Otani Announces Donation and Uses 'Sea of Japan' Label... LA Dodgers Face Backlash

US Major League Baseball LA Dodgers... East Sea → Sea of Japan Mislabeling
"Ohtani Did Not Use 'Sea of Japan' When Posting the Same News"
"Campaign to Change 'Sea of Japan' to East Sea Will Be Launched"

The LA Dodgers, a Major League Baseball team in the United States, sparked controversy by labeling the East Sea as the "Sea of Japan" while announcing their donation plan for the earthquake damage in Japan.

LA Dodgers announced donations to the earthquake-affected areas in Japan.
[Photo by Seokyungdeok, Facebook capture]

On the 8th, Professor Seokyoungdeok of Sungshin Women's University stated on his social media service (SNS), "On the 5th, the LA Dodgers officially announced on their SNS account that they would donate $1 million to the earthquake-affected areas in Japan along with the team's star player Shohei Ohtani," adding, "At that time, they used the term 'Sea of Japan,' which angered many Korean fans of the LA Dodgers who reported it."

Professor Seokyoungdeok pointed out, "Shohei Ohtani posted the same news in Japanese on his personal SNS account but did not use the term 'Sea of Japan.' No matter that the earthquake occurred in Japan and that Ohtani is Japanese, it was clearly wrong to use only the 'Sea of Japan' term, which is advocated by the Japanese government, without also including the 'East Sea' designation."

In an email sent to the LA Dodgers organization, Professor Seokyoungdeok protested, saying, "The name of the sea between Korea and Japan has historically been used as the 'East Sea' for over 2,000 years," and added, "The AP World History textbook, part of the U.S. college entrance exam process, began to use both 'East Sea' and 'Sea of Japan' together, and in 2019, the New York State Department of Education recommended that schools mention both names."

He also emphasized, "Last year, the MLB website, which hosted the World Baseball Classic (WBC), labeled the sea as 'Sea of Japan' on its map but removed it after protests from the Korean side."

Furthermore, he stated, "A few days ago, the British leading daily newspaper The Times caused a major controversy by labeling the East Sea solely as the Sea of Japan in an article introducing Korean tourism, but later added the East Sea as well," and added, "We will strongly continue the global campaign this year to change the wrongly labeled 'Sea of Japan' to 'East Sea' around the world."

"'Sea of Japan' is the official designation"…Seokyoungdeok protests to the U.S. Department of Defense

Full-page advertisement of 'East Sea' published in The New York Times.
[Photo by Seokyungdeok Facebook capture]

This is not the first time the East Sea has been misnamed as the Sea of Japan. In August last year, the U.S. Department of Defense labeled the training sea area as the "Sea of Japan" instead of the East Sea during a trilateral exercise between Korea, the U.S., and Japan. When asked how the East Sea would be referred to in the future, the U.S. Department of Defense responded, "'Sea of Japan' is the official designation," and said, "Using 'Sea of Japan' is the policy not only of the Department of Defense but also of other U.S. government agencies."

In response, Professor Seokyoungdeok sent a protest email attaching videos related to the East Sea, requesting, "Please join us in using the 'East Sea' designation, which has been used historically for over 2,000 years." Subsequently, regarding some media reports on the 17th that U.S. military authorities announced they would unify the designation of the East Sea as the Sea of Japan, the Department of Defense stated, "We will closely consult with the U.S. side regarding the labeling of the 'training sea area.'"

Jeon Hakyu, spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, said, "The Ministry of National Defense is expanding trilateral exercises between Korea, the U.S., and Japan to respond to the increasingly sophisticated nuclear and missile threats from North Korea," and added, "In this process, we have conveyed our government's position on the 'East Sea' designation to the U.S. side on various occasions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.