Search - 2021

 
 
Director Hideo Jojo made the switch from soft-core adult films to more mainstream entertainment with “On the Edge of Their Seats,” a drama about four teenagers watching their high school baseball team lose an important tournament game.
CULTURE / Film
Nov 10, 2023

'Pink film' director Hideo Jojo gets the red carpet treatment

Tokyo's annual film festival named Jojo — who has made over 100 titles, from soft-core adult films to theatrical features — this year's Director in Focus.
Naomi Osaka, seen during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, will make her return to the WTA Tour at the Brisbane International.
TENNIS
Nov 10, 2023

Naomi Osaka to make return at Brisbane International

The four-time Grand Slam winner made her last appearance in a WTA tournament at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in late September 2022.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 10, 2023

Former Lower House speaker and LDP heavyweight Hiroyuki Hosoda dies

The seasoned lawmaker served in key posts in the government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, including as chief Cabinet secretary.
Myanmar's junta leader, Min Aung Hlaing, at a parade in Naypyitaw in March 2021
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 10, 2023

Losing ground to rebel alliance, Myanmar junta faces biggest test

The fiercest fighting has been near Myanmar's border with China in northern Shan state.
SUMO
Nov 10, 2023

Young ozeki duo may be ready to step into spotlight at Kyushu Basho

Kirishima and Hoshoryu have generated much of the excitement in Japan’s national sport over the past 12 months.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 15, 2023

Japan women prisoners suffer serious abuse: Human Rights Watch

Handcuffs during pregnancy, separation from newborn babies and insufficient care for elderly inmates are among the abuses suffered, the rights group said.
Shiseido shares tumbled the most in 36 years on Monday after it slashed full-year profit forecasts on sluggish China demand.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 16, 2023

China slowdown adds to boycott woes for Japanese beauty stocks

Cosmetics firms are finding that reliance on the world's second-biggest economy to drive sales is a double-edged sword.
Petroleum pipelines and fuel storage tanks at a refinery near Manama, Bahrain, in 2017
ENVIRONMENT
Nov 18, 2023

To meet climate goals, Gulf countries will have to overhaul everything

The growing oil-rich region faces myriad challenges as the world pushes to decarbonize.
Farm workers carry rice saplings on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, in July.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Nov 21, 2023

In India, 'natural farming' draws young people back to the land

The farming method shuns synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, involves the use of organic manure and no tilling of the land.
Cabs not in operation are parked at a taxi company in Naha in October. Finding a taxi in parts of Okinawa Prefecture is becoming increasingly difficult because of a shortage of drivers.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Nov 27, 2023

Getting a taxi in Okinawa harder than ever amid driver shortage

The number of cab drivers working in the prefecture peaked at 10,041 in 2009 and declined to 5,246 in 2021.
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton denied having talks with Red Bull's Christian Horner about joining the team.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Nov 24, 2023

Lewis Hamilton denies having talks about joining Red Bull team

Hamilton says no one from his team has spoken to Red Bull.
A worker inside the Envision battery manufacturing plant at Nissan's Sunderland factory in Britain in July 2021.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 24, 2023

Nissan to invest $1.4 billion to build two new EV models in Britain

Plans for electric versions of crossover models will require an investment of up to £2 billion in a third battery plant and infrastructure projects.
Helping Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s political fortunes is the Liberal Democratic Party’s inability to agree on a successor.
EDITORIALS
Nov 24, 2023

Kishida is in trouble, but he’ll survive — for now

A Jiji Press survey released earlier this month put the Kishida Cabinet's approval at 21.3%, the lowest level since his inauguration in 2021.
New Zealand's new Prime Minister Christopher Luxon takes an oath during the swearing-in of the new government in Wellington on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 27, 2023

New Zealand's new leader doesn't drink and loves country music

At 53, Christopher Luxon has completed a rapid political ascent four years after leaving one of the country's top executive roles.
A rendering of the new Junglia theme park scheduled to open in Okinawa in 2025
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 27, 2023

Nature-focused theme park to open in Okinawa in 2025

The park aims to take advantage of the outstanding forests of northern Okinawa Prefecture, which have been designated a World Heritage site.
Dang Dinh Bach ran a law and sustainable development policy research center that provided legal aid before he was arrested for tax evasion in Vietnam in 2021. Bach refused to plead guilty and his wife says he has been assaulted in prison by police officers.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Nov 29, 2023

