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Atoms for Peace and the Origins of Nuclear Power in Japan, 1952-1958

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Atoms for Peace and the Origins of Nuclear Power in Japan, 1952-1958 Nuclear Society: Atoms for Peace and the Origins of Nuclear Power in Japan, 1952-1958 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Craig D. Nelson Graduate Program in History The Ohio State University 2014 Dissertation Committee: James R. Bartholomew, Adviser Philip C. Brown Christopher A. Reed Copyright by Craig D. Nelson 2014 Abstract This project seeks to explain why Japan developed nuclear power despite its negative experiences with nuclear weapons and fallout. It focuses on the period from the end of the American Occupation in 1952, when the Japanese regained full sovereignty, until the signing of the agreement to import a commercial British nuclear reactor in 1958. The Japanese experience with atomic bombs and radioactive fallout made Japan a seemingly unlikely candidate to develop nuclear power. These fears were renewed following the Lucky Dragon Incident when an American hydrogen bomb test showered a Japanese fishing vessel with radioactive fallout and contaminated deep water tuna throughout the Pacific. Japan, however, had ample reasons to embrace nuclear power as it: provided a potential solutions to Japan’s energy crisis, while offering Japan a way to secure its place in the international community and a means of defining itself as a nation dedicated to scientific, technological, and economic development. Pro-nuclear advocates identified nuclear power as a key to the advancement of Japan, partaking in what Hiromi Mizuno termed “scientific nationalism.” Although Japanese policy makers were interested in the adopting nuclear power before the US offered to extend aid to Japan, the process of doing so was influenced by the American approach to the Cold War and was heavily informed by American efforts to maintain the support of both the government and the general public. While Japanese ii policy makers moved forward with their investigations of nuclear power, the United States addressed the Japanese public through a series of exhibitions as part of the Atoms for Peace program to direct the national conversation away from nuclear bomb testing. As they toured Japan, these exhibitions presented nuclear power as a suite of technologies that would greatly benefit scientific research, medicine, agriculture, industry, and transportation. Seven different national and regional newspapers cosponsored the various legs of these exhibits and presented media campaigns that proselytized for nuclear power far and wide. These exhibitions and the media campaigns that surrounded them helped forge a pro-nuclear consensus in Japan, which would remain durable for decades. This study combines the political, diplomatic, and social aspects of the adoption of nuclear power. It uses media reports, popular culture, interviews, and polls to gauge the public’s reaction to nuclear power. American efforts to influence nuclear power are examined through the records of the CIA and the United States Information Agency, which was responsible for American public diplomacy efforts. Japanese policy issues are explored using the proceedings of the Diet, the Japanese Atomic Energy Commission’s reports, the Foreign Ministry archives, and trade publications. iii Dedication For Tom and Anne Nelson, who offered unwavering support iv Acknowledgments I would like to thank all the people who made this project possible and better than I could manage on my own. James R. Bartholomew oversaw this dissertation, along with Philip C. Brown and Christopher A. Reed, all of whom offered constructive comments and valuable advice. David Wittner, who served as my undergraduate adviser, also offered valuable insights and encouragement. This project began its life as a paper written in a diplomatic history seminar run by Robert McMahon. Since my background is in East Asian history, Professor McMahon and the members of that seminar proved invaluable while I tried to get up to speed on American diplomatic history; particularly, I would like to thank Ryan Dawkins, Mark Rice, and Ryan Irwin for their help. Hiromi Mizuno of the University of Minnesota offered a great deal of encouragement, very graciously offered advice during the early stages of my dissertation research, and introduced me to other scholars working on nuclear issues in Japan. Since she recommended that I focus on the Atoms for Peace exhibitions, this would have been a very different document without her assistance. I would like to thank the Institute of Social Science at the University of Tokyo for hosting me as a Visiting Graduate Fellow, and Nakamura Naofumi and Thomas Blackwood for serving as my sponsors. This dissertation was written with support from the history department of the Ohio State University, the Fulbright Program, and the D. v Kim Foundation. I would like to thank the Japan-U.S. Education Commission for their help and support, particularly Ito Miyuki. Tomoko Steen at the Library of Congress also gave useful advice and directed me to the National Archives and Records Administration in College Park, Maryland, where Eric Vanslander helped me find United States Information Agency and CIA files that proved vital to my research. Stephen Shapiro offered advice on military affairs and, along with Anne Sealey, read endless drafts, grant proposals, and presentations. Kjell Erikson, Shi-Lin Loh, and Lisa Onaga all offered valuable comments on sections of this project, and their assistance was very much appreciated. Beth and Mark Shaffer graciously opened their home to me while I was working in Washington, even though our football loyalties did not always align. I would also like to thank Jim Bach, who helped me negotiate the Ohio State bureaucracy; I do not know how anyone could make it through the Ph.D. process without his cheerful assistance. vi Vita 2000................................................................Proctor Senior High 2004................................................................B.A. History, Utica College 2009................................................................M.A. History, The Ohio State University 2005 to present ..............................................Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of History, The Ohio State University Fields of Study Major Field: History vii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... ii Dedication .......................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... v Vita .................................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... xi List of Figures ................................................................................................................... xii Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: A Nuclear War by Other Means ..................................................................... 22 The Post-War Occupation Period and Its Legacy ......................................................... 23 Nuclear Culture in Post-war Japan ................................................................................ 41 Atomic Bomb Cinema ................................................................................................... 44 Atomic Art..................................................................................................................... 52 Atoms for Peace ............................................................................................................ 62 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 90 Chapter 2: Awakening the Monsters of the Deep ............................................................. 92 The Lucky Dragon Incident .......................................................................................... 94 viii Operation Castle ........................................................................................................ 99 Atomic Tuna ............................................................................................................ 105 Atomic Diplomacy .................................................................................................. 117 The Lucky Dragon in the Headlines ........................................................................ 119 The King of the Monsters............................................................................................ 122 Chronicle of a Living Being ........................................................................................ 137 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 146 Chapter 3: Selling the Atom to Japan ............................................................................ 149 From Fencing Champion to Editor-in-Chief ............................................................... 151 The Propaganda Master ..............................................................................................
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