Search - culture

 
Menu
Search
 
August 11, 2025
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access
20,440 results
Sort by: Relevance Newest Oldest
After adjusting your search parameters, press Enter on your keyboard or click on the red magnifying glass to run your query again.
Starting from September, foreign employees on a work visa must abide by a new points-based system to keep working in Singapore.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 5, 2024

Singapore is making life tougher for global talent

The city-state could lose its position as a global business hub if it keeps tightening the rules for overseas employees in a political bid to appease local residents.
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus One,” which won an Academy Award for best visual effects, was made for a reported $15 million — a small fraction of the budgets used by its Hollywood competitors.
CULTURE / Film
Jul 6, 2024

Japanese cinema is having a stand-out year. Here are some films to watch.

The success of "Godzilla Minus One" gave Japan's film industry a confidence boost, but we haven't been short on must-see hits in 2024.
A sign for Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, more commonly known as the Unification Church, at its Tokyo headquarters
JAPAN / Society
Jul 7, 2024

Unification Church in tough position two years after Abe shooting

As Monday marks the second anniversary of the fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the Unification Church finds itself in a difficult position.
Japanese troops during an amphibious landing exercise on Tokunoshima island, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan is letting go of old assumptions about the reliability of the rules-based international order and is making efforts to boost its military capabilities.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 8, 2024

As militaries are rebuilt, are we turning American?

Some countries stopped investing in their militaries and defense under the illusion that the rules-based order would prevail. Now, they're facing tough, new realities.
The date for Tetsuya Yamagami's first hearing of a trial for his murder case against former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has not yet been set.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 9, 2024

Two years on: Trial date for Abe's accused shooter still not set

Pretrial proceedings are still underway at Nara District Court.
When the effects of dementia cause Yohji (left, Tatsuya Fuji) to spiral out of control, it becomes clear to his son (Mirai Moriyama) that he has been absent from his life in more ways than one in Kei Chikaura’s “Great Absence.”
CULTURE / Film
Jul 11, 2024

‘Great Absence’: Poetic family drama follows downfall of dementia-plagued patriarch

A retired professor’s mind is slipping away from him, but there is more to unravel in Kei Chikaura’s dark family drama.
In order to emphasize its grandeur, architect Gonkuro Kume designed the entrance hall of Nikko Kanaya Hotel's Annex Building with "karahafu" curved gables.
CULTURE / Art
Jul 10, 2024

Nikko Kanaya Hotel: A gateway to the art of Meiji Japan in the hills of Tochigi

Over 150 years on, the structure stands as a remarkable example of Japanese art and architecture in an era known for rapid modernization.
People celebrate after the second round of the French legislative elections at Place de la Republic in Paris on Sunday. Three distinct left-wing, right-wing and centrist blocs emerged from the vote.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 11, 2024

The most incredible election in French history

Three main blocs emerged from the French election. Macron not only failed to bring clarity to the country's politics, but the parties now face uneasy coalition-building.
The members of Glay — (from left) Jiro, Teru, Takuro and Hisashi — are celebrating 30 years of rocking out as a band.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 12, 2024

Glay celebrates three decades of rock greatness

The band's 12-month-long Glay Expo takes the idea of a concert tour to the next level for the anniversary of its major label debut.
Members of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces take part in a military review at Camp Asaka in October 2018. The nation’s public is currently favorable to the SDF, but if scandals aren’t handled correctly, that opinion may change. 
EDITORIALS
Jul 12, 2024

A multitude of scandals threaten Japan’s national defense

Individually, recent scandals are troubling. Together they are reflective of a problematic culture within the defense forces and bureaucracy.
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Jul 15, 2024

Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?

Vocaloid creators’ recent cacophonous approach to using Miku’s voice sounds like nothing in mainstream pop right now — and people love that.
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jul 15, 2024

Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why

Thomas Matthew Crooks is not known to be political, and the FBI has yet to identify a motive behind the 20-year-old nursing home aide’s actions.
Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga warms up ahead of a game against the Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco on June 27.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 16, 2024

'Shotamania' in Chicago: Cubs' Imanaga quickly becomes fan favorite

Imanaga, who has been one of the National League's top pitchers, has seamlessly inserted himself into the Chicago sports scene.
England head coach Gareth Southgate walks past the trophy after his side lost the final of Euro 2024 against Spain on Sunday in Berlin.
SOCCER
Jul 17, 2024

Southgate stands down: Who's next for England's hot seat?

