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Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jan 14, 2021

Architect of U.S. pivot picked to be Biden's 'Asia czar'

The appointment of former Obama administration official Kurt Campbell will 'supercharge' Biden's standing in Asia, experts said.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 12, 2021

Does Trump face legal jeopardy for his incendiary speech before the riot?

If a grand jury were to be persuaded that Trump intentionally incited his followers to violence, several statutes could come into play.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 15, 2020

Who were those Trumpists marching in Tokyo?

There were at least two demonstrations organized by Trump supporters in Tokyo last month. The question is who organized the events.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Nov 26, 2020

'Wolf warrior' diplomacy sours Britain's Conservatives on China

Burning bridges with China is a particularly risky path for the U.K. as it exits the European Union's orbit.
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Nov 24, 2020

Let's discuss what banks are doing with our personal data

A Bloomberg piece looks at Mizuho's new business, which leads to a discussion on what companies can do with your personal data.
Japan Times
WORLD
Nov 13, 2020

How one firm drove influence campaigns for big oil across the U.S.

In early 2017 the Texans for Natural Gas website went live, urging voters to "thank a roughneck” and support fracking. Around the same time, the Arctic Energy Center ramped up its advocacy for drilling in Alaskan waters and in a vast Arctic wildlife refuge. The next year, the Main Street Investors...
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Sep 15, 2020

Let's discuss (and remember) Toshimaen

A Japan Times piece looks at the fond farewells Tokyoites are saying as the amusement park Toshimaen shuts its doors.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 11, 2020

High crimes against journalism and decency

Jeffrey Goldberg's insane 'Trump called troops suckers' piece is a new low.
JAPAN / ANALYSIS
Aug 30, 2020

Kono and Esper look to keep China in check, but challenges abound

Tokyo is facing a double-barreled challenge with a leadership transition amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Beijing's growing maritime assertiveness.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 1, 2020

COVID-19 is forcing clothing retailers to reassess their physical presence

Without workplaces or recreational spots to go to, consumers have little reason to buy new outfits.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
May 16, 2020

Caught in Trump-China feud, WHO leader under siege

The internal debate over the WHO's messaging around China provides a window into the challenges facing the 72-year-old U.N. organization and its leader.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 4, 2020

Lockdown critics may have some valid points

It's always worth listening to smart people with ideas that go against the grain.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 28, 2020

Why China’s propaganda efforts so often backfire

An obsession with finding enemies and uniting the front makes it difficult to 'tell China's story well.”
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 28, 2020

Putin has a Syria ‘headache’ and the Kremlin’s blaming Assad

Russian President Vladimir Putin is letting his impatience show with Syrian ally Bashar Assad, who isn’t proving as grateful for being kept in power by Russian intervention in his country’s brutal civil war as the Kremlin leader needs him to be.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 22, 2020

Fearing big election loss, China goes on offensive in Hong Kong

On the surface, Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam appears to have had a few pretty good months: Her government has managed to contain the coronavirus outbreak, during which street protests have mostly disappeared.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 21, 2020

Dramatizing the reality of a nuclear meltdown

As with many feature films based on real-life incidents, "Fukushima 50," which opened nationwide March 6 and depicts the actions of the men who struggled to contain the disaster at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant following the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 2011, is a blend of factual exposition...
JAPAN / History
Mar 14, 2020

The 1970 Osaka Expo: Looking back at the past to gauge where Japan sits in the present

The 1970 Osaka Expo laid down a bold statement about Japan's future. Fifty years later, has the country been able to live up to its promises?
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (left) arrives in Muscat, Oman, on Sunday for nuclear talks with the U.S.
WORLD / Politics
May 12, 2025

Iran says nuclear talks 'difficult but useful' while U.S. is 'encouraged'

This was the fourth round of talks that began nearly a month ago, with both sides having reported progress in the previous three rounds.
Detail of Takashi Murakami, “Rakuchu-Rakugai-zu Byobu: Iwasa Matabei RIP” (2023-25)
CULTURE / Art
Jun 5, 2025

New Naoshima museum bets on Asia, not the West

The Naoshima New Museum of Art is Tadao Ando’s 10th contribution to the popular art islands.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks at an Upper House session in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 9, 2025

No-confidence motion against Ishiba Cabinet could lead to double election

A double election could result in more political stability if either bloc manages to capture both chambers, or continued instability if neither holds a majority.
Protesters from the Socialista National Confederation of Labor, angered by China's actions in the South China Sea, hold a rally outside the Chinese Consulate in Makati City, Metro Manila, in June 2015.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 19, 2025

Beijing's peace message on South China Sea contradicts its actions

The four principles articulated in a recent Chinese paper are propaganda and concocted realities of communist thinking.
Ex-serviceman Izumi Murakami speaks of his experience during World War II, when he was still a child, in an interview in Kasuga, Fukuoka Prefecture, in May.
JAPAN / History / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Jul 14, 2025

Man inspired as a boy by WWII-era commando questions Japan's past actions

Izumi Murakami, now 92, joined the Air Self-Defense Force, but he concedes now that "there is nothing good that comes out of war."
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi (center) during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on Tuesday. Bondi had assured Fox News she had a client list of financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on her desk in remarks endorsed by the White House.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 9, 2025

Trump faces MAGA meltdown over Epstein reversal

The shutting down of conspiracy theories surrounding a purported client list of the notorious sex offender has sparked backlash from the U.S. president's support base.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold a news conference following their meeting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 15.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 23, 2025

With no Ukraine peace deal, Trump again threatens Russia sanctions

U.S. President Donald Trump renewed the threat, if there is no progress toward a peaceful settlement in Ukraine in two weeks, amid frustration with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Kansas City Chiefs' Travis Kelce kisses partner — now finacee — Taylor Swift as they celebrate after his team won Super Bowl LVIII in 2024.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 10, 2025

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s announcement hits all the right notes in Japan

Japanese culture is in the depths of a nostalgia wave, and the engagement announcement for Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce fits in with it nicely.
Empress Emerita Michiko poses at the Sento Imperial Residence in Tokyo earlier this month prior to her 91st birthday on Monday.
JAPAN
Oct 20, 2025

Empress Emerita Michiko turns 91

She spends her days caring for her husband, Emperor Emeritus Akihito, and looking after her own health.
Much of the current media coverage is skewing the portrayal of Japan’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, using inflammatory labels that distort public understanding and amplify foreign disinformation.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 24, 2025

When media distortion threatens democratic stability

Systematic bias — employing loaded terminology and decontextualized narratives — undermines informed democratic discourse
“Future Kid Takara,” a series of anime shorts to be aired on NHK Educational TV in November, attempts to educate children about climate change.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Oct 26, 2025

Japan’s youth are apathetic toward the climate crisis. Could anime change that?

“Future Kid Takara,” a new series set to air on NHK Educational TV, aims to empower children and encourage them to take action against climate change.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years