Philip Brasor - The Japan Times

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Oct 26, 2019

Staff shortages are imperiling Japan's teaching industry

Earlier this month, four teachers at an elementary school in Kobe were accused of repeatedly bullying four other teachers, as well as mistreating students. The alleged bullies have been suspended and at least one of the victims has taken sick leave because of the persecution. As a result, the school is short five full-time teachers at a time when public schools nationwide are suffering staff shortages.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Oct 19, 2019

Creating a barrier-free transportation environment in Japan

Not too long ago, domestic media organizations would rarely have anything negative to say about the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but as the actual games draw nearer, there's been a greater willingness to find fault with preparations and even raise a bit of alarm. Everything from Tokyo's deadly summertime heat to the out-of-control budget is now up for discussion.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Oct 12, 2019

No clear picture on 4K and 8K display differences

One of the consumer items that enjoyed a bump in sales prior to this month's sales tax hike was TV sets, specifically those that feature 4K and 8K displays. In many cases, it simply appears the timing was right. Many households hadn't bought new televisions since the introduction of digital terrestrial broadcasts in 2011, but there's also next year's Tokyo Olympics to look forward to in glistening ultrahigh definition.

CULTURE / Film

Oct 11, 2019

Hirokazu Kore-eda talks politics as Japan flexes its movie muscle in Busan

Japan once again shows a strong presence at the Busan International Film Festival, with director Hirokazu Kore-eda taking the award for Asian filmmaker of the year

CULTURE / Music

Oct 9, 2019

Hothouse Flowers: Enjoying the freedom that comes after the fame

Liam O Maonlai, frontman of Irish rock band Hothouse Flowers, says he feels more freedom now that his band's commercial peak has passed, and that he can better explore music as a result

JAPAN / Media / CHANNEL SURF,MEDIA MIX

Oct 5, 2019

Debating contraception and a woman's reproductive rights

In May, the Sendai District Court dismissed a suit against the government filed by two women who underwent forced sterilization under the now-defunct Eugenic Protections Law because the statute of limitations had expired. However, the judges said that the law, which allowed the government to prevent people with intellectual disabilities from reproducing, was unconstitutional. As a precedent, the ruling was significant because it recognized a woman's constitutional right to self-determination regarding pregnancy and childbirth.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Sep 28, 2019

Cabinet reshuffle raises a slew of new questions

Since the new Cabinet was announced on Sept. 11, the focus has been on Shinjiro Koizumi as environment minister. Described by some as earnest but lacking in substantive ideas, the 38-year-old lawmaker has tried to make the most of the spotlight, commenting on Japan's role in addressing climate change and visiting Fukushima Prefecture to assure residents that he's aware the stricken nuclear reactor has ruined their lives. The timing of the appointment was especially opportune in that it coincided with the U.N. Climate Action Summit in New York, although Koizumi may have forfeited some of the international climate crisis community's good will by dining out at an expensive steak house the night before the summit. Beef production is increasingly cited as a prime culprit of global warming.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Sep 21, 2019

Confusion reigns over scope of the forthcoming tax hike

When the government raised the consumption tax from 5 percent to 8 percent in April 2014, Japan suffered a recession. One possible indicator if such a downturn will happen prior to next month's long-delayed hike to 10 percent is how much people are spending now in anticipation of the increase. On Sept. 14, the Tokyo Shimbun reported on purchases of home electronics during the first week of September. On the whole, sales of digital electronics were less than they were a month before the 2014 tax hike went into effect. However, year-on-year sales of TV sets in September this year were significantly up from year-on-year sales in March 2014, mainly owing to the availability of 4K and 8K displays and the fact that many households have not bought new TVs since digital terrestrial broadcasts started in 2011.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Sep 14, 2019

Of cats and rabbits: UNESCO World Heritage candidate caught in a bind over tourism drive

UNESCO designates World Heritage sites in order to preserve cultural or natural assets deemed significant to humanity. The idea is to maintain these assets for future generations, but UNESCO itself doesn't pay for maintenance. It is up to the countries where the sites are located and UNESCO will remove the certification if they’re not maintained properly.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Sep 7, 2019

Uncovering Japan's involvement in the Korean War

Every August, NHK airs a lot of new documentaries to commemorate the end of World War II. The range of topics is not typically limited to events that happened in August 1945. This year's crop covered newspaper propaganda leading up to the war; the infamous attempted coup by idealistic young officers on Feb. 26, 1936; the "phantom" aircraft carrier Shinano, which sank during its first voyage; and a look at surviving Japanese war brides of American soldiers.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Aug 31, 2019

