The dubious honor of triggering the largest consumer recall in U.S. history — once held by Johnson & Johnson's Tylenol — now belongs to the Japanese auto parts supplier Takata. Thirty-four million of the company's air bags, having been determined to have caused at least six deaths and injured more than 100, will have to be replaced. But it's not too late to hope some good can come from this misfortune. Ideally, it will serve as a wake-up call for the Japanese government and the global auto industry.
It's fair to wonder what exactly Takata knew about its defective products and when. The company, however, has never felt compelled to divulge itself. Since revelations began trickling out in 2008, Takata has resorted to Japan's standard playbook for corporate scandals. Ignore, deny, delay — then bow deeply, apologize and get back to business as usual.
The Japanese government and media have enabled the company's obfuscations. Takata Chairman Shigehisa Takada and his team weren't ever hauled in for a parliamentary grilling. And Japan's notoriously docile media consistently soft-pedaled stories that threatened to shame the national brand. Fortunately, foreign media — and U.S. lawmakers, who initiated their own investigation of the air bags — weren't so quick to let Takata off the hook.