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August 25, 2025
 

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Yukana Inoue
The Environment Ministry plans to increase subsidies to local governments to fund projects such as setting up fences to prevent bears from encroaching into populated areas, as well as training personnel who can react when there are sightings.
JAPAN
Aug 22, 2025
Environment Ministry to boost support for local governments facing bear attacks
Funds will enable municipalities to secure and train staff able to respond to incidents involving bears.
A third-party probe into the Fuji TV scandal had reported about a dinner hosted by an executive attended by “a powerful male cast member,” since revealed to be singer and actor Masaharu Fukuyama.
JAPAN / Media
Aug 19, 2025
Masaharu Fukuyama admits to attending Fuji TV dinner
The singer-actor said he was the “powerful male cast member” referenced by a third-party panel investigating the broadcaster, but denied involvement in any harassment.
The Japanese flag (left) with the flag of the African Union
JAPAN / Society
Aug 18, 2025
JICA to designate four Japanese cities as 'hometowns' for African nations
Officially connecting municipalities that already have existing ties with African countries will allow Japan to strengthen exchanges.
People take part in a silent prayer to pay their respects during a visit to Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Friday, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
JAPAN
Aug 15, 2025
When did WWII end? One in 4 Japanese can’t say, survey shows
The online study, conducted in June, had 1,200 participants ranging from ages 10 and over.
Visitors rest inside the Osaka Expo venue early Thursday morning
JAPAN / Society
Aug 14, 2025
Tens of thousands left stranded at Osaka Expo by train service interruption
A power outage caused services on Osaka Metro’s Chuo Line to be suspended for about eight hours from 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Among the middle school students who admitted to abusing over-the-counter medication, the majority — around 64% — said they got them from pharmacies while a third said they had access to them in their own households.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 13, 2025
1 in 55 Japanese middle schoolers abuse over-the-counter drugs, survey shows
Most of them got the drugs from pharmacies and their own households.
A notice is displayed at a McDonald's restaurant informing customers of the end of the Pokemon card promotion, on Tuesday in Tokyo's Toshima Ward.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 12, 2025
McDonald’s Japan apologizes over frenzy linked to Pokemon card promotion
Many customers bought Happy Meals in bulk to get their hands on limited-edition Pokemon trading cards, only to discard the food and resell the cards online.
Operations of a medical helicopter in Tokyo will be suspended for seven days this month due to a staff shortage.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2025
Tokyo temporarily halts medical helicopter operations due to staff shortage
The suspension began on Thursday and will continue through Sunday. The helicopter will also be out of service between Aug. 24 and Aug. 26.
A street in Tokyo's Shinjuku district on Wednesday
JAPAN / Society
Aug 7, 2025
Biggest drop in Japanese nationals seen alongside record high in foreign residents
The number of Japanese nationals on Jan. 1 was 120.7 million, while the number of foreign residents had risen 10.65% in a year to 3.68 million.
A rice farm in Niigata Prefecture. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Tuesday that the government will reconsider its long-standing policy of limiting rice production — a measure that has been in place since around 1969 in response to chronic oversupply.
JAPAN
Aug 6, 2025
Ishiba to reverse rice curb policy as government admits to miscalculating demand
“We had assumed that production volume was adequate, despite the lack of sufficient analysis,” Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said.
A worker tries to cool down a street in central Tokyo Tuesday as wide swaths of the Kanto region sweltered under intense heat. In Gunma Prefecture, the temperature rose 41.8 degrees Celsius, the highest ever recorded in Japan.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 5, 2025
Japan swelters as previous heat record melts
The country experienced its new hottest day ever on Tuesday at 41.8 degrees Celsius, beating the previous record set just last week.
People shield their eyes from the sun as they walk through a street on a hot day in Tokyo on July 26.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2025
Extreme heat in Japan set to peak this week
Temperatures are particularly high in the Hokuriku region, where the mercury has exceeded 38 degrees Celsius in many areas.
Fuji TV headquarters in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Fuji TV came under fire over the manner in which it handled a case of “sexual trouble” involving former boy band member Masahiro Nakai and a female announcer.
JAPAN / Media / FOCUS
Jul 30, 2025
How the Japanese TV industry is changing
After a series of major scandals in recent years, Japan’s TV industry appears to be growing more sensitive to issues of harassment and misconduct.
Kansai Electric Power Company's Mihama nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2025
Kepco to build Japan’s first new nuclear reactor since Fukushima meltdown
