Apparently older and wiser after his first term in office, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will not hold daily press interviews any more to avoid the verbal slips that plagued his hapless predecessors.
Ever since the administrations of Junichiro Koizumi, successive prime ministers have engaged in short question-and-answer sessions once or twice a day with the media. But these abbreviated interviews, known as "burasagari," often saw the nation's leaders flip-flop on crucial issues and make embarrassing blunders.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Thursday that Abe will keep the public updated by holding news conferences and harnessing the power of the Internet, for instance by using Facebook.