author

 
Menu
Search
 
April 28, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access
Shaun McKenna

Meta

Twitter

@jt_sloosh

Shaun McKenna
Shaun McKenna joined The Japan Times in 2007. He was the Music and Entertainment editor until 2019 when he became the Senior Commissioning Editor at the newspaper. He now also hosts and produces the Deep Dive podcast.
For Shaun McKenna's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 16, 2022
Is it too late to save the Japanese giant salamander?
Environmental journalist Mara Budgen comes on the show to talk about the Japanese giant salamander, which is well-protected within Japan through various laws but is still at risk of becoming an endangered species.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 14, 2022
25 years on from the protocol’s signing, did we ever 'Kyoto'?
Dec. 11 marked the 25th anniversary of the Kyoto Protocol, a landmark treaty that put the idea of global effort to save the planet on many national radars. To mark the event, The Japan Times has launched a new section, Our Planet, that will look at the climate crisis, earth science and disaster management from a Japanese perspective. Two of the section’s editors, Joel Tansey and Chris Russell, join the show to discuss how the Kyoto Protocol is viewed now and how the city it’s named for has taken to its green mantle.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 7, 2022
The Church, the State and Kishida's headache
Kanako Takahara joins this week's Deep Dive to discuss what's behind a new bill regulating faith-driven donations.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 24, 2022
Is Japan the model for Elon Musk's Twitter?
Elizabeth Beattie explains how the social media platform's Japan team has been affected since Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 9, 2022
‘High waves and dangerous storms’: How China’s moves are affecting Japan
Despite a recent spate of North Korean missile tests, Japan's larger concerns have mainly focused on activities taking place to the south of the country — specifically, those involving China and Taiwan.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 2, 2022
Hey Japan, are you happy?
Deep Dive explores whether the Japanese are content or not with the help of Alex K.T. Marin, who has written several features on the polls and surveys of happiness.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 19, 2022
Japan reopens its borders. Are tourists ready to return?
Masks? Vaccinations? Yen? You're ready to come to Japan! News chief Kanako Takahara and reporter Will Fee join the podcast this week to discuss whether the country's grand reopening will help its beleaguered tourism sector.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 5, 2022
Deep Dive is back! And the climate crisis is still a problem.
Oscar Boyd, Hanae Takahashi and Eric Margolis join new Deep Dive host Shaun McKenna to talk about how people in Japan get their climate news and what we need to do as citizens to aid in the fight.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 29, 2021
So long, 2021
We hear from listeners about their high points in 2021.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 26, 2021
Fuji Rock lineup to go local amid continued coronavirus concerns
The premier showcase for overseas musical acts will feature an all-Japan lineup in an effort to deal with circumstances surrounding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 30, 2020
Episode 76: So long, 2020
We hear from listeners of Deep Dive about what got them through 2020.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 24, 2020
How has COVID-19 changed Japan's pop culture? Episode 4: Rebuild
Two anime films — ”Demon Slayer” and “Violet Evergarden” — offer a dash of optimism to end 2020, as Japanese pop culture moves towards the beginning of a new era.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 23, 2020
How has COVID-19 changed Japan's pop culture? Episode 3: Adapt
Pop group NiziU's “Make You Happy” became the song of this very strange summer and the government changed its tone from stay home to Go To.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 22, 2020
How has COVID-19 changed Japan's pop culture? Episode 2: Isolate
When COVID-19 brought about a stay-at-home spring, Animal Crossing provided us with a digital island escape.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 21, 2020
How has COVID-19 changed Japan's pop culture? Episode 1: Collapse
In Episode 1 of Recultured, we look at how 2020 ground to a halt through the lens of "Terrace House," and hear from stars of the show about its dramatic ending amid the arrival of COVID-19.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 29, 2020
Japan has finally come to its census
Japan undergoes a census every five years and 2020 happens to mark the questionnaire's 100th anniversary.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 31, 2020
The Japanese words used to encourage self-restraint
As concern over the new coronavirus increases so does a Japanese learner's vocabulary. Get to know the words that are most commonly being used in news stories about the outbreak.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 27, 2020
Werq the World: Bringing the queens of 'RuPaul's Drag Race' to Tokyo is nothing less than a crowning achievement
When Tom Hall had the idea to take monthly 'Drag Race' viewing parties and turn them into performance events he found an unlikely partner in Ni-chome impresario Yuta Furukawa.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 21, 2020
The great (and not-so-great) escapes of 2020
Whether it's Carlos Ghosn escaping the country, Prince Harry and Meghan escaping the royal family or someone trying to escape a bad party, there are a lot of ways to describe getting out of a situation in Japanese.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 24, 2019
Episode 33: Have yourself a merry little podcast!
Japan Times contributor Julia Berginu00a0and editor Shaun McKenna join Oscar Boyd for a holiday special full of KFC, mulled wine and Christmas cheer.
Town to block view of Mount Fuji in response to overtourism
The town government of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, decided to set up a 2.5-meter-high screen to prevent tourists from taking pictures of Mount Fuji looming behind a convenience store.
In Japan, regional revitalization fails to halt population decline
Sakiyama elementary school in Tamba, Hyogo Prefecture, in March .Over the past decade, the government has directed efforts toward policies designed to give young people incentives to base themselves in rural areas.
Number of homeless in Japan hits record low
Homeless people sleep on the street in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward in August 2021.
Ukraine is far from doomed
When comparing Ukraine’s military situation in 2024 to Europe’s in 1941, Russia’s defeat seems entirely possible.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Tokyo's Koto Ward by-election a race unlike any other
Natsumi Sakai, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan’s candidate and one of four female candidates running in the by-election, touts her experience as a cancer survivor and midwife as having prepared her to tackle issues that women currently face.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Casa del Cibo: A thriving jewel born from Tohoku’s harsh past
When chef Ryohei Ikemi moved to Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, and opened Casa del Cibo in 2011, it was the first proper Italian restaurant in the city.
Town to block view of Mount Fuji in response to overtourism
The town government of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, decided to set up a 2.5-meter-high screen to prevent tourists from taking pictures of Mount Fuji looming behind a convenience store.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Vol. 34: Tokyo, a vanguard city for sustainability
Vol. 34: Tokyo, a vanguard city for sustainability

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER