Title: SUZU-san, Here and There

Author: Masahito Kasuga NHK (Japan)

Abstract: As a Public Broadcaster, NHK started a Campaign ”#SUZU-san, Here & There” from 2018 to pass down wartime memories to the younger generations. Youngsters in Japan often tend to think that the past war atrocities have nothing to do with them. We thought if we selected “everyday life of everyday people ” as a theme, it may resonate to young people.

“Suzu-san” is the name of the main female character of a Megahit Anime film ,”In this corner of the world” ,which described the everyday life of Japanese citizens during WW2. She is very famous among Japanese Youngsters.

We decided to put a hashtag and her name at the head of our project title,and tried to spread this hashtag through TV and Radio Programs,which have many young Fans.

For the interesting tweets, we contacted the tweeters and relevant parties for fact-checking. Then, we made animations and illustrations from them and shared them on our platforms.

We started this Campaign 2years ago from one TV program and twitter, and in next year, we collaborated with other NHK Platforms, and many Web Platforms. And this year, in 2020, we held a Virtual Reality Event and online Workshop to share this Hushtag to local Newspapers, Historical Museums, and schools.

For 3 years, we tried to connect various Fandoms by using a hashtag, and as a result, over1000 stories were posted by youngsters. They became Storytellers of the History.

Video: https://youtu.be/op6Zub65jMg