Editing Chain letter (section)

===== Social Reaction and Impact in Japan =====
Fukou no Tegami became a significant social problem, widely covered by media<ref name="モノと図像から探る怪異妖怪の東西_p91"/> and even becoming a [[buzzword]] in 1970.<ref name="世相を映す戦後の主な流行語一覧_p3"/> Police stations received numerous inquiries and complaints, with people bringing in letters, demanding action, or expressing fear.<ref name="朝日新聞19701031m_p24"/> A 1970 Sankei Shimbun survey found 75.6% of people knew about the letters, and 20.5% had received one. While nearly half (45.8%) dismissed them as "absurd", significant portions found them "infuriating" (28.9%), "creepy" (12.9%), or "anxiety-inducing" (4.4%). About half (49.3%) discarded them, but 17.4% admitted to forwarding them, particularly women (45% of female office workers surveyed).<ref name="意見と意識の百科事典_p47"/>

Anecdotes highlighted the distress caused: a woman forwarded one despite her husband's objections, leading to marital strife;<ref name="ヤングレディ8(16)_p142"/> another developed chronic hives after discarding one and becoming anxious;<ref name="現代医療4(5)_p510"/> people angrily confronted police or postal workers.<ref name="朝日新聞19701031m_p24"/> Magazine pen pal sections were inundated,<ref name="読売新聞19780620_p21"/> leading some, like the manga magazine [[Ribon]], to shut down columns listing readers' addresses.<ref name="DPZ20171027"/> Occult magazine [[Mu (magazine)|Mu]] received so many it started a "Fukou no Tegami Grand Collection" feature.<ref name="歴史読本31(3)_p178"/> In [[Saitama Prefecture]] alone, over 400 cases were reported to police by late 1986, with some individuals reportedly suffering nervous breakdowns.<ref name="埼玉県議会史12_p1907"/><ref name="埼玉県議会史12_p1602"/>

While many dismissed the letters, others were deeply troubled, caught between the fear of personal misfortune and the guilt of potentially inflicting it on others by forwarding the letter – a dilemma described as highlighting selfishness ("as long as I'm okay") versus conscience.<ref name="モノと図像から探る怪異妖怪の東西_p92"/> Some admitted forwarding out of a "better safe than sorry" mentality,<ref name="上山市史別巻下_p286"/> while others likely sent them maliciously to disliked individuals or simply out of boredom or curiosity about the recipient's reaction.<ref name="モノと図像から探る怪異妖怪の東西_p92"/><ref name="沖縄の風習と迷信_p170"/><ref name="沖縄の迷信_p248"/>

Prominent figures also received them. Actress [[Kimiko Ikegami]] received one in 1975, shortly before her grandfather, [[Bando Mitsugoro VIII]], died unexpectedly, fueling public outrage against the letters.<ref name="明星19750216_p179"/><ref name="明星19750216_p180"/><ref name="実話ナックルズGOLD1_p82"/> In 1978, [[Koseki Kinko]], wife of composer [[Yūji Koseki]], wrote a widely publicized newspaper column urging people to simply destroy the letters, sharing her own experience of doing so without consequence and encouraging readers to face adversity positively.<ref name="読売新聞20200912e_p10"/><ref name="読売新聞19780615_p5"/><ref name="読売新聞19780620_p20"/><ref name="読売新聞20220930"/>