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December 04, 2024
 

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Francis Tang
Entrepreneurs Yusaku Maezawa (second from right) and Takafumi Horie (third from right) attend a study session on fake social media ads and investment scams at the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on April 10.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 16, 2024
Japanese billionaire sues Meta over investment scams using his image
Yusaku Maezawa is suing Meta for its negligence in regulating the use of his name and image in investment scams on its social media platforms.
Police believe it’s highly possible that human bones found in a molten iron pot at Nippon Steel's Oita factory belong to a missing male employee.
JAPAN
May 15, 2024
Human bone-like objects found at Nippon Steel plant’s molten iron pot, with one worker missing
The police said it’s highly possible that the bones belong to an employee who had been reported missing, and are currently conducting DNA tests.
Shoma Uno thanks his fans after a news conference explaining his decision to retire, on Tuesday in Tokyo.
MORE SPORTS / Figure skating
May 14, 2024
Figure skating champion Shoma Uno says he has 'no regrets' in retirement
The 26-year-old two-time world champion thanked his fans for their support and said that he was excited to move on to the next phase of his career.
Visitors climb the slopes of Mount Fuji, Japan's highest peak at 3,776 meters. From May 20, climbers will have access to a new online booking system for Mount Fuji's most popular Yoshida trail in Yamanashi Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
May 13, 2024
Online booking for Mount Fuji climb to open on May 20
Climbers will be able to reserve their places and pay the mandatory ¥2,000 ($13) climbing fee up to a day before their climb on the official website.
The Northern Lights in Nayoro, Hokkaido, on Saturday
JAPAN / Science & Health
May 13, 2024
In a rare event, the Northern Lights show up in Hokkaido
The aurora borealis was also observed across the Tohoku region.
Former Shizuoka Vice Gov. Shinichi Omura announces he is running for the gubernatorial election, on April 12.
JAPAN / Politics
May 9, 2024
Campaigning for Shizuoka's next governor kicks off with all eyes on maglev line
A record six candidates are running for the post after the previous governor resigned over controversial remarks.
“Customer harassment” — in which customers harass front-line workers with aggressive behavior or unreasonable requests — has become a growing problem in the service industry.
JAPAN / Society
May 2, 2024
Japan steps up measures against 'customer harassment'
A 2022 survey found that 67.5% of respondents had experienced some kind of harassment from customers in the past three years.
Japanese fashion designer Yumi Katsura (center) greets guests during the finale of the 2015 Yumi Katsura Grand Collection in Tokyo. Katsura has died at the age of 94.
LIFE / Style & Design
Apr 30, 2024
Yumi Katsura, a pioneer of Japan’s bridal fashion, dies at 94
Katsura developed a unique style combining Japan’s traditional techniques with French motifs throughout a career spanning over half a century.
Health ministry officials enter Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's factory in the city of Osaka on March 30.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 26, 2024
Kobayashi Pharma to cover bills of people who got ill after taking supplements
The Osaka company’s board has also set up a third-party panel to probe the company’s handling of the issue.
Of 1,729 local municipalities nationwide, 744 have been identified as being at risk of disappearing.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 24, 2024
Over 40% of Japan's municipalities at risk of vanishing, study finds
The Tohoku region takes the top spot in both the number and percentage of municipalities at risk of disappearing due to a sharp population decline.
A dealer works in the trading room at a foreign exchange brokerage in Tokyo on March 28. An overwhelming majority of respondents who currently work remotely in some capacity say they wish to continue to do so.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 22, 2024
Hybrid work takes root in Japan, survey finds
While remote working has declined with the end of the pandemic, many of those who adopted a hybrid work model are sticking to it.
Rainbow flags were flown through the capital's busy Shibuya and Harajuku areas for Tokyo Rainbow Pride events this weekend as organizers hailed 30 years of one of Asia's largest LGBTQ celebrations.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 21, 2024
Tokyo Rainbow Pride lights up capital as organizers celebrate 30 years
Under the theme “Until it changes, don’t give up,” this year’s Tokyo Rainbow Pride was held after an eventful 12 months for Japan’s LGBTQ movement.
Lithium powder from recycled batteries in Nevada in March
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 21, 2024
Japanese trading firms look abroad to diversify lithium supply
