author

 
Menu
Search
 
October 30, 2025
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access
Eric Johnston

Meta

Eric Johnston
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Nov 12, 2021
Opposition tie-up could herald new debate on constitutional revision in Japan
In what could be the start of an opposition party realignment, Nippon Ishin no Kai and the Democratic Party for the People have begun working together to push the issue in parliament.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Nov 9, 2021
Amid leadership change, CDP asks itself deep questions about its future
The next leader will need to wrestle with how to best communicate a positive vision for Japan and what to do about cooperation with the Japanese Communist Party.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Nov 2, 2021
Nippon Ishin faces fundamental hurdles to further electoral success
Experts say it's likely that the party will remain official outsiders but mostly align with the ruling coalition's policies.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Nov 1, 2021
Failed cooperation effort prompts soul-searching by Japan's opposition
The fielding of unified candidates led to some close races and two major upsets, but political differences ultimately undermined the tie-up in the eyes of voters.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 27, 2021
Opposition unity in Japan general election proving easier said than done
The CDP and JCP have agreed to rally around unified candidates in as many districts as possible — and one of the strategy's first tests is in Hokkaido.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 26, 2021
Incumbent favoring nuclear waste disposal facility wins Hokkaido mayoral election
If all technical and political hurdles are cleared and the facility is built, waste from Japan's nuclear reactors would be transported to Suttsu.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 25, 2021
Shizuoka by-election boosts opposition's hopes ahead of Lower House poll
The LDP is taking stock of what went wrong after a ruling coalition-backed candidate lost despite campaigning by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 24, 2021
Kishida and coalition suffer by-election blow ahead of Lower House poll
The ruling LDP triumphed in its Yamaguchi stronghold while an opposition-backed candidate won in Shizuoka, in the first tests of the Fumio Kishida administration since it was inaugurated earlier this month.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Explainer
Oct 24, 2021
A crucial U.N. climate summit kicks off Oct. 31. Here's what you need to know.
Experts say the COP26 summit in Glasgow could prove decisive in determining whether humankind can avoid catastrophic global warming.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 20, 2021
Why is Kyoto going bankrupt?
In 2019, tourists spent u00a51.2 trillion in Kyoto. Now the city faces bankruptcy.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Oct 18, 2021
Loss of LDP majority could open up range of coalition options
With 465 seats up for grabs and opposition parties teaming up in some districts, the results of this year's Lower House election are far from certain.
JAPAN / Politics / EXPLAINER
Oct 13, 2021
Major opposition parties in Japan unite in attempt to dislodge LDP
The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Japanese Communist Party and two other groups have pursued unified policies and candidates, but tensions remain in some areas.
JAPAN
Oct 12, 2021
Kishida defends backtrack on capital gains tax in Upper House grilling
The new prime minister had floated an increase in the tax rate during the LDP leadership race, but the idea was omitted from a policy speech he gave Friday.
JAPAN
Oct 10, 2021
Osaka eases COVID-19 vaccine reservation requirement to speed up inoculations ahead of next wave
Although infections have been declining in both Tokyo and Osaka, the daily tally in Osaka started to exceed that of Tokyo late last month.
BUSINESS
Oct 5, 2021
New Kishida administration faces divisions over future energy mix
With pro-nuclear figures in key positions in the new Cabinet and COP26 not far off, the next few weeks are likely to see intense debate on the balance between nuclear and renewables.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / OBITUARY
Oct 4, 2021
David Jack: ‘One of the most inspiring people’ in Kansai
David Jack, who passed away last month due to a stroke, helmed Kansai Time Out, a lifeline for the non-Japanese community between 1977 and 2009.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Oct 3, 2021
The four LDP executives who are key to Kishida's immediate success
How well the LDP does in the upcoming Lower House election will depend not only on Kishida but also four top party officials who were appointed Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / View from Osaka
Oct 1, 2021
Kishida's LDP victory prompts mixed feelings in Kansai
Kansai LDP chapters strongly backed the presumptive prime minister's main rival, but the business community was more in favor of Kishida, largely due to his support for nuclear power.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 29, 2021
In backing Fumio Kishida, LDP opts for 'stable realist'
Criticized as bland and indecisive following his loss in the September 2020 LDP presidential race, Kishida is seen as having grown tougher and more passionate this time round.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 24, 2021
Balance of nuclear and renewables looms large in LDP presidential race
While all candidates see some future for nuclear energy, they are divided on whether to increase its share of electricity generation and how to handle renewables.
Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell
Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.
At first summit with Trump, Takaichi pledges 'new golden age' for alliance
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi raises her fist as U.S. President Donald Trump delivers a speech in front of U.S. Navy personnel on board the U.S. Navy's USS George Washington aircraft carrier at the American naval base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Tuesday.
Abe shooting suspect Yamagami pleads guilty to murder
Members of the media gather outside the Nara District Court in the city of Nara on Tuesday hours before the start of the trial of Tetsuya Yamagami, the man accused of fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022.
Takaichi buys time and builds trust with ‘near-perfect’ Trump summit
U.S. President Donald Trump walks with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi aboard the USS George Washington aircraft carrier during a visit to the U.S. Navy's Yokosuka base in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Tuesday.
JPYC, world’s first yen stablecoin, is issued
Noritaka Okabe, head of Japanese startup JPYC, at a news conference for the first yen stablecoin in Tokyo on Monday
Oasis returns to Tokyo: Rain, rapture and rock
Fans wait to get into the Oasis show at Tokyo Dome on Saturday. While lining up in the rain, some broke into impromptu versions of the British rock group's hits.
Kyushu banzuke sets the stage to cement 2025’s sumo narratives
Onosato ahead of his bout against Aonishiki at The Grand Sumo Tournament at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Oct. 18
Tokyo Film Festival opens with global stars and a spotlight on Asian storytelling
Director Junji Sakamoto (left) walked the Tokyo International Film Festival red carpet with Sayuri Yoshinaga (center) and Non (right), who both play mountaineer Junko Tabei, the first woman to summit Mount Everest, in the biopic "Climbing for Life."
Spanish artist and Japanese writer duos diversify the manga talent pool in Japan
"Menheim” is a dark fantasy manga with a story that centers on a girl’s quest to find a cure for her ill brother.
Japan’s youth are apathetic toward the climate crisis. Could anime change that?
“Future Kid Takara,” a series of anime shorts to be aired on NHK Educational TV in November, attempts to educate children about climate change.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.
Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo
Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER