Media Figure of the Year: Tomohiro Kato
The indiscriminate killings of seven people in Akihabara on June 17 ranks as the most indelible Japanese news story of the year, and though the media quickly turned to other matters, it continues to resonate in people's minds for various reasons.
The circumstances surrounding Tomohiro Kato, the man arrested at the scene for the killings, were quickly reported and analyzed because the 25-year-old temp worker had left a trail of bitter dispatches on the Internet. There was no mystery to unravel, no psychology to plumb. His desperation was there for everyone to read. In fact, it was chillingly articulate. Some commentators said that Kato displayed a fine literary style — terse and evocative.