The resource-limited country is aiming to create a stable supply of the mineral, which is critical for producing batteries for electric vehicles.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield poses for a photo with Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi and the families of Japanese nationals abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, on Thursday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 18, 2024
U.S. envoy to U.N. uses Japan visit to bolster U.N. Security Council
“The Security Council of 70 years ago does not reflect the realities of today,” Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, in December at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California
BASEBALL
Apr 12, 2024
How Ippei Mizuhara allegedly wired millions from Shohei Ohtani’s account
Crucially for Ohtani, a U.S. investigation clearly paints him as a victim without any involvement in or knowledge of his interpreter's gambling woes.
Despite being the home of TSMC’s new factory, the Kyushu region is facing hurdles toward expanding its semiconductor-related transactions.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 11, 2024
Developing Kyushu's chip supply chain still a challenge for TSMC
The issue partially stems from the high barrier of entry into the key semiconductor industry.
Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's headquarters in Osaka
JAPAN / Science & Health
Apr 11, 2024
Kobayashi Pharma troubles reverberate in Taiwan as firm assists with recall
Taiwan is the only place outside of Japan to have seen reports of people falling ill after consuming the company's beni kōji.
A man walks on a road in the Sugamo district of Tokyo. The recent death of a 112-year-old in Chiba Prefecture means no man who was born in the Meiji Era (1868-1912) is still alive in the nation.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 10, 2024
Kanagawa 110-year-old becomes Japan's oldest man
Tomisaburo Wakui was born in November 1913 during the Taisho Era (1912-1926).
Takuya Yokota, the representative of the Association of Families of Victims Kidnapped by North Korea, gives a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 5, 2024
Relatives of Japanese abducted by North Korea hope Kishida raises issue in U.S.
Takuya Yokota, who represents a group of family members of abductees, said the matter is a human rights and humanitarian issue.
Tan Tan was supposed to be sent back to China in 2020, but her return was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 1, 2024
Japan’s oldest panda, Tan Tan, dies at 28
The giant panda leased from China lived in Kobe Oji Zoo for 24 years as a symbol of recovery from the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake.
Japan’s 2024 buzzword of the year urges a reevaluation of past norms
Sadao Abe, who played the role of a time-traveling Showa Era teacher transported to present day in a popular TV drama, receives the 2024 buzzword of the year award for the word "futehodo," the nickname of the series.
Princess Aiko, only child of emperor, turns 23
Princess Aiko on Nov. 22 ahead of her 23rd birthday on Sunday at the Imperial Palace
Ishiba questioned on political reform, social issues and the economy
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks in the Lower House in Tokyo on Monday.
Nearly 90% in Japan and China have negative views of other
Chinese people's sentiment toward Japan is believed to be impacted by their use of social media platforms such as Weibo and Douyin, as well as whether they have visited Japan.
Bear that attacked Akita supermarket employee captured
A brown bear in Hokkaido. In the city of Akita, a bear that attacked a supermarket employee over the weekend was captured in a box trap on Monday morning.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Europe eyes 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine as possible peace deal option
A serviceman with the Ukrainian Army's 24th mechanized brigade fires a machine gun during an exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Donetsk region on Friday.
Seven strangers and an algorithm: Can this new dinner app help you make friends?
Timeleft uses an algorithm to match its users with five or six strangers in an effort to prompt “human connection” over dinner at a restaurant. It determines the attendees with the help of a simple personality quiz available when you sign up for the service. 
Don’t worry, you can still use your Japan health insurance card — for now
A My Number card reader at a pediatric clinic in Tokyo. While the government will stop issuing new health insurance cards on Monday, most people will remain unaffected by the move in the short term as existing health insurance cards can still be used for another year.
The Geisha bean is the leading lady of Tokyo's coffee scene
Discovered in the 1930s, the Geisha coffee plant came to worldwide fame in the early 2000s and now represents some of the best coffee on the planet — Tokyo's top cafes included.

Podcast

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

Longform

The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
By Tomoko Otake

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