How E-books have been discussed in Japan: Organizing the discussion points of E-books by a content analysis of magazine articles and newspaper articles

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to clarify how opinions on e-books have changed based on a content analysis and a discourse analysis. Methods: A content analysis of Japanese newspaper articles and magazine articles revealed various arguments concerning e-books. Also, a discourse analysis clarified arguments concerning the advantages and disadvantages of e-books. By using the databases of the Asahi Shimbun, Yomiuri Shimbun, Mainichi Shimbun, and Nihon Keizai Shimbun and retrieving newspaper articles about e-books published from January 1, 1980 to August 12, 2011, 4,438 articles were obtained, of which 400 randomly-sampled articles were analyzed. Also, by using the National Diet Library-OPAC and retrieving magazine articles about e-books, 1,108 articles (286 magazine titles) were obtained, of which 236 articles from the magazines Insatsu Zasshi, Shuppan News, Hon To Computer, and The Diamond Weekly were examined. Each of the articles was separated into paragraphs, and a total of 9,074 paragraphs were analyzed. Results: Our findings indicate that: (1) the number of discussion topics concerning e-books has increased from 12 to 19, (2) 'problems', 'contents', 'e-book devices', 'publications', and 'markets' were mentioned numerously, (3) CD-ROMs were discussed for a long time until 2009, and then tablet terminals were mentioned extensively thereafter, and (4) the authors of the articles were mostly magazine or newspaper writers, and most of the stakeholders mentioned were publishers or manufacturers.