Although Japanese authorities were relatively late in their insistence on social distancing and self-isolation, the official results with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic have been encouraging — low numbers recently in terms of infections and, particularly, deaths. But there is almost no media consensus as to why Japan has been spared the kind of suffering that so many other countries are experiencing.

One constant in the coverage is the acute danger of infection within households owing to daily close contact among family members, not to mention the country’s typically cramped living conditions. The low infection rate in Japan can be credited to the seriousness with which the populace has followed social distancing guidelines, which would explain the high percentage of those infected who got the virus from a loved one.

An April 22 FNN Prime Online feature explained that one of the reasons for the prevalence of intra-family infections is that people who develop symptoms tend to wait for test results at home and, sometimes, it takes days to get them back. People in the studio discussed the case of freelance announcer Tamao Akae, whose husband tested positive on April 15 and was hospitalized. It wasn't until later that Akae herself tested positive, though, fortunately, her 2-year-old daughter did not. Akae sent a message to her radio show saying that if both parents fell ill, who would take care of their child? One FNN studio guest, actor Tetsuya Bessho, noted that he thought he should keep a suitcase packed just in case, presumably so he can move out and protect his family if he becomes symptomatic.