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Japan's 2024 Word of the Year, "futehodo," is a phrase tied to a Netflix show and highlights the broader decline in the cultural significance of such awards, with recent selections often seen as superficial or promotional.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 31, 2024

Japan’s 2024 word of the year has no rizz

Some critics wondered why the word of the year award was, essentially, functioning as advertising for a TV show that is still available on streaming.
One of the themes in American guitarist Marty Friedman’s autobiography “Dreaming Japanese” is that while he has become a star in his own right in Japan, he still feels that he doesn’t “belong.”
CULTURE / Books
Jan 1, 2025

Guitarist Marty Friedman goes to bat for J-pop in new autobiography

"Dreaming Japanese" tells the story of how the Megadeth guitarist navigated Japan's music industry.
Japanese architect and Expo Site Design Producer Sou Fujimoto stands on the construction site of his Grand Ring.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jan 1, 2025

Architect Sou Fujimoto says his 'Grand Ring' will be a symbol of unity at the Osaka Expo

Traditional techniques for joining wooden pillars were used and inspired by the raised platform at Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto.
Pipework at a Russian gas storage facility operated by Gazprom
WORLD / Politics
Jan 2, 2025

Russia and Ukraine end five decades of gas transit to Europe

The stoppage means central European countries that have relied on the flows will be forced to source more expensive gas elsewhere.
U.S. star Ilona Maher has the largest social media following of anyone in rugby.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Jan 2, 2025

World Rugby chief says U.S. star Ilona Maher will help fuel World Cup fever

The versatile American back — a breakout star at the 2024 Paris Olympics —  is the world's most popular rugby player on social media
The wreckage of the Jeju Air aircraft that went off the runway and crashed at Muan International Airport lies near a concrete structure it crashed into, in Muan, South Korea, on Dec. 30.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 2, 2025

South Korea to send Jeju Air crash black box to U.S.

The damaged flight data recorder has been deemed unrecoverable for data extraction domestically.
Police tape and vehicles are seen on Canal Street and Bourbon Street in New Orleans, where a pickup truck barreled through a crowd on Wednesday, killing at least 15 and injuring scores others.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 2, 2025

Attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas rattle U.S. over security threats

Investigators are searching for possible links between the two events, which come less than a month before Donald Trump is sworn in as president.
Populist and far-right parties globally are gaining working-class support as center-left parties fail to address their economic concerns and cultural disconnects.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 10, 2024

The working class and the rise of populism

Talking about creating good jobs in the industries of the future is not the same as doing it. Workers want bold, effective leaders who will take concrete action.
A member of the FBI Evidence Response Team searches through trash as federal and local authorities investigate a townhouse in relation to the explosion in Las Vegas of a Tesla Cybertruck, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Thursday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 3, 2025

Police identify driver of exploded Tesla Cybertruck as U.S. Army soldier

The FBI said it had so far found no definitive link between the New Year's Day New Orleans truck attack that killed 15 people and the Cybertruck explosion.
Abdur Rahim Jabbar, half-brother of the man accused of the New Orleans truck attack, sits in the garage of their house in Beaumont, Texas, on Thursday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 3, 2025

Investigators seek clues to New Orleans attacker's path to radicalization

It is still unclear what contact Shamsud-Din Jabbar might have had with overseas extremist groups.
A police officer enters a vehicle on Thursday at the location where a truck was driven into a crowd of New Year's Day revelers in New Orleans, Louisiana, a day earlier.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 3, 2025

Texas man behind New Orleans attack acted alone, FBI says

The suspect, identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old Texan who once served in the U.S. Army in Afghanistan, had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group.
Agnes Keleti performs a split in front of young gymnasts at a training center in Budapest on Jan. 16, 2016. Keleti, a 10-time Olympic medalist, died on Jan. 2 at the age of 103.
OLYMPICS / Gymnastics
Jan 3, 2025

World's oldest Olympic champion Agnes Keleti dies at 103

Keleti's life story, including surviving the Holocaust and Olympic glory, reads like a gripping Hollywood film script.
A Golden Globes statue is seen in the ballroom during preparations for the 82nd Annual Golden Globe Awards to be held at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jan 3, 2025

'Emilia Perez' heads into Golden Globes as strong favorite

Awards show organizers are hoping to capitalize on a ratings bump from last year, burnishing the gala's status as a predictor of Oscars success.
Smoke rises from an Israeli strike inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 3, 2025

Israeli emigration more than doubles in 2024 amid raging war

Some 82,700 Israelis left in 2024 compared with an average 36,900 for the years 2018 through 2022, Israel's statistics bureau says.
U.S. President Joe Biden decided Friday to block the proposed $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon Steel, with the firms blasting the decision, calling it a "clear violation of due process" and a political move, and vowing to "take all appropriate action" to protect their legal rights.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 4, 2025

Biden blocks Nippon Steel’s $14.1 billion takeover of U.S. Steel

The two firms blasted the decision, calling it a "clear violation of due process" and a political move, and saying they would "take all appropriate action" in response.
U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson holds the gavel after winning reelection to his post at the Capitol in Washington on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 4, 2025

Johnson reelected as U.S. House speaker after putting down GOP revolt

Republican U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson persuaded enough holdouts on the right to keep his post, but the vote reflected the steep challenge he faces.
A man pushes a cart along Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles
WORLD / Society
Jan 4, 2025

Ahead of Trump term, U.S. cities grapple with homelessness

The crisis worsened with the end of pandemic-related aid, and are driven by a lack of affordable housing, as well as inflation and low wages.
An underground passage in a small town in the Moscow region in November.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 4, 2025

Are Russian sanctions working? Debate takes new urgency with Trump.

