Search - article-news

 
 
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2015

Scholar offers secure way for employees to blow the whistle

One man is on a quest to create transparency in Japan with a whistleblower website that has echoes of Wikileaks and promises high-tech anonymity.
COMMENTARY
Jan 22, 2015

Punch from the pope when the cause is right

At least U.S. President Barack Obama — and Pope Francis — had the good sense to dodge world leaders' little pantomime of defiance in the streets of Paris after the Charlie Hebdo killings.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 29, 2014

To shine or to die: the messy world of romanized Japanese

One of the also-rans in the competition for the best buzzword of 2014 was the little word "shine." It stirred some discussion this summer when it appeared as a one-word heading in the blog of Prime Minister Abe's just-established Kagayaku Josei Ō en Kaigi (輝く女性応援会議, Council for Supporting...
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Dec 22, 2014

Real costs of nuclear power

Until now, Japan's power industry and the government have emphasized the lower energy costs from having nuclear plants generate the nation's electricity. And until now, consumers and business circles have bought into that myth.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 15, 2014

Buzzwords of 2014: from killer drugs to robotic refusals

Once again, the massive reference book 「現代用語の基礎知識」("Gendai Yōgo no Kiso Chishiki," "The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Words") is on sale. This annual publication that tracks additions to, and changes in, the Japanese language and various world developments over the previous year...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 15, 2014

How China spies on Hong Kong's democrats

James To was growing uneasy. When the veteran Hong Kong Democratic Party lawmaker looked in his rearview mirror, two silver Mercedes Benz saloons kept appearing behind his gray Volvo sedan.
COMMENTARY / Japan / COUNTERPOINT
Dec 13, 2014

Abe's secrets law undermines Japan's democracy

On Dec. 10, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's new special secrets law took effect despite overwhelming public opposition.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Dec 13, 2014

From a hostess club to a mountain village: Five notable Japanese photo books of 2014

While selecting some of the best photography books released in 2014, I was struck by the range of specific places that Japanese photographers captured — from a pleasure district to a mountain village and an old rooftop. Photo books with such a geographic focus might be a good way to store up energies...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / Q&A
Dec 9, 2014

'Right to be forgotten' on the Internet gains traction in Japan

The Internet has made fact-checking easy and people routinely use it for this end, for example, to Google client names and personal backgrounds before their first business meeting, or to take a quick glance at a potential new hire's reputation.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 8, 2014

Cosmetics market shifts up in age

The cosmetics industry is looking at potentially booming business.
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
Dec 6, 2014

Obscenity arrest may be hiding dirty politics

What constitutes obscenity in Japan? The term, both legally and morally, has different meanings in Japanese, just as it does in English. In a strictly legal sense, the Japanese word for obscenity, waisetsu, refers to something that maliciously stimulates sexual desire in an inappropriate and immoral...
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 1, 2014

Party chiefs spar at press club debate

Leaders of the ruling and opposition parties squared off during a debate at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Monday, a day before official campaigning got underway for the Dec. 14 Lower House election.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Nov 22, 2014

Okinawans reject Abe's base deal, but he won't listen

On Nov. 16, Okinawan voters sent Prime Minister Shinzo Abe a clear message: Close the U.S. marine air base in Futenma and locate the replacement somewhere outside our prefecture.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 21, 2014

Why Merkel is playing long ball with Putin

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's strategy of dealing with Russian President Vladimir Putin stems from her keen understanding of 20th century history.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Nov 21, 2014

Translator moved to action by Malala

Malala Yousafzai, who at 17 became the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, has influenced countless people all over the world as an activist for female education. One of those is Yoshiko Nishida.
Reader Mail
Nov 8, 2014

Transparency trumps DIY rules

In his Oct. 25 article, "Western media distorts Japan," Gregory Clark tries to justify the reprehensible behavior of certain executives of Olympus.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Nov 5, 2014

Let's ensure no happy returns to Japan for this vile 'dating coach'

After bragging on a YouTube video about degrading assaults on women in Tokyo, Blanc says he's coming back.
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 3, 2014

China successfully develops laser system to defend against drones, Xinhua reports

China has successfully tested a self-developed laser defense system against small-scale low-altitude drones, according to state media.
Reader Mail
Oct 29, 2014

Keep out the military jargon

The Oct. 11 article by William Pfaff, "The war against Islamic State," contains a reference to "asymmetric wars." Can Pfaff please tell us what this means? I am sure I am not the only one who is baffled by this arcane term, which was no doubt the intention of the Pentagon when they dreamed up this piece...
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Oct 27, 2014

'Comfort women' issue refuses to go away

"Comfort women," as Japan refers to the females who were forced into sexual servitude for the nation's wartime forces, have been a constant source of controversy since the early 1990s, when the media started to take a serious look at their ordeal.
COMMENTARY / Japan / COUNTERPOINT
Oct 18, 2014

The Abe conundrum and the pitfalls ahead

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is a polarizing figure, lauded as the resolute leader Japan needs to revive its flagging fortunes and slammed for mishandling history issues in ways that undermine national interests.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Oct 11, 2014

In-debt idols send wrong message to girls

Two weeks ago a female pop group called The Margarines debuted via a Tokyo news conference. Since Japanese show business has no shortage of young women who want to sing and dance in order to "fulfill their dreams," the new ensemble needed a gimmick.
OLYMPICS / ROBERT WHITING'S 1964 OLYMPICS RETROSPECTIVE
Oct 10, 2014

Olympic construction transformed Tokyo

The 1964 Tokyo Olympics had a profound impact on the capital city and the nation. In the opening installment of a five-part series that will run during the next two weeks, best-selling author Robert Whiting, who lived in Japan at the time, takes a look back at the preparations for the event.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Oct 8, 2014

Biased pamphlet bodes ill for left-behind foreign parents outside Japan

A pamphlet about the Hague Convention provides valuable insights into the Foreign Ministry's slanted mind-set towards the child abduction issue.
JAPAN
Sep 29, 2014

Is the Asahi a scapegoat of nationalist media or victim of own missteps?

One of the nation's leading newspapers has been in crisis mode of late — a situation that may bode ill for liberal journalism at a time when nationalism appears to be making public inroads.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Sep 29, 2014

As Indian orbiter reaches Mars, at home, red tape binds space firms

As India celebrated becoming the first Asian nation to reach Mars, S.M. Vaidya, head of business at conglomerate Godrej's aerospace division that made the spacecraft's engine and thruster components, sounded surprisingly downbeat.
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Sep 21, 2014

Rather than boon for Japan, U.S. shale oil is still rip-off

Japan's national wealth is draining away as its trading companies keeping paying premium prices for the oil on offer from the U.S. and the Middle East.

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