author

 
 
 Alex K.T. Martin

Meta

Alex K.T. Martin
Alex K.T. Martin is a Tokyo-based journalist and senior writer at The Japan Times, primarily focusing on feature stories. Previously he was a Tokyo correspondent for The Wall Street Journal.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 17, 2017
New U.S. ambassador William Hagerty arrives in Japan, vows strong economic and security ties
William Hagerty, new U.S. envoy, arrives in Tokyo emphasizing U.S. commitment to “ironclad” bilateral security ties in the face of North Korea's escalating nuclear threats.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 16, 2017
Pepper the robot to don Buddhist robe for its new funeral services role
SoftBank Group Corp.'s humanoid robot Pepper has taken on various roles since its mass-market debut in 2015.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 15, 2017
For young Japanese, war mostly seen as something from dim and distant past
Masaaki Inoue has been visiting Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine for decades.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 8, 2017
AstraZeneca seeks Japan's first approval for hereditary cancer drug in relapsed sufferers
Olaparib, already approved in the United States and the European Union, acts against cancers in people with hereditary mutations in genes associated with breast and ovarian cancer.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 7, 2017
World's first method for mass-producing platelets from iPS cells unveiled by Kyoto startup
A Kyoto startup unveils a way to mass-produce platelets, a key component in clotting, that could reduce doctors' dependency on donated blood to minimize bleeding.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 3, 2017
New Foreign Minister Kono a reform-minded challenger of party lines
Newly appointed Foreign Minister Taro Kono is known as an outspoken, reform-minded politician unafraid of questioning the party line.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 2, 2017
Airbnb rival Tujia to partner with Rakuten in push for larger share of Japan 'minpaku' market
Tie-up of e-commerce giant and Chinese firm comes following the passage of a new law giving the green light to private short-term lodging services.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
Apr 8, 2017
Shinsuke Fujimoto makes his mark in the Korean film industry
Shinsuke Fujimoto is a rarity in the booming South Korean film industry. Despite having no connections in the local movie scene, the Ishikawa Prefecture native flew to Seoul straight after graduating college and has managed to make a living working on various film sets for over a decade.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2011
Australians recall POW ordeals
Former Australian prisoner of war Alfred Ellwood can vividly recall being interrogated and at times tortured by the Imperial Japanese Army's notorious military police after he was captured in East Timor, an experience that scarred him most of his life.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 16, 2011
Imperial law revisited as family shrinks, Emperor ages
It's not an easy job, being the emperor of Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 19, 2011
TPP commitment hinged to interests
Despite Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's recent declaration that Japan will join the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, heated debate continues over the pros and cons of participating in the free-trade initiative.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 12, 2011
Noda — between rock, hard place
Following Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's announcement Friday that Japan will join the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks, the focus of attention has now shifted to this weekend's summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in Honolulu.
JAPAN
Nov 5, 2011
Age questions prompt Tokyo court to dismiss piracy suspect's indictment
The Tokyo District Court on Friday dismissed an indictment against one of the suspected pirates charged with attacking a Japanese tanker off the coast of Somalia in March because the defendant may be a minor.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 5, 2011
DeNA buys BayStars, awaits nod to add its name to team's
Mobile social gaming company DeNA Co. announced Friday it has purchased the cash-strapped Yokohama BayStars baseball club.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 3, 2011
Timing may be everything in TPP
As emerging Asian economies facilitate growth in the region and increasingly stand out as important players in global trade, the United States appears intent on getting its own share of the pie in the form of taking a leadership role in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade framework.
JAPAN
Nov 3, 2011
Karen refugees snub farm, try luck in Tokyo
The first two ethnic Karen families who arrived from Myanmar under a third-country resettlement program have rejected an offer to continue working on a farm in Chiba Prefecture where they were training, and are currently residing in Tokyo, one of their lawyers said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Nov 1, 2011
Vietnam reactor deal advances; Japan looks to accept caregivers
Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and his Hanoi counterpart, Nguyen Tan Dung, agreed Monday to move ahead with plans to construct atomic reactors in Vietnam using Japanese technology, despite the rethink of the national energy policy amid the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Oct 12, 2011
Nuclear fears reawaken mass anger
Compared with the West, and recently the Middle East, which has been swept by civil uprisings, Japan is not commonly known for having large-scale demonstrations or violent antigovernment protests.
JAPAN
Sep 28, 2011
Noda, Aquino agree to counter China sea claims
Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Philippines President Benigno Aquino III agreed Tuesday in Tokyo to forge closer maritime security ties to resolve disputes with China in the South China Sea.
JAPAN
Sep 22, 2011
SNS users to play role in Tohoku makeover
The Foreign Ministry is planning to invite prominent users of social networking sites to tour the devastated northeast as part of its efforts to rebuild Japan's image overseas following the March disasters and nuclear crisis.

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'