Kepco’s plan for a new reactor comes after the government adopted the Seventh Strategic Energy Plan in February, declaring policies to maximize the use of nuclear power.
Ayaka Shiomura, running for an Upper House seat on a Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan ticket in the Tokyo district, was one of 42 women elected in Sunday's election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 21, 2025
Japan elects record number of women to Upper House
Female candidates won 42 of the 125 seats contested on Sunday, up from 35 seats in the last election in 2022.
Pedestrians walk in front of an election notice board displaying posters of candidates in Tokyo on Sunday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 20, 2025
Voters in Tokyo reflect shifting political views across Japan
Many constituents, frustrated with the current state of affairs, have turned away from the LDP and are seeking possibilities in newer and smaller parties.
A think tank researcher said anti-government propaganda by Russian bot accounts was what has made the small far-right party Sanseito so popular leading up to the Upper House election.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 18, 2025
Concerns grow in Japan over possible Russian interference in Sunday’s election
A blog post from a member of the Japan Institute of Law and Information Systems went viral for stating Russian bots were interfering in the upcoming Upper House election.
The Tokyo district has the highest number of candidates in the 2025 Upper House election with 32 people in the running for seven seats.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 18, 2025
In Upper House race, younger voters in Tokyo turn to DPP for new direction
Many younger voters, especially in the capital, are drawn to the party's idea that the working generation must be supported for the sake of everyone.
Sanseito head Sohei Kamiya holds a board that reads "Japanese First" in Tokyo on July 2. In a joint statement on Tuesday, eight human rights nongovernmental organizations described the far-right party's stance as "hate speech."
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 9, 2025
NGOs condemn rise in anti-immigrant rhetoric ahead of Upper House vote
Sound bites such as “Japanese First” and “revision of preferential treatment for foreigners" illustrate a worrisome trend, they said in a statement.
An English conversation test paper and bubble answer sheet. A Chinese graduate student from Kyoto University is suspected of having attempted to use a small microphone under a mask to tell other takers of a popular English-language proficiency test the correct answers.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 8, 2025
Over 800 people found to be involved in TOEIC cheating scheme
For those identified as having cheated, their scores have been nullified and their accounts for the exam have been suspended.
Japan to revise romanization rules for first time in 70 years
The Agency for Cultural Affairs is recommending replacing the government’s long-standing Kunrei system with more widely used Hepburn-style spellings.
Character-crazed Japan has little appetite for Labubu
A pop-up advertisement for the newly opened Chiikawa Park in Tokyo's Ikebukuro neighborhood demonstrates how the country is chockful of cute characters — to the detriment of trends like Labubu.
At meeting rich in symbolism, Ishiba and South Korea's Lee agree to steadily build ties
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shake hands at joint press announcement after summit talks in Tokyo on Saturday.
Are 'coolcations' the answer for Japan's heat-weary tourists?
Hikers on a trail in Hakuba, Nagano Prefecture. As extreme heat continues to grip Japan, a tectonic shift may be underway in the nation’s summer tourism scene as more people gravitate toward cooler destinations.
Japan to boost support for joint ride-hailing services
Tatsuaki Igarashi, mayor of Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, exits a ride-sharing vehicle at Tsukuba Station in January.
Germany's first sakemaker offers a bold brew of ideas
Reigen, Germany's first sake brewery, makes a diverse, nontraditional range of sake that includes fruit-flavored sips and wine barrel-aged renditions.
Alicia Keys closed Summer Sonic, but J-pop owned it
Summer Sonic’s 2025 lineup demonstrated its strength, showcasing the latest in J-pop, including “new kawaii” act Fruits Zipper.
Is the LDP’s catch-all approach to politics still effective?
Former economic security minister Sanae Takaichi visits Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Aug. 15. Political commentator Toru Hashimoto has suggested that Takaichi ought to lead a group of like-minded hawkish politicians out of the Liberal Democratic Party and form their own party.
Fingers sore from too much phone time? You might have ‘sumaho yubi.’
A catch-all term for tendonitis and arthritis caused by excessive smartphone use, 'sumaho yubi' may be difficult to treat for gadget-crazy Japan.
As farm minister, Koizumi is held ‘hostage’ by Ishiba
Farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi (center) attends a Lower House session on Aug. 1. Locking Koizumi into the Cabinet is Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s way of turning a potential rival into a team player, according to one expert.

Podcast

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

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past
By Alex K.T. Martin

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