Ministry of Information and Culture

Ministry of Information and Culture

情報省 Jōhō-shō
Ministry of Information and Culture Headquarters, Chiyoda, Tokyo
Agency overview
Formed	December 6, 1940 (1940-12-06)
Jurisdiction	Japan
Headquarters	4-3 Kasumigaseki, 3-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8915, Japan
Employees	107,851 civilians
Ministers responsible	Kazuo Sakai, Minister of Information and Culture and Minister of National Unity Rin Shirasaki, Minister of Cultural Outreach
Deputy Minister responsible	Kaname Akagi, Deputy Minister of Information of Culture
Parent agency	Government of Japan
Child agencies	Central Information Bureau Japan Protected Designations Service Cultural Preservation Office Media Production Group
Website	https://www.moic.go.jp/e/

The Ministry of Information and Culture (情報省, Jōhō-shō) is a cabinet-level ministry of the Japanese government, responsible for managing communication of information from the government to the public and for the preservation and exchange of Japanese culture abroad. The ministry's core duties include the regulation and supervision of public media in Japan, the promotion of Japan and Japanese culture across the world, and providing advice and information to the Cabinet and Prime Minister on cultural policy.

The ministry is led by the Minister of Information and Culture, a member of the Cabinet of Japan appointed by the Prime Minister. Traditionally, the Minister of Information and Culture appointed is a member of the Diet, but is not legally required to be a member. The current Minister for Information and Culture is Kazuo Sakai. The Ministry of Information and Culture is headquartered at 3-4-3 Kasumigaseki, Tokyo, in a cluster of civil service headquarters buildings.

Duties and responsibilities

The Ministry of Information and Culture's primary responsibilities center around the dissemination of information from the government to Japanese citizens in Japan and abroad; the regulation and oversight of mass communications media within Japan; the promotion, preservation, and exchange of Japanese culture and participation in cultural activities among Japanese people; and the coordination of Japanese state-funded media and outreach on an international scale.

State-funded media

The Ministry's Culture Division, led by the Vice Minister of Culture also produces a variety of state-funded media. Unlike independently managed statutory corporations overseen by the Ministry of Information and Culture, like state broadcaster NHK, the Culture Division's Media Production Group is directly overseen by the Ministry, and general directions on content and audience are set by the Information and Culture Secretariat on the advice of the Media Production Group's executive committee. The Media Production Group's output includes film, radio, and television programming developed by J-Works Studio for domestic and international consumption, content created in partnership with major record labels, and commissioned works of public art funded under the National Visual Arts Program.

Leadership

The Ministry is led by the Minister for Information and Culture, currently Kazuo Sakai, who is responsible for the fomulation of cultural and media policy and overseeing government communications to the public. Directly under the minister is Deputy Minister for Information and Culture, currently Kaname Akagi. As part of the Ministry's Secretariat, four Vice Ministers, one for Administration, who oversees day-to-day operations of the Ministry; and one each for Culture, Public Information, and Media and Telecommunications, each of whom oversees a specific part of the Ministry's portfolio. Other activities at the department are overseen by the Minister of State for Cultural Outreach, currently Rin Shirasaki, and the Minister of State for National Unity, a position also currently held by the current Minister for Information and Culture Kazuo Sakai.

Organization

• Minister of Information and Culture
  • Deputy Minister of Information and Culture
  • Minister of State for Cultural Outreach
    • Japan Protected Designations Service
  • Minister of State for National Unity
  • Information and Culture Secretariat
    • Vice Minister of Information and Culture for Administration
      • Human Resources Division
      • Accounting Division
    • Vice Minister of Public Information
      • Central Information Bureau
      • Government Communications Coordination Committee
    • Vice Minister of Culture
      • Agency for Cultural Affairs
        • National Visual Arts Program
      • Domestic Cultural Support Bureau
      • Cultural Preservation Office
      • Cultural Heritage Protection Bureau
      • Media Production Group
        • J-Works Studio
    • Vice Minister of Media and Telecommunications
      • NHK

See also

• National Spiritual Mobilization Movement