“Cultural Exceptionalism” in the Global Exchange of (Mis)Information around Japan’s Responses to Covid-19

Despite reporting early cases, Japan’s infection rates of Covid-19 have remained low. This commentary considers how a discourse of cultural exceptionalism dispersed across the networked global public sphere as an explanation for Japan’s low case count. It also discusses the consequences for wider public understanding of evidence-based public-health interventions to reduce the transmission of the coronavirus