AKB48 to phase out swimsuit photo shoots for younger members
AKB48 is said to be phasing out swimsuit and lingerie photo shoots for its young members, perhaps out of fear of foreign accusations of peddling lolicon and child pornography as Tokyo prepares to for the 2020 Olympics.
There is speculation that the Akihabara-inspired supergroup, which builds followings for its female idols through swimsuit and underwear shoots as well as scantily clad music videos, is taming down its tactics.
Now members of high school age will apparently not be asked to reveal their flesh during photo shoots, it is reported.
A large proportion of AKB48’s members are under the age of adulthood in Japan (20 years old), which has added to the controversy over the sexualized lyrics and photo shoots. This effectively makes them junior idols (chidols). AKB has faced accusations of lolicon and even child pornography in the past, but has always got over any temporarily problem.
Should we be surprised by this latest development? Not really, given the strong likelihood that AKB48 will be involved with the Opening Ceremony of the 2020 Olympic Games. The movers and shakers may want to remove any taint of obscenity ahead of its global showcase.
So far, we should stress, this is all just speculation on a few blogs, originating from a Nikkan Cyzo article. AKS, the company behind AKB48 and its various spin-off “sister” groups, has yet to make any official comment confirming or denying the rumor.
6 Comments
I am one of your foreign readers and I’ve got to admit photographing girls under the age of 16, should be considered child pornography and further tentamounte as Child abuse, this even includes if the girl agrees, because they’ll have peer pressure, pressure from the so called managers who are there only with the girls safety in mind, (Really they probably don’t give a shit about there safety, they just wanna see who’s worth fucking in a couple of years.) Stopping the photogphing now might reduce the sexual abuse in one or two years time, but it probably won’t…cameras hidden in changing rooms for starters
I agree that minors must be protect against abuse of any kind!
But please, don’t exaggerate. Shall we not going to the beach in summer-time, because
minors are walking, sun-bathing and swimming in bikinis???!!
You write”
In the WESTERN world, it is 18 years that adult age starts.
Why should we change what is acceptable in Japan. It may be looked upon as bad here in the U.S., but other countries are ok with it. So let them be. If this is what the girls want, then who are we to get in their way. The only time to step in, is if someone gets hurt or worse. AKB48, Keep Rocking!!
You never mentioned that while the age of adulthood is 20, the age of consent is 13 nationally and 18 in most prefectures like everywhere else.
The verdict is out! 95% of idols in Japan are junior idols since they’re under 20. /s