Post” meaning that she was dumped by her mother in a baby post box which is an insult. Also, the way they show how the staff is treating the children in a heartless way is misleading and not true.
- NTV PR department replied that the purpose behind the drama is showing the children’s strength in dealing with tough situations and how they could survive their miserable lives. They also asked the hospital to wait and see the developments in the drama and how everyone will come to love these children.
- The second episode’s rating didn’t drop much which is unusual since many second episodes drop drastically compared to the pilot. On January the 21st, the National Children's Welfare Facilities Association held another press conference demanding NTV to stop ridiculing their work and to not humiliate the staff and children at the welfare home any longer. They said they were serious by demanding NTV to end the drama so on January the 22nd, they filed a complaint to the Broadcasting Ethics & Program Improvement Organization (BPO) asking for a quick assessment of the drama so that the children won’t be hurt any longer.
- The association said that many children risk being bullied at school and they received plenty of calls from citizens asking them about the treatment of children in welfare homes. They also questioned NTV about its reaction if any of the involved parties committed suicide. Moreover, the association revealed that they were concerned about the drama ever since the trailer was shown on TV back in December 2013 and asked NTV for the first episode's script, then they made many changes and asked the drama’s crew to follow it but they were surprised since none of their suggestions was taken into consideration.
- NTV PR department replied that they’re well-aware of the sensitivity of the subject and they certainly mean no insolence for the association, the staff members or the children and that they will keep in mind all the criticism and comments for the upcoming episodes, but they have no intention of stopping the drama.
- In the meantime, the sponsors were cautiously handling the matter and they were perfectly aware that they do not want to get involved in this controversy; three of them cut their CM's in a "wait-and-see" manner while five of other sponsors’ CM's were still used in the cuts of the second episode but their names weren’t shown in the sponsors’ credit corner.
- The rating of the third episode increased from 13.5% to 15% despite the fact that all 8 sponsors cut off their CM’s but the contract is still valid so NTV get to have the promised income. NTV had to fill the cuts with non-sponsored CM’s and some upcoming dramas’ trailers. Then Takasu Clinic stepped in to announce that they will become a new sponsor for the drama and that their new CM will be ready for the fourth episode.
- NTV's president Okubo Yoshio announced on January the 27th that the drama won’t be cut short or end before the due time. And the 9-episode drama will continue to air as scheduled. He also requested the association to watch the drama until the end and judge how things are handled.
- On January the 29th, the National Children's Welfare Facilities Association filed a new complaint to NTV telling them that a girl from the welfare home injured herself after watching the drama and she’s being treated at the hospital while another boy was unbearably teased in school because of the drama. Once again, they demanded the termination of the drama and an official apology to the association, children and staff. They also released a document to deny the ones accusing them of using the drama to draw attention to themselves, they clearly stated that they cannot risk waiting until the end of the drama because they do not know how much further damage will the drama impact on the children and staff. Moreover, the association knows that this is a fictional story, but they said that many people get facts about hospitals, police departments and many other things from dramas and films so even if it’s fictional there are many people who can’t tell the difference between fiction and reality.
- In February, another figure stepped in to talk about the issue; Tachikawa Asuka who happens to be a celebrity politician and who was also raised in an all-girls orphanage from the age of 3 until 18 years old, stated that the association has no right to complain or try to hide the truth behind the treatments in orphanages and welfare homes. She said that what she experienced was way worse than what’s shown in the drama, she also mentioned a lot of physical and verbal abuse as well as many humiliating treatments she had to go through when she was a kid. She also said that the drama is doing a great job by bringing attention to those matters. Many other citizens who grew up in orphanages and welfare homes expressed empathy for the drama.
- At the beginning of March, NTV’s CEO clearly stated that there will be no apology and that the drama will end as scheduled with 9 episodes. A male student in senior high from Kagoshima City collected 7,000 signatures and sent it to NTV demanding the termination of the drama and an official apology to children and staff in welfare homes. NTV said that she received the petition but the PR department didn’t say anything about following the demands.
- So far, 6 episodes aired with the fourth episode dropping to 13.1% in rating and the other two episodes dropped even lower to 11.6% and 11.1%. Some complained that the drama deviated from its original path which ruined many parts.
Personal comments: Whoa, so that’s what’s called the drama within the drama, huh? I clearly understand the orphanages and the association’s point of views especially the latter since post box children aren’t exactly orphans; they’re abandoned by their parents because they can’t raise them or social workers took them in for home abuse and so on. So we’re all clear on the point that this is a delicate matter. However, asking a channel to stop an ongoing drama is really over-doing it. Plus dramatization is certainly nothing new to the entertainment industry. This is not the first time that an NTV drama gets complaints and there are other cable channels that produce more controversial dramas over the years but they almost never get any complaints.
This is a fictional drama not a documentary and I know that the association said that many people don’t differentiate fiction from reality but let me tell you, people who only get information and facts through dramas and films are total idiots because everyone is well-familiar of the over-dramatization and propagandas in dramas and films. If you want to know something, read about it or travel and visit that place. Prior prejudices are for lame people.
Also, NTV was clearly boycotted by its sponsors; isn’t that enough? A well-known channel like NTV can’t lose face by cutting off or ending the drama. Even if Broadcasting Ethics & Program Improvement Organization (BPO) interfered, they can’t force a channel to stop an ongoing drama.
Speaking from another viewpoint, I also don’t think Jiei hospital is drawing attention to them because they clearly said that they’re better off unknown. However, having a drama which talks about them isn’t illegal in any way and if every delicate social issue that’s being brought up in dramas will face these types of aggressions then I don’t know what will happen to dramas’ industry especially Japanese since they always seem to bring up many different/unusual topics.
What do you guys think?
