Sport, media and technonationalism in the history of the Tokyo Olympics

The triangle of sport, media and nationalism became a part of modernization processes in many countries of the world from the late nineteenth century on and Japan was no exception. One could argue, however, that in the case of Japan one particular sporting event, the Tokyo Olympics (1964), became central to national identity to a degree hardly known in other advanced capitalist nations in the twentieth century. The Olympics were promoted as a turning point in terms of broadcasting technology, computer technology and transportation. This chapter focuses on the Olympics as a media event that provided the opportunity to express pride in Japanese technology.