Road rage coverage reveals gulf in awareness of traffic rules in Japan

For the past several weeks, media organizations in Japan have been obsessed with a road rage incident that happened in Ibaraki Prefecture on Aug. 10, when a 43-year-old man forcibly stopped another driver on the Joban Expressway and assaulted him as he sat in his car.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Aug 24, 2019

Scrutinizing Shinjiro Koizumi's political prospects in the wake of his marriage announcement

A lot of people seem to be convinced that Shinjiro Koizumi will someday be prime minister of Japan. He's got everything going for him — pedigree, good looks, proper manners. His youth is a plus rather than a minus, probably because he's developed an understanding of his place in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and how to leverage it. The announcement of his engagement to popular newscaster Christel Takigawa on Aug. 7 in front of the Prime Minister's Office was, as the Asahi Shimbun pointed out, the kind of "theater" his father, Junichiro, was noted for when he was prime minister.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Aug 17, 2019

Outrage over Aichi Triennale exhibition ignites debate over freedom of expression in art

Three days after it opened on Aug. 1, a section of the Aichi Triennale 2019 arts festival, which is taking place in and around the city of Nagoya, was closed due to controversy over one of its exhibits and an anonymous threat.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Aug 10, 2019

Japan-South Korea trade spat gains little traction among youth on social media

The diplomatic rift between Tokyo and Seoul widened earlier this month after Japan removed South Korea from its "whitelist" of preferred trading partners. The apparent reason given for the move is national security: Japan says some strategic materials it sells to South Korea are making their way to third countries. Seoul, however, believes Tokyo is punishing it for a South Korean Supreme Court decision that found in favor of citizens who said they were forced to work for Japanese companies during World War II, when the peninsula was a colony of Japan.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Aug 3, 2019

News outlets in Japan less afraid to tackle entertainment issues

Ever since Johnny Kitagawa died on July 9, the media has been filled with sentimental tributes to the pop idol impresario, mostly by the young men whose careers he cultivated, but also by those with a stake in Japan's hermetic show biz world.

CULTURE / Music

Jul 31, 2019

Fuji Rock '19: The 'international' festival gets more worldly

On the Thursday night before the Fuji Rock Festival begins in earnest, part of the festival site is open to everyone free of charge.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Jul 27, 2019

Aligning 'access journalism' and press freedom

On July 19, NHK's morning information program, "Asaichi," featured a very special guest. Hiroshi Kume is one of the most important figures in the history of Japanese media, initially as a popular announcer in the 1970s and early '80s, but mainly as the anchor of TV Asahi's ground-breaking news show "News Station" from 1985 to 2004. Before "News Station," Japanese TV news was dry and a bit intimidating. Kume not only brought it down to earth, he broadened its scope by injecting commentary that made reports relevant to viewers. The reason his appearance was so surprising is that NHK arguably represents everything about TV he doesn't like.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Jul 20, 2019

Citizen campaigns seek to increase voter turnout in Upper House election

Thanks to Japan's fairness guidelines, NHK offers free air time to all political parties participating in national and regional elections, a service that earlier this month resulted in the leader of the Party to Protect Citizens From NHK, which advocates the elimination of NHK's mandatory viewing fees, appearing on the broadcaster and calling for its destruction.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Jul 13, 2019

Asylum-seekers in Japan are stuck in bureaucratic limbo

At the end of June, a Nigerian man in his 40s died at an immigration detention center in Nagasaki. According to a support group, the man had been on a hunger strike to protest his lengthy confinement, which had continued for more than three years. The detention center has yet to reveal the cause of his death.

JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX

Jul 6, 2019

Japan faces an uphill battle to reduce plastic consumption

Anyone following recent coverage of the worldwide plastic waste crisis may note a contradiction in the reporting on Japan's place in the discussion. On the one hand, Japan boasts a very high plastic recycling rate owing to local governments' sorting rules, which are some of the strictest in the world. Many countries would benefit from studying Japan's garbage collection and processing practices. On the other hand, the amount of microplastic waste in the seas immediately surrounding Japan is as much as 27 times greater as the amount in the world's oceans on average.

author

Meta

Twitter

Podcast

Longform

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

In your social network

In your inbox

In your social network

In your inbox