Toxic image board 4chan has managed to stay online for the past seven years—amid boycotts and advertiser flight, after being implicated in several mass shootings, even as it was identified as a source of the conspiracy theories that inspired the January 6 insurrection—thanks, in part, to a $2.4 million investment from a major Japanese toy company.
A partnership agreement, obtained exclusively by WIRED, shows not only how current site owner Hiroyuki Nishimura acquired the far-right message board but also how Japanese industry helped finance the deal.
[...]
In recent years, Good Smile has branched out into content creation, working with various animation and film studios, has opened online wholesale companies in China and elsewhere, and has even sponsored a Super GT racing team.In 2021, former employees of Good Smile's Los Angeles office—embroiled in a legal dispute about the future of their employment—countersued the company. In legal filings, they allege Good Smile was responsible for the distribution of potentially obscene sexually explicit anime products and merchandise ("lolicon") and that it, unbeknownst to its family-friendly corporate partners, was funding 4chan.
The accusations were picked up in The Ankler and The Hollywood Reporter, which cited a Good Smile representative admitting a passive investment in 4chan. The lawsuit was settled out of court, and the allegations were never proven.
Last year, WIRED obtained documents detailing a nondisclosure agreement involving Nishimura, Good Smile, and Tokyo-based telecommunications firm Dwango. The three parties, the document said, were in talks to acquire 4chan. In December, The New York Times confirmed that Nishimura purchased 4chan with funding from three unnamed Japanese partners.
When asked about Good Smile's involvement in 4chan last December in an interview with publisher Shueisha, Nishimura confirmed the relationship. He and Good Smile's president, Takanori Aki, had met at an anime convention and become friends, Nishimura said. "However, Good Smile Company is in the process of leaving."
Good Smile did not respond to WIRED's request for comment.
[...]
The European Union's Digital Services Act aims to fine sites that host antisemitism, in addition to other types of hate. Given 4chan's rampant hate speech, it's a move that could hit them particularly hard. But any action against 4chan requires, or is at least enormously helped by, knowing who actually owns and runs the site. Now that 4chan's ownership and funding is in the public record, the temperature may start to increase on Nishimura."I think Mr. Kawakami's description of Mr. Nishimura is fair and quite accurate," Sei says. "Kawakami described Nishimura as a child who tears the legs off from a bug. And that he enjoys that."
This story originally appeared on wired.com.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by MIRV888 on Sunday April 02, @12:11AM (6 children)
It's more than a little bizarre Japanese nationals would be funding it, but you gotta discharge the sewage somewhere.
I've actually seen some really funny non-racist / sexist/ homophobic/I hate your group, etc. memes on there.
They're the exception, but that's 4chan.
IMHO
(Score: 4, Interesting) by bradley13 on Sunday April 02, @07:27AM (4 children)
It is important that places like 4chan exist. I'd rather the idiots congregate some place *else*, and this give them a home. Which the idiots also appreciate, because they *want* a home.
Even law-and-order types ought to like it: It's easier for law enforcement to keep an eye out for problems, if they know where to look. That said, having law enforcement actively participate, in order to lead gullible idiots into illegal activity - that needs to be illegal.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 02, @02:01PM
https://theintercept.com/2015/03/16/howthefbicreatedaterrorist/
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/16/fbi-entrapment-fake-terror-plots [theguardian.com]
See also: https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/chris-morris-the-day-shall-come-liberty-city-seven [middleeasteye.net]
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 02, @02:03PM
FBI-chan is that you?
https://theintercept.com/2015/03/16/howthefbicreatedaterrorist/ [theintercept.com]
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/16/fbi-entrapment-fake-terror-plots [theguardian.com]
See also: https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/chris-morris-the-day-shall-come-liberty-city-seven [middleeasteye.net]
(Score: 2) by istartedi on Sunday April 02, @05:19PM (1 child)
They ought to, but the history of Craigslist's personals says otherwise. I used to jokingly refer to it as "disease list". A lot of the posts were just a good read, and of course it was full of porn but the law enforcement concern was prostitution. A significant number of the posts were obvious pay for play invites. I always thought it was a fantastic honeypot and that the cops would love it for that; but instead they went after Craigslist itself as a facilitator and shut it down.
Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 02, @08:53PM
The cops problem with Craigslist wan't the prostitution, it was that they weren't getting their share of the take.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 02, @03:05PM
It's the same reason alt existed in usenet.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 02, @02:05AM (6 children)
oh brother... what whiny bullshit!
(Score: 5, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Sunday April 02, @02:55AM (3 children)
I'll second the "oh brother". 4chan transcends left and right. If a lefty is offended by something he sees there, he'll think that it's rightist. And, when a righty is offended, he'll think it's leftist. 4chan does have a liberal dose of "Hold my beer", but that's about all the left-right they have.
We might ask whether the insane asylum is left or right.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 3, Informative) by helel on Sunday April 02, @12:55PM (1 child)
An asylum is clearly leftist because a right winger would rather those people be homeless and begging in the street.
4chan used to be broadly offensive to anyone and everyone, as you describe. The culture over there has changed since then, at least as of the last time I checked in.
Republican Patriotism [youtube.com]
(Score: 2) by TheReaperD on Monday April 03, @12:44PM
Yeah. The last time I seriously lurked on 4chan, they were equal opportunity assholes (or /b/tards, as they called themselves). Now, it seems to be a right-wing conspiracy sight (QAnan, anyone?) and fulled with Russian and Chinese propaganda. The equal opportunity and hactivist crowd seem to have moved on. To where, I don't know as I missed the transfer. Maybe 8chan? Likely something else. But, the point is, the reason the site existed is gone. It's no longer a place you can go to hang out with your fellow assholes and have a good time without putting on the airs of 'civility.'.
Ad eundum quo nemo ante iit
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 03, @12:15AM
Yeah, very funny. Beer in my left hand, gun in my right, I hope they get along
(Score: 4, Informative) by ikanreed on Sunday April 02, @03:55AM (1 child)
It has become both of those things. It's okay if you think that neither of those warrant any kind of legal response, but to identify 2023 4chan as not toxic or not right wing is... really silly.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 02, @04:58AM
It's now run by people hostile to its userbase and is considered a honeypot. Reddit with more bad words and law enforcement.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by VLM on Monday April 03, @12:17PM (1 child)
That's quite the wokewashed first paragraph, LOL.
(Score: 2) by Freeman on Monday April 03, @01:41PM
It definitely feels like someone has an axe to grind at the very least.
Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"