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April 01, 2025
 

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Karin Kaneko
JAPAN / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Oct 6, 2023
Cram school teacher arrests ignite child safety debate
Two cram school teachers in Tokyo were arrested for allegedly taking photos of a female student's underwear and sharing them on a group chat.
A reporter raises their hand during a Johnny & Associates news conference on Monday. Journalists were limited to a “one question per company” at the event.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 4, 2023
Johnny’s news conference had journalist ‘blacklist,' reports say
Johnny & Associates has said it never made a request that specific journalists be passed over for questions.
JAPAN / Explainer
Oct 3, 2023
Unpacking the latest Johnny & Associates news conference
The flood of information released during the agency's latest news conference may have been difficult to grasp. Here's what you need to know.
Johnny & Associates president Noriyuki Higashiyama (second from right), flanked by Johnnys' Island President Yoshihiko Inohara (second from left), unveils the company name Smile-Up during a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Society
Oct 2, 2023
Johnny's to form new company in wake of sexual abuse by founder
The move comes after the agency acknowledged abuse and apologized to victims in a news conference last month.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 28, 2023
Japan politician Super Crazy-kun indicted on sexual assault charges
Makoto Nishimoto was charged on the grounds of nonconsensual sexual intercourse resulting in injury. The victim was a female acquaintance in her 30s.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 27, 2023
Supreme Court may adjust requirements for gender status change
If the court deems the surgery requirement for a gender change to be unconstitutional, it is expected to pave the way for an amendment of the law.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 25, 2023
18-year-old Ginza robbery suspect gets 4½ years in prison
It was ruled that Shoma Torii bears serious criminal responsibility, since he went ahead with the heist even after he was informed it was a robbery.
JAPAN
Sep 22, 2023
Hokkaido seafood piles up in freezers following China ban
Scallops and other products are amassing in freezers at processing facilities in the prefecture, costing businesses more for storage.
Visitors climb the slopes of Mount Fuji on Aug. 31. The mountain has long been a popular destination for both domestic and international travelers.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 17, 2023
Tourists have returned to Mount Fuji. Is that sustainable?
A spike in visitors has created various challenges, including overcrowding, littering, strained infrastructure and a shortage of guides and rescue teams.
The incoming and outgoing presidents of Johnny & Associates, Noriyuki Higashiyama and Julie Keiko Fujishima, bow at a press conference on Sept. 7.
PODCAST / deep dive
Sep 14, 2023
Johnny’s talent agency has admitted to a past of abuse. What next?
Karin Kaneko joins the show to update us on how the story is unfolding.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 14, 2023
Johnny's says it will work for free as firms cut ties over scandal
The talent agency says it will not receive management fees for advertisements and television appearances by performers for a year.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 8, 2023
Kauan Okamoto finds some closure after recognition of Kitagawa abuse
“I felt a bit better. There’s nothing more I want to say to Johnny & Associates,” Okamoto said.
Julie Keiko Fujishima (right), who stepped down as Johnny & Associates president on Tuesday, and new President Noriyuki Higashiyama give a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 7, 2023
Johnny's replaces president as it admits to abuse by late founder
The replacement comes on the heels of a scathing third-party report, which recommended that Julie Keiko Fujishima resign as president.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 1, 2023
China banned seafood from Japan. Some tourists are eating it in Tokyo.
Travelers from China seem largely unfazed despite the ban, with many local seafood restaurants seeing little impact so far.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 30, 2023
Media respond to report on sexual abuse at Johnny and Associates
The committee said Japan's mainstream media chose to ignore Kitagawa’s sexual abuse in order to maintain access to Johnny & Associates' talent pool.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 29, 2023
Expert team reports on decades of sexual abuse by Johnny Kitagawa
The team urged Johnny & Associates President Julie Keiko Fujishima to step down after the family-run business left the issue unaddressed for decades.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 16, 2023
Woman and parents sent to prosecutors over Sapporo hotel murder
Authorities believe that Runa Tamura was the only one present at the crime scene, while her parents are suspected of being accomplices.
JAPAN
Aug 14, 2023
Japan braces for another typhoon as trains and flights canceled
Typhoon Lan is poised to make landfall in central Japan on Tuesday, with the storm set to bring a month’s worth of rain in just a few days.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 9, 2023
Japan prefectures drift away from posting disaster warnings on X
A growing number of prefectures have stopped posting disaster warnings on the platform due to limits on the number of free posts allowed.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 4, 2023
U.N. experts criticize Johnny’s sex abuse investigation
The experts called on the government to do more to investigate decades of suspected abuse against male idols by Johnny Kitagawa.
Japan's biggest beef bowl chain Sukiya to shut nearly 2,000 stores after rat and bug contamination
Zensho Holdings, operator of fast-food chain Sukiya, said it will close all of its stores in Japan, except for a small number in shopping centers, between Monday and Friday following recent contamination incidents.
Alert raised for volcano in southwestern Japan
Shinmoedake, a volcano located between Miyazaki and Kagoshima prefectures, in November 2019
Japan considers all possible options as Trump threatens new auto tariffs
Subaru cars awaiting export at a port in Yokohama on Thursday.
Nankai Trough earthquake could kill 298,000 people, government says
Residents participate in an evacuation drill held with West Japan Railway in Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture, in January 2024 to prepare for a Nankai Trough earthquake and a possible tsunami following the quake.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.
Tokyo tech failures lean into misfortune, mistakes and missteps
Tsuyoshi Domoto in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward on March 28. As an entrepreneur, Domoto experienced plenty of setbacks but maintains a positive attitude and continues to pursue his dreams.
Who among the opposition would join the ruling coalition?
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba enters his office in Tokyo on Friday.
Traveling the Three-Star Road, the tourist route made from thin air
Scenes like this snow-covered bridge leading to the village of Shirakawa-go are what make the Three-Star Road worth traveling — its name notwithstanding.
Recent spate of wildfires in Japan and South Korea linked to climate change
Smoke and flames rise from a wildfire in Andong, South Korea, on Tuesday.

Podcast

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

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone. 
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
By Johan Brooks

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