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July 17, 2024
 

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Philip Brasor
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 10, 2006
What's love got to do with it? Holding on for a while
Many modern people have probably formed their idea of romantic love through the popular arts. We know from Jane Austen novels that marrying for love is an idea that preceded Hollywood, but people still wed for many other reasons, including simple companionship, convenience and money. Nevertheless, love...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Sep 3, 2006
Controversial tales of cats, Pluto and Britney's belly
Controversy No. 1: Cats are people, too
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 1, 2006
Blondie
Among that small elite of American bands who enjoyed strings of Top 40 hits during their respective heydays, Blondie stands out. The New York-based group may not have shifted as many units as The Beach Boys, Creedence Clearwater Revival or even Hall and Oates, but they managed to stay on top without...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 27, 2006
'Disguised contracting' gets proper airing in media . . . with results
The main front page story of the July 31 Asahi Shimbun was about the prefectural labor bureaus cracking down on major manufacturers for improper employment practices; in particular, something called giso ukeoi, or "disguised contracting."
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 20, 2006
Notes on Yasukuni and a week that will live in infamy
Following his historic visit to Yasukuni Shrine last Tuesday on the 61st anniversary of Japan's surrender, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi spoke to the media. As usual, his comments had the bland quality of safely scripted pronouncements, but at one point he paused significantly: "I prayed for those...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 18, 2006
Urban tea party gets lift at beach
Unlike Fuji Rock, that other Japanese music festival, and which celebrated its 10th anniversary this year, Summer Sonic is still very much in evolution. It's an evolution less stylistic than logistical.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 13, 2006
High-school baseball pitches the way of the samurai
It's said that even Japanese people who don't like baseball still get caught up in the annual summer high-school baseball tournament, which happens to be taking place right now at Koshien Stadium in Hyogo Prefecture. Apparently, this same paradox applies to at least one American. On the Internet message...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Aug 6, 2006
Welfare's not fair when it comes to single mothers
In show business, you can't look as if you made up your own labels. Only someone as big as Michael Jackson gets away with calling himself the King of Pop.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 30, 2006
And in the Japanese corner is . . . Morita-san
Christina Morimoto is sitting in the office of the Tokyo modeling agency she works for, answering questions about her first acting job in the new movie "I Am Nipponjin."
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 23, 2006
The many hazards -- especially for kids -- of living the high life
Some news stories make you laugh and some make you cringe. If you live in an apartment you may have done both while reading the July 13 story in this newspaper about an employee of Schindler Elevator K.K. getting trapped in a Schindler lift in the same Tokyo residential building where a teenager was...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 16, 2006
And now for some good news -- on tap for everyone
We have become so used to environmental portents that whenever we hear good news we blink in disbelief, so blink away: It appears that the various concerted efforts to get people in Japan to save water has paid off.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 14, 2006
A confluence of buzzes
Artistic restlessness is not a quality normally associated with rookie rock bands. It applies more to established groups who've outgrown their signature sound. TV on the Radio, a Brooklyn quintet whose second album, "Return to Cookie Mountain," was already being touted by tastemakers as the year's best...
CULTURE / Music
Jul 14, 2006
Udo Music Festival
When & where: Udo Music Festival takes place at Fuji Speedway in Shizuoka Prefecture and Izumiotsu Phoenix in Osaka, July 22-23. Performances begin at 10:30 a.m. The lineups on Saturday switch venues on Sunday.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 9, 2006
There's a price to pay for flaunting wealth in Japan
For its annual World Wealth Report, finance firm Merrill Lynch circles the globe and counts the number of millionaires. Though a million dollars -- 114 million yen, as defined by the survey -- ain't what it used to be, it's still a distant dream for the vast majority.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 7, 2006
ESG keep on moving
Drugs and violence were rampant. Teenage pregnancy was common. Opportunity was scarce. An office clerk named Helen Scroggins, who lived in a housing project with her four school-age daughters in New York City's South Bronx in the mid-1970s, was anxious.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jul 2, 2006
Consternation characterizes response to Zico's World Cup flops
Though it may not be any consolation to local soccer fans, the Japanese team won the Humanoid Division in the RoboCup soccer competition that took place in Bremen on June 14-20.
CULTURE / Music
Jun 30, 2006
Summer Sonic
W hen & Where: Summer Sonic takes place Aug. 12-13 at Chiba Marine Stadium, Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture; and WTC Open Air Stadium, Osaka Intex and Zepp Tokyo in Osaka. Shows begin at 11 a.m. on both days. The lineups on Saturday switch cities on Sunday.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 29, 2006
Posies blossom as fans continue to pop up
Shonen Knife didn't make much of an impression overseas until the release of a 1989 tribute album that included versions of their songs by the likes of Sonic Youth and Red Kross. Coincidentally, the whole Seattle rock scene went global shortly thereafter, pulling into the spotlight bands that happened...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jun 25, 2006
Who needs a trial when the media has hanged, drawn and quartered the accused?
Cynicism comes naturally to members of the tabloid press, who report sensational news in a sensational way and rarely think about what exactly it is they're doing. All they care about is the gory details. However, their coverage of the murder of a 7-year-old boy last month in Akita Prefecture and the...
CULTURE / Music
Jun 23, 2006
Sonic Youth "Rather Ripped"
Ever since Kim Gordon sang about her friend Goo, she has epitomized what's great about Sonic Youth as a rock band.
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
China’s economic growth comes in worse than expected
Pedestrians in the Wangfujing shopping area in Beijing on July 11, 2024. China's economic growth in the second quarter was lower than forecast, adding pressure on Chinese leaders to lift confidence at the Chinese Communist Party's third plenum this week.
Kansai airports to increase takeoff and landing slots ahead of Osaka Expo
Kansai International Airport in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture. The upper limit on the number of takeoff and landing slots at the airport as well as Kobe Airport in Hyogo Prefecture will be raised in spring next year ahead of the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

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'
By Tomoko Otake

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