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July 10, 2026
 

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Eric Johnston

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Eric Johnston
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Aug 6, 2021
Kansai looks to lessons from Olympics for own international events
Political and business leaders are likely to focus on the good and bad points of Tokyo’s experience as they look ahead to the World Masters Games Kansai and the 2025 World Expo.
JAPAN / Explainer
Aug 2, 2021
Pressure builds over raising Japan’s age of consent
Controversial remarks by a Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker and cases of paternal rape have driven discussion on lifting the age of consent.
JAPAN / Explainer
Jul 27, 2021
Hiroshima hibakusha have won their ‘black rain’ lawsuit. This is how they got there.
The government has decided not to appeal a landmark ruling that extends benefits to A-bomb victims affected by fallout outside of a government-designated area.
JAPAN / Explainer
Jul 26, 2021
In times of disaster, Japan’s hazard maps provide crucial information
July’s deadly mudslide in Shizuoka has put renewed focus on hazard maps for areas at risk from floods, landslides and other natural catastrophes.
JAPAN
Jul 22, 2021
COVID-19 cases rise in Sapporo just as Olympic events get underway
Hokkaido’s capital is hosting soccer games and will host marathon events, but the mayor is now calling for stronger coronavirus measures as the number of cases jumps.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 20, 2021
Tokyo poll result cements Yuriko Koike’s status as a political survivor
After Koike’s Tomin First no Kai performed better than expected in the election, speculation has grown that she might once again migrate back to national politics.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2021
IOC president’s Hiroshima visit fuels speculation about his true intent
A trip that’s officially being made to send a message of peace has instead stirred controversy amid the pandemic and raised questions about Thomas Bach’s real purpose.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2021
Yokohama election turns into test for government’s casino resort plan
With a longtime Suga ally entering the race and coming out in opposition to casinos, next month’s mayoral vote has become a major challenge to the prime minister on his own turf.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 2021
Osaka requests extension to quasi-emergency COVID-19 measures
In a letter to Suga, Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura noted that the weekly rolling average of new infections was increasing, especially for young people.
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2021
Japan’s metropolises urge government to prioritize vaccines for large cities
Facing the possibility of a coronavirus vaccine supply crunch, governors of major prefectures are lobbying the government to prioritize densely populated areas.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / View from Osaka
Jul 2, 2021
Amid overspending, Kyoto stares down threat of bankruptcy
Some might attribute the city’s financial woes to COVID-19’s impact on tourism, but the mayor puts the lion’s share of the blame elsewhere.
JAPAN / Politics
Jun 27, 2021
Population shift in Japan forces redrawing of electoral map, worrying powerful LDP figures
The plan to add representatives in urban areas at the expense of rural districts could hurt LDP heavyweights from Shinzo Abe to Toshihiro Nikai.
BUSINESS
Jun 24, 2021
Japan braces for surge in electricity use during scorching summer and Olympics
With many people expected to tune into the games from their air-conditioned homes, utilities are forecasting tighter reserve power ratios than usual.
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2021
Uganda Olympic team member first to test positive for COVID-19 upon arrival in Japan
The discovery comes just over a month before the opening ceremony and amid concerns of another spike in infections once the games begin on July 23.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Jun 17, 2021
Caught in the middle? Komeito and the China-Japan relationship
While many in the LDP have welcomed international pressure on China, the deteriorating bilateral relationship creates problems for the party’s coalition partner Komeito.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 15, 2021
U.S. ambassadors to Japan: A litmus test for ties
Reports of a new U.S. envoy after a two-year vacancy fuel speculation and reflection on past appointees.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 14, 2021
G7 action on climate gets cautious welcome, but activists say more needed
Leaders of the G7 nations have pledged to stop financing new coal plants beyond their borders by the end of this year, but domestic use went unaddressed.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 11, 2021
Lawsuit seeks return of Ryukyu remains nearly a century after they were brought to Kyoto
The suit has also prompted discussion over the status of Ryukyuans, whom the government has not recognized as indigenous.
JAPAN / View from Osaka
Jun 4, 2021
Tokyo Games pose risk for Kansai’s already strained medical system
In the Kansai region, people are anxious that those involved with the Tokyo Games may catch the virus and bring it back west.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / EXPLAINER
May 28, 2021
Bill on rehiring teachers fired for sexual acts with children clears Diet
A new law aims to make it more difficult for educators who lost their teaching licenses due to acts of sexual violence to work again.
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Japan needs caregivers. Young Indians are answering the call.
Young people in India's northeast are increasingly studying Japanese in hopes of building new lives and careers in Japan.
Trump says ‘Japan’ instead of Iran at meeting in Ankara
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a news conference during a NATO leaders' summit in Ankara on Wednesday.
Wakatakakage injury casts pall over July meet, but potential new stars loom
Nicholas Tarasenko trains at Minato stable in August 2024.
Osaka trumps Tokyo as both ranked among world’s top 10 most livable cities
Osaka’s infrastructure earned higher marks than Tokyo’s in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s latest Global Liveability Index.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.
Filmmaker explores history of discrimination against foreign nationals in Japan
Takashi Nishihara, the director of "Now and Then," in Tokyo on Wednesday. The director has spent 10 years traversing politically charged terrain while exploring youth-driven grassroots political movements that scrutinize the status quo.
Okinawa’s prized seaweed under threat as oceans warm
Local harvesters gather <i>mozuku</i> during low tide at Hyakuna Beach in the city of Nanjo, Okinawa Prefecture. As the planet warms, rising ocean temperatures are placing increasing pressure on the seaweed industry.

Podcast

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

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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