Southgate announced his departure less than 48 hours after England's second successive Euro final defeat, this time a shattering 2-1 loss to Spain in Berlin on Sunday.
Actor Kim Dae-gun won a Korean Fantastic Actor award for his performance in Yoon Eunkyoung’s “The Tenants,” which takes a dark satirical look at the scarcity of decent affordable housing in Seoul.
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2024

Bucheon film festival contemplates a future with AI

Dark comedy and surreal fantasy stood out at the genre film event that focused on the advent of generative AI.
Illustrious historical figures swoop in to save Japan amid the COVID-19 pandemic in “What If Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa Was to Become the Prime Minister.”
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2024

‘What If Shogun Ieyasu Tokugawa Was to Become the Prime Minister’: A historical dream team underperforms

Esteemed figures from Japan’s past are digitally reincarnated to lead the country through a time of crisis in Hideki Takeuchi’s flat-footed comedy.
Three sisters bicker over their resentments and frustrations during a weekend at a hot spring resort in Ryosuke Hashiguchi’s “To Mom, With Love.”
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2024

'To Mom, With Love': Family drama cuts deep with stellar cast

Ryosuke Hashiguchi’s heartfelt love letter to the "home drama" genre resembles a screwball comedy while also unleashing eruptions of real pain and anger.
Naoki Prize winner Michi Ichiho (left), and Akutagawa Prize winners Sanzo K. Matsunaga (center) and Aki Asahina pose with their award-winning books at a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday.
CULTURE / Books
Jul 17, 2024

Three novelists named for Akutagawa and Naoki awards

Authors Sanzo K. Matsunaga and Aki Asahina won the Akutagawa Prize for literary writers, while the Naoki Prize for genre fiction went to Michi Ichiho.
With 25 Emmy nominations, FX’s historical drama “Shogun” leads the competition with the most nods, including nominations for actors (from left) Hiroyuki Sanada, Anna Sawai and Tadanobu Asano.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jul 18, 2024

'Shogun' tops Emmy nominations with 25 nods

As well as a nomination for best drama, “Shogun” received nods for stars Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai in the lead drama actor and actress categories.
The Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association says AI-assisted online search services offered by Google and Microsoft is highly likely to not only infringe news organizations' copyrights but damage their trustworthiness.
JAPAN
Jul 18, 2024

Japan news media association demands consent and accuracy from generative AI

Without regulation, generative AI will erode media content, harming democracy and national culture, according to the association.
Musician Yuka Noda’s 1989 album “Karibu no Yume: Light Fusion Fantasy” has developed a cult following among jazz fusion fans, and the album is set to be reissued as a CD and record next week.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 19, 2024

Yuka Noda's sonic escape to a balmy yesteryear

The reissue of Noda's 1989 album “Karibu no Yume: Light Fusion Fantasy" underlines a growing interest in bubble-era nostalgia and Japan's jazz and fusion works.
Passersby holding parasols walk through Tokyo on July 9 amid a heatstroke alert in the capital and other prefectures.
JAPAN / Boiling Point
Jul 19, 2024

Boiling Point

This special series focused on this year’s scorching summer will also lay the groundwork for enhanced heat coverage in future years.
Qatari and French officers patrol on horseback down a street in central Paris on Friday, a week ahead of the opening ceremony for the Summer Olympics.
WORLD
Jul 20, 2024

France races to head off Islamic State group threat to Paris Olympics

The outreach comes in the wake of two major attacks this year that authorities say were carried out by Tajik members of the militant group.
Pedestrians walk past fences closing off access to the Trocadero in Paris on Friday.
OLYMPICS
Jul 21, 2024

The bickering and 'cold sweat' as Paris built its Games

Following the horse-trading to win the Games came the French infighting over how to host them.
Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Jul 21, 2024

