Search - 2021

 
 
Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks to reporters in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 25, 2024

Once allies, Ishiba, Kono and Koizumi set to battle for LDP president votes

The three, dubbed the "Koishikawa coalition" after kanji characters from each of their last names, will jostle for party member support in the Sept. 27 election.
Rudy Garcia-Tolson (left) at the London Paralympics in September 2012. The American swimmer got a tattoo of the Olympic rings after first competing at the 2004 Athens Paralympics.
PARALYMPICS
Aug 25, 2024

Paralympics will drop ban on Olympic rings tattoos

Days before the start of the Paralympics, the IPC has suddenly, and without obvious explanation, reversed course on a rule that had banned tattoos of the Olympic rings.
A store clerk tries to cool things down in front of their shop by spraying a hose.
BUSINESS / Economy / Longform
Aug 26, 2024

Is extreme weather changing the way Japan shops?

Intense heat and an increase in storms, by-products of a changing climate, are altering consumer behavior.
Boxes of Joban-mono marine produce such as flounder are lined up at the Hisanohama fishing port in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Sep 2, 2024

Fukushima fishermen not in the clear yet

Challenges remain for the prefecture's fisheries industry a year after the release of treated water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant began.
The Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani reacts after being doused with water after his walk-off grand slam against the Rays at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday.
BASEBALL / MLB / Sac Bunts
Aug 26, 2024

New 40-40 club member Shohei Ohtani has real shot at unprecedented 50-50 campaign

Ohtani has a chance to make even more history after reaching the 40-40 club.
Digital minister Taro Kono speaks during a news conference to announce his candidacy in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 26, 2024

Taro Kono joins contest for LDP presidency

Touting his international credentials, the digital minister put economic reform at the top of his agenda, pledging to cut publicly funded projects that are ineffective.
Police officers stand guard during a campaign speech by a candidate in the Lower House by-election in Tokyo in April.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 26, 2024

Tight security eyed for LDP election speeches after Trump attack

Security measures at speech venues are expected to include the use of metal detectors and the installation of bulletproof shields around speakers.
Suntory's canned cocktail Minus 196 Double Lemon on sale at a store in Sydney
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 27, 2024

Japan's Suntory bets on spirits expertise to boost U.S. canned cocktail market share

Suntory believes its annual RTD revenue could double from current levels to about $3 billion (¥434 billion) by 2030.
Black Myth: Wukong has sold over 10 million copies in less than a week — by far the best launch of a Chinese-developed single-player game in history.
LIFE / Digital
Aug 27, 2024

With Black Myth: Wukong, China is now a force to reckon with in AAA games

Can China’s first AAA gaming hit bear the weight of the cultural baggage it’s being burdened with?
Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of messaging app Telegram, has been arrested as part of an investigation of crimes related to child pornography, drug trafficking and fraudulent transactions on the platform.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Aug 27, 2024

Telegram CEO arrested in probe into child porn, drug trafficking on app

The investigation over suspected complicity in various crimes includes the refusal to communicate information to authorities.
Mosquitoes under a microscope in a lab at Sahmyook University in Seoul on July 24
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Aug 27, 2024

As the world warms, South Korea's latest border threat is mosquitoes

Climate change, especially warmer springs and heavier rainfall, could bring more mosquito-borne diseases to North and South Korea.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris addresses the United Nations' COP28 climate change conference in Dubai on Dec. 2. Harris and Donald Trump are poles apart when it comes to climate change.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 27, 2024

America’s coming climate election

Clearly, the positions of the two U.S. presidential candidates on the climate crisis could not be more different.
U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith
WORLD / Politics
Aug 28, 2024

Special counsel investigating Trump proceeds with 2020 election case

Special Counsel Jack Smith filed an updated indictment that removes several pages of allegations following a Supreme Court ruling.
A foreign laborer works at a construction site amid scorching heat in Riyadh in 2022.
SOCCER / World cup
Aug 28, 2024

Saudi Arabia's World Cup bid renews fears for migrants' welfare

Foreign laborers who dealt with harsh conditions in Saudi Arabia are warning about a pending construction boom for stadiums for the 2034 World Cup.
Cars are flooded in a local street during the pass of a winter storm in Lodi, New Jersey, on Jan. 10.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 28, 2024

Extreme rain is a growing climate threat to the northeastern U.S.

