Search - weekly

 
 
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 3, 2014

Defect-hit Mitsubishi Estate halts sale

Mitsubishi Estate Co., the nation's biggest developer by market value, said it is halting the sale of units in a residential building in central Tokyo because of defects.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / DARK SIDE OF THE RISING SUN
Feb 1, 2014

War against stalkers broadens its aims

If you would, dear reader, please take a moment of your time today and let Prime Minister Shinzo Abe know that you'd like him to treat Japan's stalking problem seriously. Let him know that you'd like the Diet to make real laws that would protect the women who are subject to harassment, humiliation, injury...
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 27, 2014

War redress reversal in South Korea

Recent South Korean court rulings ordering Japanese firms to compensate Koreans who were forced to perform labor for them during the war have cast a shadow on already strained bilateral ties.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jan 26, 2014

No time for free reading? You can make it up at university

I hope 2014 has started well for all our readers. Lifelines kicks off the Year of the Horse with an email from overseas reader Hannah, who has several questions about the Japanese education system:
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 25, 2014

Silence Once Begun

If you've ever thought book reviewing was a questionable business — so opinionated! so subjective! — this may be the review to prove you right.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2014

16 kick off Tokyo gubernatorial race

Campaigning for the Tokyo gubernatorial election officially kicked off Thursday with 16 candidates set to battle over national-level issues ranging from energy policy to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 20, 2014

Citizen watchdogs see secrets law reviving tax money abuses

Democratic societies often have an ombudsman system of ordinary citizens who monitor how local and national tax money is spent.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 20, 2014

Use it or lose it: Workers want companies to pay for paid vacations

Getting workers in Japan to take paid holidays is difficult, but that doesn't mean they don't want them.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 19, 2014

Marketers succeed by generating hitto products

Japanese consumers and marketers alike certainly love their ヒット商品 (hitto shōhin, hit products). To understand how this term came about, we need to look back to the decade following World War II. When living standards gradually began to improve from the early 1950s, Japanese consumers eagerly...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 18, 2014

Hirata and Saito: love on the run

The trial of Makoto Hirata, which commenced Thursday, is expected to reveal a number of new facts about the former Aum Shinrikyo fugitive, but of most interest to investigators will be how he managed to stay hidden for so long.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 18, 2014

Akie Abe opines but knows her place in his story

It's no secret that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's most valuable public relations resource at the moment is his wife, Akie, whose candor contrasts vividly with the demure demeanor of most Japanese leaders' wives. The weekly magazine Aera has suggested that Akie's press ubiquity has been strategic in nature,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / TRAVEL INSIDER
Jan 14, 2014

Taiwan to Shikoku; Mileage program; Cathay's additional flights

Taiwan to Shikoku
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 13, 2014

Novartis drug's data-tampering reflects unchecked collusion

Last week, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry filed a criminal complaint with prosecutors against Novartis Pharma K.K., the Japanese subsidiary of Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis, alleging the firm made exaggerated advertising claims for its blockbuster blood pressure drug Diovan.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jan 12, 2014

No lack of ideas on a course of action for English education

Last week's Learning Curve column, "English fluency hopes rest on an education overhaul," looked at the persistent mismatch between the education ministry's stated goals and the actual outcomes of English language education in Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 12, 2014

Deflation Watch: New Year's scorecard

It seems likely that the consumption tax increase will derail the government's economic boom train.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 11, 2014

Dire quake forecasts fail to stir a numb public

Is there a level of fear above which the mind reflexively retreats from imagining the worst? The Great East Japan Earthquake was often described as being 'beyond imagination,' and the art and science of projecting future catastrophes has had to adjust accordingly.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 10, 2014

Diplomatic dustup a worrying sign for Japan-China relations

It's tempting to roll one's eyes at the respective invocations of 'Harry Potter's' Lord Voldemort by the Chinese and Japanese ambassadors to Britain in a diplomatic tit-for-tat, but the exchange is a troubling sign.
Japan Times
CULTURE / CULTURE SMASH
Jan 9, 2014

Anime/manga experts hopeful for year ahead

Aside from Hayao Miyazaki's sudden departure from filmmaking in September, the anime world saw some potentially hopeful developments in 2013.
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jan 8, 2014

Shimane struggling after departure of coach, top star

The Shimane Susanoo Magic have dropped out of playoff contention this season, but big man Jeral Davis remains a bright spot for the fourth-year franchise.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE
Jan 5, 2014

English fluency hopes rest on an education overhaul

Ringing in 2014, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has a dream: One nation that will actively re-engage with the global marketplace.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 5, 2014

The outbreak of the Great War: 100 years on

On New Year's Day 1914, a respected weekly literary publication carried a long article penned by an author referred to only as A Rifleman. Entitled "Letters on War" and published in The New Age, an influential radical magazine in Britain, the three-page piece argued forcefully in favor of military conflict....
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 4, 2014

Slippery slope to Yasukuni, Nago oiled by lucre

As with the Yasukuni story, most of the commentary on Okinawa base relocation deal focused on its contentious nature, but also like the Yasukuni story, the main impetus behind the actions reported was economic.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Jan 4, 2014

SMAP meets the "real" Lady Gaga; Tomoyo Harada branches out in "Kami no Tsuki"; CM of the week: La Vons

The five SMAP lads have saved their highest-profile guest of the year for last. This Monday, their weekly variety show "SMAP×SMAP" will feature not only Lady Gaga, but also her father, Joe Germanotta, who owns an Italian restaurant on Central Park in New York City. One of the regular segments of the...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / CHILD'S PLAY
Jan 2, 2014

'Baby cafe' lets moms unwind while the children play

Tokyo has long been a city that caters for pets, with its countless cat cafes, dog cafes and even rabbit cafes dotted across the capital. But what about cafes for babies of the human variety?
Japan Times
CULTURE
Jan 1, 2014

The most viewed culture stories of 2013

Pop culture ruled the roost in popular stories, but also showed its staying power: The most read online story from the JT culture section this year turned out to be a review of a manga drawn by Osamu Tezuka and first published in 1972. Meanwhile, Hayao Miyazaki's final feature at Studio Ghibli generated...
Japan Times
CULTURE
Jan 1, 2014

NHK's yearlong drama 'Gunshi Kanbei' takes cues from Korean success stories

Strap yourselves in, you're in for a hair-raising ride.
CULTURE
Jan 1, 2014

Boy band member Junichi Okada lands manly acting roles due to his physical prowess

Although he started his career as a member of boy band V6, Junichi Okada has become more well-known in recent years for the macho roles he plays as an actor.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2014

The most viewed news stories of 2013

On first impression, the news stories most read online in 2013 paint a fairly gloomy picture, a mix of loneliness, darkness and tragedy. However, you can also see readers' penchant for science and fantasy, even if Atlantis was not actually discovered. May there be plenty of good news in 2014!
Japan Times
JAPAN / GETTING SERIOUS ABOUT ENGLISH
Dec 31, 2013

English to get 2020 push but teachers not on same page

A reform plan released in mid-December by the education ministry looks to bolster English study from elementary to high school from the 2020 academic year to pursue globalization.

Longform

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