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July 13, 2025
 

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CELEBRITIES

In a statement on their official website, Tokio said it had decided to disband following a compliance violation by Taichi Kokubun, without providing details as to what the violation entailed.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jun 26, 2025
Japanese pop-rock band Tokio announces disbandment after 31 years
The group said it will bring an end to its activities as Tokio following a compliance violation by member Taichi Kokubun but did not disclose details.
Taichi Kokubun has accepted the decision to leave "The Tetsuwan Dash."
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2025
Pop group Tokio's Kokubun to leave Nippon TV program over compliance violations
Nippon TV President Hiroyuki Fukuda refrained from mentioning specifics about Taichi Kokubun's problematic acts in a news conference out of concern for "privacy protection."
The Fuji TV building in May. The company has taken responsibility for having enabled "sexual violence" toward an unnamed victim, who is a former Fuji TV worker, along with causing her emotional distress due to its initial reactions to the incident.
JAPAN / Media
Jun 20, 2025
Fuji TV settles ‘sexual violence’ case with apology and compensation to victim
Fuji TV President Kenji Shimizu apologized to the unnamed woman over the incident and how the company handled it.
Comedian Takaaki Ishibashi
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2025
Comedian Ishibashi apologizes over sexual harassment dinner incident
The scandal has been compared to the Fuji TV sexual harassment case involving former television star Masahiro Nakai.
Dewi Sukarno
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 16, 2025
Tokyo police refer Dewi Sukarno to prosecutors
Sukarno is suspected of throwing a champagne glass at a female staff member from her office, sources say.
Ryoko Hirosue was being detained at the Hamamatsu West Police Station in the city of Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 16, 2025
Actor Ryoko Hirosue released from custody after alleged kicking incident
The 44-year-old actor was arrested for allegedly kicking and scratching a medical staff member while in a “panicked state” following a car accident.
Ryoko Hirosue
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 8, 2025
Actor Ryoko Hirosue arrested for allegedly injuring medical staffer
Hirosue was in a “panicked state” and injured the medical staff member, her agency said in a statement.
Tokyo police on Thursday sent to public prosecutors papers on six comedians from major Japanese entertainment agency Yoshimoto Kogyo on suspicion of gambling via online casino services.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Apr 3, 2025
Papers on six Japanese comedians sent to prosecutors over online gambling
They are suspected of accessing and gambling on overseas online casino websites between January 2023 and December 2024.
The National Police Agency has been warning people that gambling on online casinos is illegal in Japan even if they are operating legally overseas.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 16, 2025
Police investigate comedians over alleged online casino gambling
Officials warn that online casinos are illegal in Japan even if they are operating legally overseas, but the number accused of using them continues to rise.
Fuji TV executives take questions during a news conference on Monday in Tokyo in which some participants became unruly.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 31, 2025
Fuji TV’s go-big PR strategy wins grudging praise globally
Fuji TV held a marathon 10-hour news conference on Monday to address allegations of sexual misconduct by Masahiro Nakai, a celebrity and former presenter for the broadcaster.
Members of the popular Japanese pop group SMAP, including scandal-plagued Masahiro Nakai (right), perform in Beijing in September 2011.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 29, 2025
A pop-star sex scandal shows the death throes of old Japan
As the leader of a now-defunct boy band SMAP, the 52-year-old Nakai has been a ubiquitous mainstay in Japanese life for decades.
Members of the media raise their hands for questions as outgoing Fuji TV President Koichi Minato attends a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Jan 28, 2025
What we learned at Fuji TV's marathon Nakai scandal news conference
Longtime executive of Fuji TV Hisashi Hieda, who has been dubbed the “emperor” of the broadcaster, was not present at the news conference and did not resign.
Fuji TV President Koichi Minato (left) and Chairman Shuji Kanoh, also chairman of the broadcaster's parent company Fuji Media Holdings, bow during a news conference in Tokyo on Monday. The two have announced their resignations.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 28, 2025
Fuji TV president resigns over handling of Masahiro Nakai scandal
Koichi Minato has been the target of criticism following the revelation that he became aware of the incident involving Nakai right after it occurred in June 2023.
