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September 17, 2025
 

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A McDonald’s Japan Pokemon card promotion triggered scalper frenzy, upset children and forced the company to rethink its Happy Set campaigns.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Aug 28, 2025
McDonald’s 'Pokemon' frenzy shows the collecting boom’s dark side
After a "Pokemon" trading card promotion went disastrously wrong, it’s been rebuked by the Consumer Affairs Agency and is rethinking future campaigns.
A boy looks at samples of Pokemon toys available with the McDonald's Happy Meal set in Tokyo earlier this month.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 28, 2025
How to complain politely: Lessons from the McDonald’s Pokemon debacle
In Japan, the right phrasing can mean the difference between a request and harassment.
At the Asia's 50 Best Bars 2025 awards ceremony, 20 new entries were added to the list, reflecting the increasing diversity and creativity of Asia's bar scene.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 17, 2025
Tokyo nabs four spots on Asia’s 50 Best Bars list
Two of the city’s bars, Bar Benfiddich and Virtu, drop ranks while this year’s list showcases a wider diversity with several new entries from places like Jakarta and Bengaluru.
Restaurants from 22 territories across five continents were honored at this year's World's 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony held in Turin, Italy.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 20, 2025
Four restaurants from Japan earn spots on World’s 50 Best list
Tokyo has three entries, with Sezanne climbing from its previous position of No. 15 to No. 7 this year.
Moody’s downgrade of the U.S. credit rating reflects growing concern over Washington’s unwillingness to confront rising debt, soaring deficits and interest costs — even as global investors keep piling into Treasuries.
COMMENTARY
May 19, 2025
Moody’s tells us what we already know about U.S. debt
Take the firm’s decision to strip the country of its top AAA credit rating seriously, not literally.
FemUniti was founded in 2024 by Setsu Suzuki (right) and Meagan Ward (second from left) to empower women entrepreneurs and connect them to resources and opportunities.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
May 19, 2025
Detroit-Nagoya network empowers women-owned businesses around the world
Supporting women in business is a “blueprint for the future,” says the cofounder of femUniti — and she has the data to back it up.
The first blood test to help diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, which is made by Fujirebio Diagnostics, a unit of Japan’s H.U. Group Holdings, was cleared for people 55 years and older who exhibit signs and symptoms of the disease, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a statement.
WORLD / Science & Health
May 17, 2025
FDA clears first blood test to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease
The test made by Fujirebio Diagnostics, a unit of Japan’s H.U. Group Holdings, was cleared for people 55 years and older who exhibit signs and symptoms of the disease.
Since the 1990s, Parkinson's disease researchers have aimed to use stem cells to replace lost neurons, and they're now finding the right cues to turn them into dopamine-producing cells.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2025
Finally, a source of hope for Parkinson’s disease sufferers
The treatments were originally developed by a team at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and the other by researchers in Kyoto.
Noriko Shakti has been living in Goa, India, since 2020 and specializes in the tabla, a traditional hand drum from the Indian subcontinent.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Apr 12, 2025
Noriko Shakti: ‘Music reflects my journey and learnings’
The India-based DJ and producer talks about bridging Indian and Japanese traditions in electronic music and advocating for women’s representation in the industry.
Releasing on March 20, Assassin's Creed Shadows excels in atmosphere and open-world gameplay but falls short of narrative expectations.
LIFE / Digital
Mar 19, 2025
Assassin’s Creed Shadows puts samurai style over substance
Ubisoft’s latest game is a gorgeous jaunt through feudal Japan entirely unworthy of the controversy surrounding it.
Hiromi Okuda’s study abroad experience at the University of Mumbai inspired her to build a career at the intersection of social welfare and IT.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Mar 7, 2025
Hiromi Okuda: 'Humans and emerging tech should exist symbiotically'
For the past 30 years, Hiromi Okuda has forged a career at the intersection of social welfare and technology.
Wealthier women in the prewar era had been the targets of various media-related health campaigns that mistakenly encouraged them to avoid everything from riding bicycles to reading novels when their monthly cycles came around.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Longform
Mar 7, 2025
Menstruation in Japan: Breaking the silence, slowly
Despite longstanding taboos, evolving attitudes toward women's health highlight shifting cultural norms.
