The majority of them are Japanese in origin, so I would assume the artists are drawing what they know. I don't think the population of Japan is highly racially mixed, so most of them look similar.

because asians tend to black (dark straight hair) and dark eyes and this combo on all characters makes the whole movie seem pritty boring and also dark. White people have more colour in hair and eye. plus texture of their hair can range from wavy, curly to staight. so on the creative note artist will choose to use white features to create the differences between the characters because most anime characters faces look alike. so they would have to diferentiate by hair eye colour etc.

There is an anime named afro samurai which has a black maincharacter

Not sure, but I know in a lot of Asian countries its the opposite of here that pale skin is actually valued (lol, wish I lived there). Maybe that has something to do with it...?

Well, firstly because thats the way its been done for 50 years and while some people do draw differently there's generally a set style. That being said, the other reason I've heard is that anime characters do a lot of things that Japanese society would rather its people not do and so they make the characters appear un-Japanese, or even American-like so that, subconciously, its understood that Japanese people aren't doing these things. Thats what I heard anyway, and if you understand Japanese social strcuture it makes sense.

There you got your answer from both CinPhuny and audiogal. Characters drawn are usually more faired skinned in order to have the audience focus more on their facial appearance, like the eyes, the hair etc. Besides it is already a trend that had been going on for sometime now if they would to stop it and try something new, they have to be prepare for the public backlash if the public opinion hates it.

Well, in the anime Love Hina, a girl named Koalla Su is actually darkly colored, but not black. She almost looks Indian (not Native American, but India from Asia).

i ono they just do well some of it

. . .Well, usually its set in Japan to begin with right? FY, Hot Gimmick, Alice, Pretear, whatever else. And then there are non-white characters in manga as well. Sue, Anthy, That one guy that I can't remember his name. -shrugs- Theres others as well that I can't think of but its there.

Actually, they aren't white...and if you are or know any 'white' people, you can easily distinguish between them (and any other real people). The reason for the skin tone is simple, and can be found ingrained into many societies: Light colors mean purity. Asia, much like the west, is obssessed with the 'white is right' ideology. Light skin is therefore prized. Of course you can always say that 'tanned skin' is what many 'white' people wish for, but when you look at why its merely for entertainment (ie. to look good for significant others, to be fashionable or to be different). Living in Japan or studying Asian culture reveals many of the same stereotypes found elsewhere. To tell the truth however, personally I feel that anime characters (besides the language use and cultural attaches) are basically beyond such things as race, nationality, and other such (in my opinion) non-sense. This is what always drew me towards anime and manga. They represent anyone with their overlarge eyes and pointed jaws (and before it became a fad in Japan their knifed hair-doos). I agree that characters of other 'races' are included in anime and manga (and have been for many a decade) however I do not feel that it is necessarily a good or bad thing. More, it is an effort for artists to be more politically correct, or in rare cases for artists with international influence or heritage to represent themselves in media as best they can. P.S. And just in case anyone actually thinks that Asian people are 'yellow' I suggest a good dose of either therapy, arsenic, or living outside one's comfort zone. If you've ever been to Tokyo, or any other city in Asia above 30 degree's latitude, you know for a fact that if you want to find a person (especially a girl) whose near milk in color all you need to do is open your eyes. P.S.S. For all those who do not: (^_^) Thank you! Sorry for the long post; I was bored.

Anime characters look caucasion, and I don't think it's worth denying it and accusing americans of having a skewed vision. This is the reason why: Commodore Perry 's escapade into Japan - this was the first time that the Japanese were truly exposed to the occident, and the time period thereafater, the Japanese adopted a "westernization" policy in all aspects of their society. Suddenly, everything that was "western" was associated with modernity, and this time period after Commodore Perry and before WWII is responsible for much of Japan's modernization. This is historical fact, go look it up, there are tons of books written about this period of Japan's history. Thus, when the first Japanese comic books came out in newspapers and magazines, "Astroy Boy" and other early Manga that followed looked rather white. The logical progression was that the animations which were based on the manga looked white too, as to be consistent. Furhtermore, Disney had a huge influence on the original japanese animators, the idea of anime being anything but international after Disney, was out of the question. Both historically and economically, there was no reason for anime characters to look anything but white. It hasnt' been till very recently that we have started to see anime characters look more n more japanese.

its just how people look in that part of japan

I thought they'd been made whiter so that manga characters could get past Trolls looking for pink shades... at the college where I worked, the kids were trying to view some manga for research (under my supervision) but it was blocked every time, and we put it down to the amount of "flesh" the females characters were showing!

because its japanese and thats how they make there anime... and plus most japanese artist make there characters goth

To quote Run DMC; because it's like that and that's the way it is. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsBfPhtSWl8

yea like sammi josephine donovan

Actually, they only appear to take on the appearance of white people but really they are very Asian-ily influenced - you can see it when some people cosplay (dress up as a specific character); you'll find that it is those whom are of asian decent that appear to mimic the character so profoundly!

As you know Osamu Tesuka, the father of anime and manga, worked for Disney in the production of Bambi, he copied the eye style and it's white skin because he said that these ones make them more expressive and easy to draw.

There's not much sun in anime land.

Because they're Japanese

I guess they just want the anime to connect with the viewers no matter who they are.

You guys foregot about... SPEED RACER!!!!!!!!!!!!~ HAA HAA!

What do you mean, white? White as in colour or race?

two words. boon docks.

You're right about Anime being white. Because Japanese skin are very white, if you've been to their country you'll know what I'm talking about. There are 2 classes of white definition in this world. American White & Asian White. American white people have lots of frecklesredspots in their face. American white has a trademark because they have many redspots in their faces. Asian white are just plain white. When you've seen a White Asian girlboy. It's like looking at a live action Anime. Never in my whole life where I've seen an Anime with freckles/redspots in their face. So my conclusion is that the Asian people resembles Anime in real life.

Probably because that they cant make asian skin colours, i mean itll probably look tanned or something.

No money for flesh-colored ink! XDD I really think it might be that pale skin over there is a sign of beauty and/or prosperity or something like that. I don't know, just an educated guess.

I really think its a context and history issue. I also think the characters look white and I'm sure that's because i have a limited knowledge of the cultural and historical influences that go into the art. Also, I know the context I'm from is far more racialised than that found in Japan. For me though its not the skin colour - its the eyes. When I first watched anime and read manga I couldnt figure out why the characters didn't have eyes like Japanese people. I've read another article that says the bigger eyes demonstrate better emotion and are cuter, have more impact. I kinda think thats a bit of a rubbish response cos it implies Asian eyes don't. I don't know - I love the medium and so have just decided not to be bothered by it. Just imagine the characters as anything you want them to be.