Members of the media crowd the venue before the start of a news conference at Fuji TV's headquarters in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Society / First person
Jan 28, 2025
Yelling and random tangents: What it was like covering Fuji TV's 10-hour presser
The once-in-a-lifetime news conference showed what would happen when the Japanese press was given total freedom with no time limits.
Fuji Media Holdings' headquarters in Tokyo's Minato Ward on Thursday
JAPAN / Media
Jan 25, 2025
Fuji TV board to meet on Monday to discuss scandal
The board is expected to discuss the company's response to calls for Fuji Television executives, including President Koichi Minato, to take responsibility over the scandal.
Fuji TV's headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 24, 2025
Scandal-hit Fuji Media stock trading soars 1,767% on shakeup bet
A total of 237.8 million shares changed hands in Tokyo, compared with 12.74 million last week.
Fuji Television's poor handling of sexual misconduct allegations against celebrity Masahiro Nakai has led to an exodus of sponsors from the broadcaster.
JAPAN / Media / FOCUS
Jan 24, 2025
What are the real issues behind the Fuji TV scandal?
Fuji TV's handling of sexual misconduct allegations against TV personality Masahiro Nakai led to a firestorm of public disapproval. Where did it go wrong?
TV star Masahiro Nakai abruptly announced his retirement Thursday as the fallout from sexual misconduct allegations against him continued to expand.
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2025
Ex-SMAP member Masahiro Nakai to retire amid sexual misconduct allegations
The 52-year-old former SMAP member said his contracts had been wound up, and that negotiations with sponsors were in progress.
Fuji Media Holdings' headquarters in Tokyo's Minato Ward. The company will hold an extraordinary board meeting on Thursday over the firestorm sparked by TV host Masahiro Nakai's alleged sexual misconduct.
JAPAN / Media
Jan 22, 2025
Fuji TV scandal sparks probes on exploitation within TV industry
The sexual misconduct allegations against TV host and former SMAP member Masahiro Nakai have thrown a spotlight on the TV industry's culture and ethics.
Fuji TV President Koichi Minato speaks at a news conference on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Media
Jan 20, 2025
What went wrong at Fuji TV's news conference on allegations against Nakai?
The broadcaster, which imposed various restrictions for the event that included denying access to many media agencies, ended up worsening the scandal.
Tokyo hit by torrential rainfall at rush hour
People line up at Shibuya Station in Tokyo as they try to avoid the heavy rain on Thursday.
Foreign drivers in Japan to face tougher license conversion rules from October
According to the National Police Agency, there were 75,905 people who converted their foreign driver’s license to a Japanese one in 2024, up from 48,885 in 2019.
Nissan clinches $4.5 billion bond deal after orders soar
Nissan Motor has raised $4.5 billion through a junk bond sale in U.S. dollars and euros, part of which carries a record-high coupon rate.
Chinese fighters came within 30 meters of Japanese spy aircraft, Tokyo says
A Chinese JH-7 fighter jet makes an near an Air Self-Defense Force YS-11EB surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea this week in this image released Thursday.
What Japanese politics could look like after Upper House election
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who heads the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (center) waves to attendees as he departs after delivering a campaign speech in Yokohama on Sunday.
An emoji used to say it all. Now it might say too much.
Apple’s Craig Federighi shows off a set of emoji at a conference on June 13, 2016. While the small pictures have proved helpful in conveying nuance in our texts, younger people are using them less often.
‘Our ultimate goal is to save every single Japanese video game’
After nearly shuttering earlier this year, the Tokyo-based Game Preservation Society continues its work to save the early history of Japanese gaming.
Rare vintage shots and first-time shows at TOP’s 30th anniversary
The museum's curators selected a wide array of works from the archives for the milestone exhibitions. Among other photos, Nobuyoshi Araki's work from the series "Winter Journey" (1990) was included in the "Continuity and Change" exhibition that concluded in June.
New IG Arena set to dial down temperature at Nagoya Basho, in a good way
With IG Arena getting glowing early reviews as the Nagoya Basho’s replacement venue, it may be a while before fans wax nostalgic about the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.
Once a niche, anime is now mainstream content for Netflix and other streaming services
Though Netflix remains the dominant choice globally for anime viewers, Amazon Prime Video has also invested heavily in anime, steadily adding titles to their catalogue.

Podcast

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

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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