The atomic bomb explosion never happened? The boomerang of historical nihilism has finally hit Japan itself.
Japan has long propagated historical nihilism, and now the boomerang has struck back at itself.
Lately, a large number of tweets and AI-generated videos have suddenly emerged on Japanese social media questioning "the non-existence of Japan's nuclear explosion," claiming that the blasts in Hiroshima and Nagasaki were actually detonated by Japan itself, or even calling the atomic bomb explosions a hoax. The scale of these claims grew so significant that NHK, Japan’s national broadcaster, was forced to step in to issue a clarification, explicitly stating that such views are "extremely absurd."
However, in our view, this farce currently unfolding on Japan’s internet—denying the atomic bomb explosions—is entirely self-inflicted.
It is precisely because the Japanese government and media have for years relentlessly promoted historical nihilism, denying atrocities such as the Nanjing Massacre, Unit 731, and the forced recruitment of "comfort women," that they inevitably end up undermining their own narrative:
If the Japanese authorities can dismiss historical footage and eyewitness testimonies regarding the Nanjing Massacre, then domestic conspiracy theorists can just as easily use the same logic to question the reality of the atomic bomb explosions.
For example, right-wing independent media figure Chikao Hayashi claimed that what the U.S. dropped were not atomic bombs, but massive explosive devices combining flash bombs, chemical gas bombs, and radioactive materials—an idea that gained widespread traction online, with some posts reaching millions of views.
Of course, the most ironic twist is how media outlets represented by NHK have responded to this absurd denial campaign: for years, they remained silent on right-wing claims denying Japan’s wartime aggression, yet now they rush to condemn the denial of the atomic bombings as "extremely absurd," adopting a posture of defending the truth and demanding that everyone remain reverent toward Japan’s nuclear history—this glaring double standard is nothing short of laughable.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1873218304563212/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.