Believe it? Japan weighs in after Trump’s ‘Naruto’ video sparks backlash

TOKYO, June 12 — A Japanese minister on Friday underlined the government’s stance on unauthorised use of copyrighted works, after United States (US) President Donald Trump posted a video on social media appearing to depict him as the hero of anime series Naruto, Kyodo News reported.

Without commenting directly on the video, Kimi Onoda, minister for the “Cool Japan” strategy of promoting Japanese cultural exports, told a press conference that the “basic principle” of obtaining permission from rights holders to use copyrighted material “applies equally when the user is a public institution.”

“Even in cases that may not clearly constitute copyright infringement, there is a risk that a work may be used in a manner contrary to the rights holder’s intentions, damaging the work’s image and causing harm to the rights holder,” Onoda said, calling it “a matter requiring utmost caution.”

She added that Japan has “conveyed its views on such matters to the US side through diplomatic channels on multiple occasions.”

The video posted on Trump’s social media account last Saturday depicts him in situations including as Naruto, the titular protagonist of the popular ninja-themed anime and manga series.

It has prompted online criticism.

The Trump administration has previously used Japanese properties in its social media communications, including what appear to be images from the Nintendo Co. “Wii Sports” video game in a post by the White House’s X account regarding strikes on Iran during the US-Israeli conflict with the country. — Bernama-Kyodo