Examining the morbid fascination with violence on social media in Japan
Twenty-one-year-old Yuka Takaoka stabbed a man in an apartment in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district in late May, leaving him in a critical condition. During questioning, Takaoka reportedly told police that she stabbed the man because she loved him so much she just couldn’t help it. ...
Chemical firm hit for punishing worker who took paternity leave with transfer halfway across Japan
Chemical producer Kaneka Corp. faces allegations of harassment after an employee returned from paternity leave to find that he — and, one presumes, his family — was being transferred to a different branch in another part of the country. Condemnation on social media was swift, ...
Launch of novelty stationery product sparks debate on tipping in Japan
A handful of topics are always guaranteed to spark fierce debate, whether discussed face-to-face or remotely online. They include politics, religion and, er, tipping. Tipping has not been embraced by society in Japan, but it turns out that’s precisely why the topic flared up ...
Susaki mascot Chiitan runs afoul of Twitter's social media rules
Chiitan the otter was riding high this spring. After becoming one of the most popular characters in the country thanks to its chaotic online behavior, Chiitan started appearing everywhere in the media. Chiitan’s star dimmed somewhat after the city of Susaki, Kochi Prefecture, attempted ...
Elementary school kids can say the darndest things online
People usually don’t take the thoughts of a 10-year-old child too seriously. Elementary school kids can say the darndest things, and only the nastiest of bullies take any notice of them saying something stupid. Unless, that is, the child in question happens to be an ...
Attempting to switch off from social media during Golden Week
As the relaxed vibe of the recent 10-day Golden Week holiday slowly fades, many commuters in Tokyo appeared to struggle last week to return to the rat race. The longer than usual holiday offered people an opportunity to travel abroad or chill out at ...
Social media fails to follow traditional news outlets' stricter approach to portrait rights in Japan
A man in Chiba Prefecture became irritated last month at how long it was taking for a barrier at a rail crossing to open. Losing patience, he fetched a hand saw from his van and removed the barrier arm so that he could drive ...
Japan's internet took on a life of its own during the Heisei Era
The story of a recent online phenomenon offers a great snapshot of internet culture in Japan during the Heisei Era (1989-2019). Twitter user @Ninjamaaaaaan posted a blurry photo of a pooch in motion, with its tail swooping in front of its face. It looked ...
Exploring rural Japan from the comfort of your living room with 'The Inaka Project'
Video games usually have some level of conflict or pressure — solve this puzzle, blow up this machine, defeat this monster and so forth. That’s not the case with Inasa Fujio’s “The Inaka Project,” a first-person narrative game that leisurely takes players through Japan’s ...
Social media weighs in on design and purpose of Japan's new bank notes
Social media has been awash with posts following the public unveiling of Japan’s new era name, Reiwa, at the beginning of April. The announcement was almost the complete opposite of an April Fools’ Day joke and yet every detail has been picked apart online, ...
Getting to the bottom of Chicano subculture coverage on Japan
Over the past month and a half, a number of Western media outlets have revisited a topic that has long been a hit for online publications. In late February, The New York Times published “Inside Japan’s Chicano Subculture,” a video documenting a niche group in ...
Denki Groove campaign reveals what Japan truly thinks of celebrities embroiled in drug scandals
It doesn’t take much for a celebrity drug scandal to be picked up by domestic news outlets in Japan, so when TV personality Pierre Taki was arrested on suspicion of cocaine use on March 12, it’s perhaps not surprising that TV and print media ...