While Valentine’s Day in the West is traditionally associated with men giving flowers to women, in Japan the day has typically involved women giving gifts of chocolate to men.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 14, 2025
A sweet Japanese Valentine's Day tradition is nearly dead
The custom of giri-choco, loosely meaning "obligatory chocolate,” was once commonplace in offices around the country.
The prime minister's official residence in Tokyo
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 13, 2025
Ishiba moves into official residence
Repair work on the official residence, which is rumored to be haunted, ended in late December.
Police guard the scene early Sunday morning of a stabbing incident at a McDonald's store in Kitakyushu's Kokuraminami Ward.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 18, 2024
What we know so far about the Kitakyushu stabbings
Authorities are analyzing surveillance and dashcam footage from the area in an effort to identify and locate the attacker.
While FromSoftware's Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is a strong contender for game of the year, Black Myth: Wukong, the first AAA game made by a Chinese developer, offers some stiff competition.
LIFE / Digital / 2024 in Review
Dec 6, 2024
It’s Japan versus China for 2024’s game of the year
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree and Black Myth: Wukong both have a claim to the best game of 2024, a year marked by cultural scandals and lawsuits.
SoftBank is unhappy that Moody's continues to issue ratings on the company.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 28, 2024
SoftBank blasts Moody’s for unsolicited ratings
It says it is considering legal action against the agency, which has continued to publish unsolicited ratings of the company over the past several years.
Randy's Donuts in Inglewood, California. Replicas of the giant doughnut sculpture will be installed, where possible, at shops in Japan.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 24, 2024
An iconic 32-foot doughnut might give Randy’s an edge in Japan
The doughnut had a cameo in “2012,” where it is seen rolling down the street as an enduring symbol of end-time. Now the brand looks to tackle the tough Japanese market.
Australian Giselle Shaw, 18, competes at the All-Japan Women's Sumo Championships in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, on Sunday.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Oct 16, 2024
Foreign wrestlers add international flair to All Japan Women’s Sumo Championships
From an experienced world champion down to a teen looking to make her mark, the tournament in Kyoto Prefecture showcased a wide range of talent.
Perhaps being seen in the company of your own children in the right places — playgrounds, schools, etc. — can make you seem more approachable and allow children to say exactly what’s on their mind.
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Jun 24, 2024
‘You’re a spy, then?’ The odd interactions of a non-Japanese father in Japan
Remember to keep your ears open whenever you’re near children and you’re guaranteed to hear something that’ll make you think.
SDF spots China’s biggest aircraft carrier for first time
The Fujian aircraft carrier is seen in Shanghai in May 2024 as it leaves for its first sea trial.
Why more hotels in Japan are offering room-only service
Nipponia Hotel Ise Kawasaki Merchant Town in Ise, Mie Prefecture
Is America ready for Japanese-style 7-Elevens?
Convenience stores are a fixture of Japanese life and 7-Eleven, a chain that began in the U.S. in 1927, opened its first store in Japan in 1974 — and then became wholly Japanese-owned in 2005 through parent company Seven & I Holdings.
Final weeks of World Expo in Osaka likely to see large crowds
With one month left to go, crowds are expected to swell at the World Expo in Osaka during its final weeks.
Japan's elderly population down at around 36.2 million
The estimated number of people age 65 or older in Japan stands at 36.19 million as of Monday, accounting for record 29.4% of the country's total population, according to the internal affairs ministry.
Pole vault rivals in awe after Duplantis has another historic night in Tokyo
Sweden's Armand Duplantis competes in the men's pole fault final during the World Athletics Championships at National Stadium in Tokyo on Monday.
Japan's major art events converge this fall
Shinji Ohmaki’s “Tokinokage” exhibited at Fuji Textile Week 2021 shows the use of fabric as art.
Tara Davis-Woodhall leaps to gold and finds redemption at world championships
Tara Davis-Woodhall celebrates after winning the women's long jump final at the World Athletics Championships at Tokyo's National Stadium on Sunday night.
An aesthetic escape to Hakone’s art-drenched hills
Between traditional examples of fine art and sleek, modern exhibitions that blend with nature, Hakone offers a unique escape from Tokyo's urban sprawl.
Niinami’s ouster quick but not unusual as corporations protect reputation
Takeshi Niinami resigns as chairman and CEO of Suntory Holdings.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.
We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.

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