As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals

Can a 700-year-old dance have an effect on extreme heat or torrential rain? Probably not. When you're feeling powerless, though, any little thing helps.
Fuji Rock Festival's smaller stages such as the Field of Heaven offer a number of younger acts that demonstrate the thrilling new directions Japanese music is taking in the 2020s.
CULTURE / Music
Jul 21, 2024

Domestic acts at Fuji Rock's smaller stages are not to be missed

From Summer Eye to Nene, this year’s gathering offers one of the strongest collections of Japanese music present at a large-scale festival in recent times.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, gives his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Thursday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 21, 2024

Emerging narratives: Trump is 'a lion’ or he’s 'a lyin’

Is Donald Trump a "man of destiny," as some conservatives are now claiming or a "con man of destiny"? ("Napoleon in a golf cart,” The Free Press called him.)
A plastic bag carrying various objects including what appeared to be trash that crossed inter-Korean border with a balloon believed to have been sent by North Korea is pictured in Seoul, in this picture released by the South Korean Defense Ministry on June 2.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 21, 2024

South Korea steps up propaganda broadcasts after new trash balloons from North

South Korea will ramp up propaganda broadcasts to the North in response to Pyongyang sending more trash-carrying balloons across the border, Seoul's military said Sunday.
Paul Watson, leader of the environmentalist association Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, speaks at a news conference in Paris in December 2015.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 22, 2024

Greenland arrests anti-whaling activist on Japan warrant

Paul Watson's arrest is believed to be in connection with an Interpol Red Notice related to Watson's previous anti-whaling interventions in the Antarctic.
Starbucks mobile app shows an error message on Friday. A botched software update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike crashed countless Microsoft Windows computer systems globally.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 23, 2024

CrowdStrike meltdown and the price of real security

Catastrophic system failure isn’t part of the equation — until it happens. Which will be occurring with increasing frequency in our deeply interconnected world.
Tokyo’s WWII museums hold diverse views on war and peace
A carrier-based Type 52 Zero fighter marks the entrance foyer of Yasukuni Shrine's Yushukan, a museum that tells a more nuanced story of Japan's experience in World War II than the controversies around the shrine might suggest.
Japan starts survey on foreign nationals' unpaid resident taxes
In the most recent regular session of parliament, problems were highlighted regarding some foreign workers leaving Japan without paying outstanding taxes.
Summer bonuses at major Japan firms hit record
The fourth consecutive year of increase came after many firms raised their monthly wages this spring and as a result of solid earnings mainly among manufacturers.
Japan's inheritance tax is high, unforgiving and sometimes avoidable
The National Tax Agency at the Ministry of Finance, Kasumigaseki, Tokyo. Japanese tax authorities can bill foreign residents in Japan for assets inherited globally.
Weather agency warns of landslides and flooding in Kyushu as heavy rain continues
An embankment on the Amikake River that collapsed due to heavy rain in Aira, Kagoshima Prefecture, on Friday. Downpours continued in the Kyushu region over the weekend.
At Himawari Shokudo 2, Italian food with a Japanese soul
At Himawari Shokudo 2, chef Hozumi Tanaka serves Italian-inspired fare with a focus on Toyama produce, such as this appetizer of lightly blanched "hotaru ika" (firefly squid) served atop mixed wild plants and a crepe prepared from "yamato-imo" yam.
Cheer with caution: Expert advises sports fans have game plan for extreme heat
A Cardinals fan fans himself during the seventh inning of a game against the Pirates in St. Louis, Missouri, in June 2022.
Australia's warship selection signals Japanese defense industry's arrival
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's Mogami-class frigate. Australia's selection of an upgraded version of the Mogami-class warship for its next frigate class could prove to be a watershed moment for Japan’s defense industry.
Japan's inheritance tax is high, unforgiving and sometimes avoidable
The National Tax Agency at the Ministry of Finance, Kasumigaseki, Tokyo. Japanese tax authorities can bill foreign residents in Japan for assets inherited globally.
Will the movement seeking Ishiba’s resignation succeed?
Liberal Democratic Party youth division head Yasutaka Nakasone (center) and other members speak to reporters in Tokyo on July 25.

Podcast

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

Longform

Koichi Tagawa’s diary entry from Aug. 9, 1945, describes the day of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The horrors of Nagasaki, in first person
By Naoko Abe

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning
Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER