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Japan Times
OLYMPICS
Jul 26, 2021

How to watch the Olympics if you’re in Japan (without a TV)

With rights distributed to different broadcasters across the world, finding an easy way to follow along with the TV coverage of the Olympics can be a tricky business, especially if you don’t have a television.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 19, 2018

North Korea alludes to confrontation with U.S. over secret nuclear sites during negotiations

The United States has explicitly confronted North Korea about suspected secret nuclear weapons facilities during ongoing denuclearization negotiations, a commentary published over the weekend by the North's state-run media has appeared to show.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jul 29, 2021

Doctors blast Biogen Alzheimer approval as ‘regulatory failure’

The New England Journal of Medicine opinion piece is another sign of persistent furor over the agency's decision.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 26, 2018

North Korea blasts U.S. for 'double-dealing' by conducting 'man-killing' secret military drills

North Korean state-run media on Sunday slammed the U.S. for "double-dealing" by allegedly conducting what it said were "secret drills involving man-killing special units," a charge that came just a day after a trip to Pyongyang by the top U.S. diplomat was canceled.
Japan Times
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Aug 22, 2018

English sumo broadcasts bring together diverse cast

In last week's column, I talked about overseas tours by the Japan Sumo Association and also mentioned the live sumo broadcasts with English commentary on NHK.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 10, 2016

China state media warns Trump against isolationism, calls for status quo

Chinese state media have warned the U.S. president-elect against isolationism and interventionism, calling instead for the United States to actively work with China to maintain the international status quo.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 7, 2016

China's carrot-and-stick strategy reaping results

As it strives to control virtually the entire South China Sea, China is using its economic and military might to ensure its Southeast Asian neighbors fall into line.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 2, 2022

COVID, Russia and economy put the ‘China model’ to the test

On social media, a growing number of citizens are accusing the Communist Party of breaching its social contract with the people as China faces down numerous challenges.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 30, 2021

China calls Xi’s regulatory crackdown a ‘profound revolution’

Xi's campaign calling for 'common prosperity” has intensified in recent weeks.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2020

Japan broadcaster NHK under fire over flawed video on anti-racism movement

Public broadcaster NHK has apologized for its attempt to educate viewers on the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States, after its video on anti-racism demonstrations came under fire for lacking context on racial injustice and the police brutality that had spurred such protests worldwide.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 25, 2019

North Korea alleges 'nuclear weaponization' by Japan as Trump-Kim summit draws near

In the latest jab at perennial foe Japan, Pyongyang has blasted Tokyo over its alleged "nuclear weaponization" just days ahead of a second summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 2, 2018

China Party journal warns of trade war's impact on financial stability

A Chinese Communist Party journal has said that the country may experience near-term pain from trade friction with the United States, including a negative impact on financial stability, but China's stable growth trend would not change.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 12, 2018

Trump-Kim meeting: What role should China play?

The fear of marginalization in Beijing is palpable.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 20, 2018

South Korea to announce plan for joint military exercises before April

In a move that is likely to enrage nuclear-armed North Korea, the South Korean Defense Ministry said Tuesday that by the end of next month it will announce plans for postponed joint military exercises with the United States.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 19, 2018

North Korea 'fully ready for both dialogue and war,' state media says

North Korea is "fully ready for both dialogue and war" and prepared to respond to any U.S. "provocation by prompt counterstrike," state-run media said Monday as the Winter Olympics continued in South Korea.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 6, 2018

North Korea calls Trump 'dolt-like' and compares 'bloody nose' strike to Iraq War run-up

Nuclear-armed North Korea unleashed a raft of insults and threats against the U.S. and its leader on Tuesday, calling Donald Trump "dolt-like" and comparing recent reports of a possible "bloody nose" limited strike against Pyongyang to the run-up to the Iraq War.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jan 21, 2018

Chinese state-run media takes dig at U.S. government over shutdown, says it exposes 'chronic flaws' in political system

China's official news agency said in a commentary Sunday that the shutdown of the U.S. government exposed "chronic flaws" in the American political system.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 28, 2017

Top Chinese military official hangs himself amid corruption probe

A top Chinese general hanged himself at his home last week after becoming the latest prominent official to be swept up in President Xi Jinping's wide-ranging corruption campaign, state-run media reported Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2017

North Korea says 'crafty' Japan views tension as 'good opportunity'

North Korea has lambasted the Japan-U.S. security alliance, labeling Tokyo "crafty" and claiming that Japan views tension on the Korean Peninsula as a "good opportunity" to loosen constitutional restraints on its military.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
May 9, 2017

China cries 'fake news' in reaction to report about U.S. Navy chief Harris

China's Foreign Ministry has labeled as "fake news and not worth refuting" a report that Beijing urged Washington to fire the top U.S. naval commander in the Pacific in return for boosted pressure on North Korea.
JAPAN
Jan 30, 2014

Scholar quits NHK over nuclear power hush-up

A noted professor who regularly provides commentary on an NHK AM radio show resigns from the program to protest the broadcaster's demand that nuclear power not be discussed until after the Feb. 9 Tokyo gubernatorial poll.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 21, 2013

New censors of Web media

The Internet has proved to be a powerful tool for overcoming media restrictions and censorship worldwide. But new restrictions on Web-based news media, such as those in Jordan, threaten to reverse the progress that the Internet has enabled.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Mar 6, 2012

Caveat emptor: Not all 'word of mouth' blogs unpaid

Is word-of-mouth information on the Internet trustworthy — or to be taken with a grain of salt?
CULTURE / Books
Nov 28, 2010

Tales of a Heian Casanova

Ariwara no Narihira (825-880), a Japanese Don Juan, a Casanova of the Heian Period (794-1185), a poet, one of the prime authors of "Ise Monogatari," is the hero of these 125 interconnected tales written in verse with prose links.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 15, 2009

Opening your mind to open your heart

21-SEIKI HAIKU NO JIKUU / THE HAIKU UNIVERSE FOR THE 21ST CENTURY: Japanese Haiku 2008, edited by Modern Haiku Association. Nagata-shobo, 2008, 216 pp., ¥2,500 (paper)
Soldiers participate in a military exercise in Miaoli County, Taiwan, in July 2022. While China may desire to unify the island, military, geographic, political and economic factors make a successful invasion unlikely.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 23, 2025

Taiwan isn’t as susceptible to invasion as one would think

The island’s coastline is remarkably unsuited for amphibious operations and an invasion would demand a fleet comparable in size to that used by the Allies on D-Day.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi addresses the media at the White House on June 27 as President Trump listens following a Supreme Court ruling that limited federal judges' power to block presidential orders.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 9, 2025

Global lessons from a press in peril

A democracy cannot survive without a free press. There has never been a democracy without a media that is free and independent.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, a self-made politician from a humble family, earned her way into Japan’s old-boys’ club through sheer determination, an achievement worth celebrating.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 31, 2025

Takaichi deserves better than gendered stereotypes

Takaichi’s diplomatic interactions don't strike me as “selling her womanness” to Trump, as some have claimed.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes