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Hello Kitty: Japan's soft power ambassador

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Hello Kitty: Japan's soft power ambassador

She was born in Japan in 1974 as "the white cat with no name" but today she's a multi-million dollar cartoon character whose face appears on everything from stationary to clothes, home wares, theme parks and even airplanes.

Hello Kitty is cuter-than-cute, instantly recognisable from her signature red bow, pointy ear and mouth-less, expressionless face.

Yet she's so much more than just a cartoon character, she's the globally recognised ambassador for Japanese soft power in East Asia and beyond, according to anthropologist Dr Christine Yano from the University of Hawaii.

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Popular Culture, Anthropology and Sociology, Globalisation - Society, Social Capital, Social Policy
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