Why Vietnam jailed the environmentalists it used to secure billions

The government has arrested several prominent environmentalists from organizations that shaped policies that helped secure funding.
Warren Buffett (left), CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, and vice chairman Charlie Munger attend a shareholders meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, in May 2019. Munger died on Tuesday at the age of 99, according to U.S. media reports.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 29, 2023

After Munger's death, Berkshire Hathaway succession in focus

Berkshire has had a succession plan since at least 2006 when Buffett, then 75, told shareholders the company would be prepared for his departure.
University students attend a job fair. If Japanese companies continue hiring people based on the university they graduated from, acquiring extra qualifications or reskilling won't impact candidates' job prospects.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 29, 2023

Kishida’s stimulus package needs rethinking, not reskilling

The government aims to promote reskilling for nonregular workers to boost their job prospects, but this won't matter if hiring practices don't change.
 England's fly-half and captain Owen Farrell helped lead the team to a third-place finish at the Rugby World Cup.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Nov 30, 2023

England's Farrell to skip Six Nations to prioritize mental health

Farrell has won 112 caps since making his international debut in 2012 and is England's all-time leading points scorer with 1,237.
Commuters in Kabul make their way through traffic as construction laborers work on a road on Nov. 21.
WORLD / Society
Nov 30, 2023

The changing face of Kabul: Safer, but more somber

Security threats have eased since the Taliban returned to power, but the harsh restrictions they introduced have made the city less lively.
Ethnic Ta'ang National Liberation Army fighters stand guard at a check point in the town of Namhkam in Myanmar's northern Shan state on Nov. 10.
EDITORIALS
Dec 1, 2023

We must stop Myanmar’s descent into a failed state

Myanmar is at a crossroads and needs international support to prevent a collapse amid increased fighting.
Gen Nakatani, then-special adviser to the prime minister for international human rights, speaks at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva in March 2022
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 1, 2023

Kishida’s puzzling decision to ax his human rights adviser

Why did the prime minister eliminate the post of special adviser on human rights from the Cabinet and what does this mean for Tokyo's foreign policy?
Former U.S. President Donald Trump acknowledges the crowd during halftime of a game between the South Carolina Gamecocks and Clemson Tigers at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina, on Nov. 25.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 2, 2023

Trump denied immunity against U.S. election subversion charges

In the ruling, a federal judge said the office of the president doesn’t come with a "lifelong ‘get-out-of-jail-free’ pass.”
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, speaks at a high-level segment at the COP28 climate conference in Dubai on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2023

U.S. lays out plan at COP28 to slash methane emissions from oil and gas

The rules, two years in the making, were announced by U.S. officials at the United Nations COP28 climate change conference in Dubai.
Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani on deck against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Aug. 28
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 5, 2023

Shohei Ohtani decision expected 'within the week,' reports say

The free agent two-way star is projected to receive a record-setting contract worth more than $500 million.
A field study by elementary school students takes place in the Izawa River basin in Shiso, Hyogo Prefecture.
LIFE / Travel
Dec 24, 2023

Unveiling Shiso, a hidden gem of nature and coexistence

With 90% of its area covered by forest, the Hyogo city boasts picturesque streams and a bounty of access points to refreshing natural spring water.
Traffic along a highway amid heavy smog and pollution in New Delhi in November
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Dec 7, 2023

As China enjoys cleaner air, India's pollution struggle continues

Huge swaths of northern India choke on clouds of polluted air during winter as temperatures drop, winds disappear and farmers set fields ablaze.
Beet carpaccio served with fresh cream and caviar, the signature dish of three-Michelin-star chef Mauro Colagreco, features at Cycle, his much-anticipated new restaurant in Otemachi.
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Dec 9, 2023

Tokyo dining finally kicked the pandemic blues in 2023

The further we got into 2023, the more it really started to feel like COVID-19 had finally dissipated like a malodorous mist.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks during an event in Pyongyang. Smuggling efforts could be directly linked to the North's military ambitions, analysts have said.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 8, 2023

North Korean smugglers disguised under Pacific island flags

With strict sanctions limiting Pyongyang's ability to import fuel, smugglers have adopted increasingly creative methods.
Naomi Osaka in action during the 2022 U.S. Open in one of her final tournaments before her pregnancy leave
TENNIS
Dec 8, 2023

Returning Osaka targets Paris Olympics and more Grand Slam titles

The 26-year-old former world No. 1 is set to return to competition at the Brisbane International starting at the end of the month.

Longform

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