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August 15, 2024
 

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EXPLAINER

Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Dec 1, 2014
Campaigns under way but outcome no surprise
Two weeks after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to dissolve the Lower House and call a snap election, campaigning has officially kicked off with more than 1,000 candidates vying for the 475 seats in the Diet's lower chamber.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 24, 2014
With ethics classes receiving upgrade in 2018, worries of nationalism rise
Starting in the 2018 academic year, so-called "dotoku" (moral education) will be part of the regular curriculum in elementary and junior high schools, instead of its current status as an "activity outside the set subjects."
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 17, 2014
Hate speech law faces uphill battle as snap poll may derail debate
Over the past few months, hate speech in Japan and efforts to address the situation with legislation have drawn domestic and international attention.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Nov 3, 2014
GPIF investment shift could bring either bonanza or bust
Friday's announcement of changes to the massive ¥127 trillion public pension fund's investment policy was headline news.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Oct 27, 2014
'Comfort women' issue refuses to go away
"Comfort women," as Japan refers to the females who were forced into sexual servitude for the nation's wartime forces, have been a constant source of controversy since the early 1990s, when the media started to take a serious look at their ordeal.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Oct 20, 2014
Hometown 'tax' donations system catching on
Japanese may not be known as the most charity-minded people but if there is one charitable activity that has proved a hit in this country, it's the 'furusato nozei' (hometown tax).
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Oct 6, 2014
Car sharing: A cheaper alternative to owning a car in the city
Owning a car in Japan can be a hassle if you live in a city because it often comes with the extra cost of renting a parking space.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 29, 2014
Mount Fuji finds mixed success with tolls
As the Mount Fuji climbing season drew to a close earlier this month, authorities were assessing the success of a new ¥1,000 voluntary climbing fee, which almost half of hikers skipped paying. It was introduced this year following a trial in 2013.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 22, 2014
Fukushima cleanup going painfully slow
Three and a half years after Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power station spewed massive amounts of radioactive materials into the air and water, decontamination work in Fukushima Prefecture has yet to draw to an end.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 8, 2014
How vulnerable is Japan to severe weather?
The deadly mudslides in Hiroshima and other parts of western Japan last month caused by torrential rains have raised concerns about how vulnerable Japan is to such natural disasters, especially given severe weather events due to climate change.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 1, 2014
After STAP scandal, Riken plots its future
With recent revelations of misconduct involving its research on so-called STAP cells, stem cell researcher Haruko Obokata and her employer, Riken Institute, have come under intense scrutiny and criticism.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 25, 2014
Tourism emerges as new economic driver for Japan
With its contribution now rivaling that of the auto industry in at least one estimate, tourism is fast becoming a key focus of Japan's economic policy.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 18, 2014
Who's at the table for Abe's reshuffle?
Rumors and speculation are swirling in Nagata-cho, Japan's political nerve center. The hot topic: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plan to reshuffle the Cabinet and the leadership of his Liberal Democratic Party next month.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 4, 2014
Courts, U.N. shine spotlight on hate speech in Japan
Rarely in the history of Japan have public concerns over hate speech appeared so intense and widespread as today.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jul 21, 2014
Selective consumption tax weighed
It's only been three months since the consumption tax was hiked to 8 percent, but the ruling coalition is already expediting talks on another increase scheduled to come into effect in October next year.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jul 14, 2014
Budget phones challenge the majors
Smartphones may be convenient, but there's one thing about them that bugs many people: their costly monthly data plans.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 30, 2014
New station to boost Shinagawa's international role
East Japan Railway Co. (JR East) announced in early June it will open a new station on the Yamanote loop in Tokyo in time for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 23, 2014
Abe looks to put his stamp on foreign aid
Next up for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe? Figuring out how to put official development assistance (ODA) to "strategic" use so the international aid program can help Japan make a more "proactive contribution" to world peace, one of Abe's pet policy goals.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 16, 2014
Japan's gambit in WWI set stage for a dark future
One hundred years ago, on June 28, 1914, Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo. It was the spark that led, one month later, to the beginning of World War I, which originally was expected to be confined to Europe and end in weeks. By the time it ended on Nov. 11, 1918, an estimated...
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jun 2, 2014
Middle road sought for health food labels
In an attempt to cash in on consumers' growing interest in healthy eating, new varieties of fresh fruit and vegetables — each touting enhanced health-boosting properties — are making their way to supermarkets nationwide.
Japan to revise consumption tax exemption for overseas tourists
Tourists walk through Nakamise shopping street near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo in April
Japan's tourism industry hit by cancellations after megaquake alert
A beach closed due to a megaquake alert in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, from Friday to Thursday.
Focus shifts to incoming typhoon as Tropical Storm Maria dissipates
Newly formed Tropical Storm Ampil, which is forecast to approach eastern Japan this weekend, is seen on the left side of this satellite image.
Kishida to step down in September in bid to show ‘LDP has changed’
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a news conference Wednesday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
Publisher finds surprise audience after translating history textbooks
Yamakawa Shuppansha president Takeshi Nozawa holds the publisher's textbook on Japanese history — used in high schools across Japan — alongside the new English version in Tokyo on May 23.
Economic security is about strengthening and sustaining growth, former minister says
Former economic security minister Takayuki Kobayashi says changes in the international balance of power, along with deepening economic interdependence, have led some countries to attempt to use their economic power to impose their will on others.
Ice bandanas, convenience store breaks: Running under Japan’s summer sun
Blistering heat is becoming a fixture of summer in Japan, but a few tweaks to your routine can make your outdoor runs bearable — if not enjoyable — until cooler temperatures return.
Japan issued its first-ever megaquake alert. What does that mean?
Naoshi Hirata (center), chairman of a committee tasked with evaluating the risk of a Nankai Trough earthquake, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
France brings down the curtain on its Olympic party with Tom Cruise and Leon Marchand
Fireworks are set off during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics at Stade de France in Saint-Denis on Sunday.
Japan fuels U.S. LNG boom even as climate targets and impacts loom
Flaring at the Cameron LNG export terminal in Hackberry, Louisiana. Flaring, a common sight at LNG plants, is a controlled burning of gas for reasons ranging from depressurizing equipment to disposing of gas that can’t be used. The practice is a "waste of money" and negatively impacts climate change and human health, says the International Energy Agency.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’
By Thu-Huong Ha

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