A warming world will bring more rain-induced flooding to the United States' Northeast, a region of millions who aren't prepared for it.
Political polarization in the U.S. is fueling domestic social divisions, eroding democratic norms and leading to a more self-centered U.S. foreign policy that threatens the global liberal order.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Aug 28, 2024

The transformation of American liberalism

Liberalism in the U.S. is the product of overextending the idea of individual autonomy, resulting in selfishness, and, at the same time, a return to traditional morality.
There is a significant divide between security experts, who emphasize the unquantifiable risks of geopolitical instability, and economists, who focus on the measurable costs of restructuring supply chains.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 28, 2024

Traditional economics fail the geopolitical test

The seemingly yawning gap between the views of the security specialists and the business and economics types is striking.
People shop at a flea market hosted by Bunjang, an e-commerce platform for secondhand sales, in Seoul on Aug. 3.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Aug 28, 2024

South Korea's birth rate drive struggles to sway 'YOLO' generation

Asia's fourth-largest economy plans to launch a new government ministry dedicated to demographic challenges.
A government survey has found that 31.7% of men age 20 and older in Japan and 21% of women can be classed as obese.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 28, 2024

Obesity among Japanese men continuing to rise, government survey shows

The 2022 survey found that 31.7% of men age 20 and older had a body mass index, or BMI, of 25 or higher.
A fireworks display was part of the 2024 Paralympic opening ceremony at Place de la Concorde in Paris on Wednesday.
PARALYMPICS
Aug 29, 2024

Paris Paralympics open with colorful ceremony and message of inclusion

The colorful and hope-filled ceremony that marked the start of 11 days of competition in a city still riding the wave of the successful Olympics.
Russell Wilson will begin the season as the Steelers' starting quarterback.
MORE SPORTS / Football
Aug 29, 2024

Russell Wilson gets nod over Justin Fields as Steelers starter

Wilson, who led the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl title a decade ago, had been locked in a battle with fourth-year QB Justin Fields.
The Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology has expanded the scope of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis to include diseases that manifest in adulthood.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 29, 2024

More PGD tests performed after gynecology group widens scope of procedure

More than twice as many applications for screening have been approved after diseases that manifest in adulthood were included in the tests in 2022.
Shohei Ohtani walks through the dugout with his dog Decoy before the Dodgers' game against the Orioles at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 29, 2024

Shohei Ohtani signs exclusive trading card deal with Topps

Ohtani has had a nonexclusive relationship with Topps since 2018.
At Sushi Kadowaki, a full list of New World wines offers a new way to enjoy a classic Japanese meal.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Sep 1, 2024

To accompany your counter sushi, why not try a New World wine?

Chef Takatoshi Kadowaki isn't afraid to recommend a California wine to accompany your premium sushi dinner.
Naomi Osaka hits a return against Karolina Muchova during the second round of the U.S. Open in New York on Thursday.
TENNIS
Aug 30, 2024

Naomi Osaka reflects after losing to Karolina Muchova in second round of U.S. Open

Osaka, who won the title in 2018 and 2020, missed last year's edition after the birth of her daughter.
Chung Pui-kuen, the former chief editor of now-shuttered Hong Kong pro-democracy news outlet Stand News, leaves the district court in Hong Kong on Thursday after he was found guilty of conspiracy to publish seditious materials.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Aug 30, 2024

Hong Kong editors convicted of sedition in blow to press freedom

Local news outlets in Hong Kong already self-censor to survive and some foreign news organizations have left or moved out staff.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris applauds during a campaign event in Savannah, Georgia, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 30, 2024

Harris widens lead over Trump with boost from women and Hispanics

Harris leads Trump 45% to 41% in the poll published Thursday.
Blue Jackets left-winger Johnny Gaudreau skates with the puck during a game against the Canadiens in Montreal in March.
MORE SPORTS / Hockey
Aug 31, 2024

NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother killed in New Jersey crash

Johnny Gaudreau played 11 NHL seasons with the Flames and Blue Jackets and took part in seven All-Star games.
People watch the male giant panda Ri Ri at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo in June 2017.
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2024

Panda pair in Tokyo to return to China

The elderly pandas Ri Ri and Shin Shin will be returned to China next month for medical care.
The Nafoora oil field in Jakharrah, Libya, on Tuesday
BUSINESS
Sep 1, 2024

Libya’s political feud threatens return of oil supply chaos

The North African nation’s crude output was slashed in half last week amid a fight for control of the central bank.

Longform

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