What phenomenon is represented by the popularity of Japanese anime comics in the United States?

The phenomenon represented by the popularity of Japanese anime comics in the United States is best characterized as indirect diffusion. Indirect diffusion describes the process through which cultural traits or ideas are spread from one group to another, often through intermediaries rather than direct contact.

In the case of Japanese anime, the cultural content has arrived in the United States not only through direct consumption, such as watching shows or reading comics, but also through various intermediaries. These can include social media, fandom communities, and the localization and distribution efforts of companies in the U.S. that translate and adapt anime for American audiences. This layered transmission process exemplifies how cultural elements can spread without face-to-face interactions between the original culture and the new audience.

Understanding this form of diffusion helps clarify how cultural elements can adopt and transform within a different societal context, enriching both the original culture and the adopting one.