The president-elect has said he will use sanctions sparingly while vowing to end the war in Ukraine, renewing questions over their efficacy.
DOPS Director Dr. Jim Tucker (back row, from left), David Acunzo, Marina Weiler, Philip Cozzolino (front row, from left) Marieta Pehlivanova and Elliot Gish, pose for a photo on the campus of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, on July 15. Is reincarnation real? Is communication from the "beyond” possible? A small set of academics are trying to find out, case by case.
WORLD / Society
Jan 4, 2025

Do you believe in life after death? These scientists study it.

Is reincarnation real? Is communication from the “beyond” possible? A small set of academics are trying to find out, case by case.
A falconer during the Suwa Falconry Preservation Society's event in Tokyo on Friday. Falconry predates recorded history, originating, scholars believe, when nomadic herders observed birds of prey hunting and recognized their potential as partners.
MORE SPORTS
Jan 5, 2025

Tokyo falconers keep ancient traditions soaring

While a recent showcase was all about fun and education, like other sports involving animals, falconry is also serious business for competitors at the upper echelons of the sport.
Tech in 2025 will face growing resistance to AI, social media and streaming saturation alongside political and cultural shifts driven by Elon Musk, Trump and controversies like a potential U.S. TikTok ban.
COMMENTARY
Jan 5, 2025

AI, Musk and Trump add up to a turbulent 2025 for tech

If the steady stream of tech CEOs visiting Mar-a-Lago is any indication, we can expect Silicon Valley to be more willing to do Trump’s bidding in 2025.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is shown around by South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul during a working luncheon at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 6, 2025

Blinken fends off questions over U.S. stance on South Korea turmoil

The United States “has confidence in the resilience of South Korea’s democracy and the strength of its institutions,” the U.S. Secretary of State said in Seoul.
Hogwarts Castle at Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City, California. There are influential American works of fantasy like “The Wizard of Oz” and “American Gods,” but they lack the cohesive, enduring impact of European counterparts such as the “Harry Potter” and “The Chronicles of Narnia” series.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 6, 2025

America needs a 'Great American Fantasy'

There is a lack of a distinctly "Great American Fantasy" in literature and popular culture.
Manchester United's Noussair Mazraoui (left) and Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson vie for the ball during their match at Anfield in Liverpool, England, on Sunday.
SOCCER
Jan 6, 2025

Captain Bruno Fernandes calls on United to replicate Liverpool performance

United is way down in 13th place, but at least it ended a three-game losing run in the league.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk watch a fight during UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York on Nov. 16, 2024.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 6, 2025

MAGA's infighting sparks fears of a chaotic Trump White House

The furor over whether to welcome skilled foreign workers has exposed deep fault lines between Trump's supporters.
The headquarters of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China in Beijing in 2018
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 6, 2025

After year of big corruption crackdown, China promises more probes

Even the lowly "flies" and "ants" in China's vast bureaucracy will not be spared in the corruption fight, a state broadcaster television program showed Sunday.
The cast of "The Brutalist" celebrate the show's best movie drama win at the Golden Globes in Beverly Hills, California.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jan 6, 2025

'The Brutalist,' 'Emilia Perez' take home Golden Globes' top film honors

The two films received the first major movie prizes of Hollywood's awards season on Sunday.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Monday to announce his resignation.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 7, 2025

Canada's Trudeau resigns after nine years in power as Liberals force him out

Trudeau, 53, currently the longest-serving leader of any Group of Seven country, bowed to sagging approval numbers and a rebellion within his political party.
Bristol Bears' Ilona Maher takes a selfie with fans after a match against Gloucester-Hartpury on Sunday in Bristol, England.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Jan 7, 2025

Rugby 'superstar' Maher on a mission to promote women's game

The 28-year-old has signed a three-month contract with English women's Premiership side Bristol.
A missile flies during what North Korea said was a test of a new intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile at an undisclosed location on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 7, 2025

North Korea's Kim says new hypersonic missile can deter Pacific 'rivals'

In a worrying sign for Japan, Pyongyang claimed the new hypersonic intermediate-range weapon is effective at "breaking any dense defensive barrier.”

Longform

After the asset-price bubble crash of the early 1990s, employment at a Japanese company was no longer necessarily for life. As a result, a new generation is less willing to endure a toxic work culture —life’s too short, after all.
How Japan's youth are slowly changing the country's work ethic