Is Anime A Bad Influence? Only If You Believe These 4 Lies That People Tell

The problem with the argument people have about Anime is – it’s all speculation.

None of it is based on facts.

People believe Anime is a bad influence simply because that’s their opinion of it.

There’s no shred of truth or evidence to back it up.

Video games are also criticized the same way Anime is.

Someone has a bad experience with either, then they’ll claim it has a negative influence.

And the joke is – because the person with the negative opinion is so emotional about it, others believe their empty claims. Without even questioning whether it’s actually true or not.

Is anime really a bad influence?

Only if you believe or have fallen for these 4 Anime lies that people tell. Who by the way – are people who have never watched (or have watched too little) Anime to have a good enough opinion about it.

Let me explain.

1. Anime Promotes Pedophilia

Is Anime A Bad Influence? Only If You Believe These 4 Lies That People Tell — Lina Inverse’s reaction to the nonsense she just witnessed.

In March 2017, Goboiano published an article titled: BBC Reporter Claims Anime and Manga Promotes Pedophilia.

I know I know. Daft, right?

The original character designer of Girls Und Panzer had a 3 hour interview with Stacey Dooley. A British journalist.

The gist of the conversation was that Anime promotes pedophilia. And Anime shows like Girls Und Panzer are not only examples of it, but it should be banned.

An Anime fan who commented on the article said it perfectly:

“The difference is perceived pedophilia and actual pedophilia. A drawing is just a drawing, don’t pretend that it’s anything but that. Actual pedophilia is a horrible thing and deserves awful punishment. And saying that anime contributes to it is the same as saying that someone who uses a medium is incapable of controlling themselves. Which is stupid.”

There are many more great (and logical) comments along those lines too. If you check it out.

Being from England myself, I was flabbergasted by the way the journalist handled it.

I was even more disappointed how people in that kind of position can say something false, and have others brainwashed by it.

It’s opinions like this (based on no factual evidence) that ruin it for the majority.

The same people who may actually be interested in Anime, but now have a negative perspective of what Anime is.

The truth is – a paedophile doesn’t need Anime (or anything at all) to influence paedophilia in the first place.

If you’re a paedophile than you’re a paedophile. And that’s all there is to it.

The outlet (if we want to use that as an excuse) is just a trigger that reveals who a person is on the inside.

2. Anime has a bad influence on kids/teenagers

If you ask me – this is an excuse people make to ignore the real problems in our society.

If teenagers are misbehaving in school, and you’re a teacher, and you blame Anime as the cause…. You’re using it as an excuse to avoid figuring out what the ACTUAL problem is with the kid/teenager.

I’ve been watching Anime since I was a kid. Dragon Ball Z happened to be the first show I laid eyes on.

So was I lucky? Did I by some stroke of luck or magic manage to NOT be badly influenced by Anime? Come on now. You know better than that. 😉

If someone misbehaves, it’s because of a deeper reason that can’t be seen on the surface. It’s our job as teachers, parents, authority figures and people to be a leading example.

More importantly – it’s our job to communicate with each other to get to the root of the problem.

When people don’t communicate, problems start to boil.

We then make assumptions about “why” kids/teenagers are acting a certain way when in reality we haven’t bothered to ask or talk to them to find out the real reason…

Which would SOLVE everything.

3. Anime promotes sexual tendencies

I get it. I can even understand why people would believe this. And why do people claim this is the reason why Anime is a bad influence?

But let me blow your mind for a second. And lay down some solid facts for you.

According to the website – Covenant Eyes:

9 out of 10 boys are exposed to obscene content before the age of 18.
The first exposure to 18+ sites among men is 12 years old, on average.
71% of teens hide online behaviour from their parents.
6 out of 10 girls are exposed to 18+ content before the age of 18.
51% of male and 32% of female students first viewed 18+ content before their teenage years (12 and younger).
These sites attract more visitors EACH MONTH than Amazon, Netflix, and Twitter combined.

Do you see where I’m going with this?

An overwhelming majority of the population is exposed to this (not anime), and some even do it willingly. BEFORE the age of 12 in some cases.

If there are more visitors to explicit sites per month than there are to Amazon, Netflix and Twitter combined, then surely this is the thing that influences sexual tendencies.

Amazon, Netflix and Twitter are massive sites after all. With multi-millions of visitors (which still doesn’t compare to the enormous audience 18+ sites have).

Anime’s nothing in comparison to the crazy statistics you can see above. And that’s a fact.

There’s no way near that many viewers of let’s say – Hentai (the Anime equivalent) or just Anime in general.

Now, if we were to ignore those facts, we can state another fact instead. if a teenager is sexually active, then Anime (or anything) can’t further promote their sexual tendencies.

Similar to point #1, it will only reveal what they already are. Nothing can “make” you something that you’re not.

That decision comes down to the individual.

Post: Why Men Like Anime So Much, And Why It Matters

4. Anime causes addiction

Before you can make claims about something causing addiction, you first should know how an addiction even starts off.

Or what causes it. And why it’s caused.

This is how Medical News USA defines addiction:

“People with an addiction do not have control over what they are doing, taking or using. Their addiction may reach a point at which it is harmful.”

I’ll take that point. No arguments here.

But what causes addiction?

Here’s what Medical News USA has to say about it:

“Doctors say there is a link between the repeated use of an addictive substance and how the human brain experiences pleasure – its use has a nice reward, leading to further and more frequent use. The addictive substance, be it nicotine, alcohol or some drug actually causes physical changes in some nerve cells in the brain.”

Notice how addiction is associated with drugs, alcohol or a “substance”?

Now let’s get back to the point: Does Anime cause addiction?

Based on scientific facts, the answer is no.

Sure you can become addicted to Anime to the point of obsession. And even have it interfere and ruin other parts of your life (in extreme cases).

But the REAL cause in a situation like this isn’t Anime itself. No, the root cause is much deeper than that.

So deep that most people who blame Anime as the cause overlook the real problem.

People get addicted to TV, Anime, video games (and whatever else) because:

It helps them escape some kind of pain, suffering, misery, troubles or real-life issues.
And the addiction helps them deal with it temporarily (which is why you have to keep doing it constantly).

So the point is: Instead of blaming Anime for causing addiction, it’s better to look at the real issues as to why someone gets “addicted” in the first place.

And on that note: Most anime fans aren’t addicts.

As with most things, it’s the minority of people, not the majority.

It’s just that the minority of people who are addicted, get blown out of proportion. Making it seem as if most people are like that when they’re not.