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Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Mar 9, 2022

Formula One's 'marriage' with Netflix still has more mileage

Despite some criticism over its impact, the docu-series 'Drive to Survive' has created a surge of interest in grand prix racing among younger sports fans.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Mar 7, 2022

Vaughan and Rie Allison welcome all new arrivals to Mia Mia

Picking a location for their cafe far from Tokyo's bustling central hot spots, Vaughan and Rie Allison have nonetheless developed a loyal following among the locals.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 15, 2022

Rap takes over Super Bowl halftime, balancing celebration and protest

At Super Bowl LVI, rap finally got the spotlight . . . in perhaps the 20-somethingth year of hip-hop occupying the center of American pop music.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Feb 5, 2022

Japanese game developers embrace NFTs, but at what cost?

The market for digital investment assets looks primed to expand in 2022 and yet the industry isn't quite sure of the best way to handle them.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Dec 30, 2021

New Year's TV sees us spoiled for choice

Japanese broadcast television's slate of new year programming features star-studded blowouts that offer the perfect dose of moderately entertaining content as we head into 2022.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Dec 25, 2021

Fairy tale fantasies meet reality on ‘The Future Diary’ and ‘The Bachelor Japan’

Whether you're in the mood for a love story with a melodramatic touch or some messier romantic competition, streaming services have you covered.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 24, 2021

Escapist bops and deep pop: Music was a mood in 2021

After a year in which Japan's music industry had to make its peace with streaming, this year saw more of the holdouts get on board with the times.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 23, 2021

As Bob Iger departs, Disney investors also look to get off the ride

Walt Disney Co.'s board promised a smooth transition from the end of the Bob Iger era to the new regime under CEO Bob Chapek, but the reality looks much rockier.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Dec 10, 2021

2021 saw breakthrough talents in film rise from the shadows

Ryusuke Hamaguchi's two releases shone abroad, Keisuke Yoshida was honored with a Director in Focus section at home and younger filmmakers blazed new paths.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Dec 3, 2021

JO1 to the world: A new stage for J-pop

The 11-member act signals the rise of reality TV talent competitions geared toward the social media age.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 16, 2021

New normal takes shape as Japan announces 'vaccine-test package'

Those showing proof of vaccination or a negative test result would be able to enter eating and drinking establishments as normal, even under a state of emergency.
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Oct 11, 2021

Netflix hit show 'Squid Game' spurs interest in learning Korean

Duolingo reported a 76% rise in new users signing up to learn Korean in Britain and 40% in the United States over the two weeks following the show's premiere.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 1, 2021

China’s box office becomes a giant headache for Hollywood

Now the world's largest film market, nationalism and China's own version of 'cancel culture” mean challenges for U.S. filmmakers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Sep 22, 2021

How do you deflect a controversy? Keigo Oyamada blames the media.

Musician Keigo Oyamada cries foul over how he was portrayed in a pair of magazine articles that ended up causing him a job at the Tokyo Olympics.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 21, 2021

China targets ‘effeminate’ men in Xi’s growing push for conformity

Beijing has pushed conservative ideas about gender before, including a 2016 ban on entertainment with gay themes and a 2018 attack by some state media on effeminate men in popular culture.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Sep 15, 2021

Norm Macdonald, ‘SNL’ comic dripping in dry wit, dies at 61

Norm Macdonald, the acerbic, sometimes controversial comedian familiar to millions as the 'Weekend Update” anchor on 'Saturday Night Live” from 1994 to 1998, died Tuesday in Los Angeles.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Aug 19, 2021

Xi crackdowns aim to whip China’s ‘lying flat’ youth into shape

Chinese President Xi Jinping's push for 'common prosperity” is in part aimed at turning the younger generation into motivated, patriotic and productive workers.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Aug 7, 2021

London defined Boris Johnson. Then Brexit changed the metrics.

The city that made the British prime minister's political career risks becoming an economic casualty of his premiership.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 6, 2021

Singapore ready to cash in on Southeast Asia's esports boom

The tiny city-state is emerging as a force in hosting events related to mobile and video games, and is cultivating itself as a hub for the industry.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Aug 1, 2021

Jason Hancock: 'A fully inclusive Japan is barrier-free, judgment-free and full of mutual cultural understanding'

A TV reporter and personality, Jason Hancock founded the Special Beauty Japan pageant to celebrate the talent of special needs youth nationwide.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 22, 2021

‘Inubu: The Dog Club’: Puppy love with a heavy dose of advocacy

Drawing from a novel based on true events, “Inubu” shows the barriers activists fighting for the humane treatment of animals face, their own physical and financial limits among them.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 21, 2021

Netflix promises growth ahead after languid start to year

The company added 1.54 million customers in the second quarter, above the 1.12 million forecast by analysts, but it's a far cry from the company's previous growth.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 13, 2021

Local Olympics organizers face uninsured loss from spectator ban

The Tokyo Organising Committee used up much of its event cancellation policy on postponement costs last year, insurance sources say.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / Japan Pulse
Jul 3, 2021

Two years is nothing to a 3,500-year-old dragon child, but it was everything to the fans of Kiryu Coco

As Kiryu Coco graduates from Hololive, it allows us a chance to look at the growing influence of virtual YouTubers
Japan Times
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jul 1, 2021

‘The Naked Director Season 2’: Netflix’s porn industry saga is skin deep

The second season of the streaming giant's fictionalized biopic of Japan's notorious adult-video director and entrepreneur offers another round of cheap thrills.
Japan Times
Special Supplements
Jun 17, 2021

Working to achieve SDGs through strong ESG investing

In his book “A Brief History of the Future: A Brave and Controversial Look at the Twenty-First Century” (2006), Jacques Attali predicted two industries would emerge as the most influential of the 21st century — entertainment and insurance.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2021

Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward to prioritize people in their 20s and 30s for vaccines

The policy underscores the ward's desire to curb infections among the young, many of whom don't have a family doctor.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jun 2, 2021

Japan’s much-maligned vaccine campaign quietly gathers speed

The seven-day average of doses given has quadrupled in just two weeks, with about a quarter of the nearly 14 million shots given coming in the past week alone.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?