Tag - media

 
 

MEDIA

Billionaire Elon Musk said the value of his X social media network is $45 billion when including $12 billion of debt, describing his xAI artificial intelligence startup's purchase of X as an all-stock transaction.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 29, 2025
Musk’s xAI startup swallows up X social network in surprise deal
Elon Musk said his xAI artificial intelligence startup has acquired the X platform, which he also controls, at a valuation of $33 billion.
A conceptual image of the official YouTube channel screen to be operated by the Imperial Household Agency starting April 1
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2025
Japan's imperial family to start YouTube account
The channel, which goes live on Tuesday, follows the imperial family's social media debut last year on Instagram, which now has nearly 2 million followers.
An election poster board in Tokyo in June displays candidates for last year's Tokyo gubernatorial election.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 28, 2025
Efforts to curb election chaos face uphill battle
A bill on campaign poster decency has been enacted after inappropriate posters were seen in Tokyo last year.
Liu Zhenya and her daughter are escorted by police and immigration officers at Songshan Airport in Taipei on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 26, 2025
Chinese influencer forced to leave Taiwan for supporting invasion
Taiwan authorities ordered Liu Zhenya to leave because she posted videos supporting the idea of a Chinese military takeover.
Others in the running to buy TikTok are Microsoft, Oracle and a group that includes Internet personality MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 22, 2025
AI startup Perplexity confirms interest to buy TikTok
Perplexity in a blog post laid out a vision for integrating its AI-powered internet search capabilities with the popular video-snippet sharing app.
Women's March Tokyo, a demonstration march against sexual violence and discrimination against women, is held on International Women's Day in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward on March 8.
JAPAN
Mar 20, 2025
Women remain underrepresented in Japan's news industry
Correcting the gender gap is an urgent issue in the industry, with such a change expected to bring women's perspectives to newsrooms.
The Voice of America building in Washington on Sunday, a day after more than 1,300 of the employees of the media broadcaster, which operates in almost 50 languages, were placed on leave
WORLD / Politics
Mar 18, 2025
China and Russia eager to fill void as Trump axes U.S.-funded media
Trumps moves come after years of efforts by Beijing and Moscow to promote their own worldview on the global media landscape.
A Voice of America crew make a live report as they stand in a causeway leading to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's estate in Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, last December.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 16, 2025
Trump freezes U.S.-funded media outlets including Voice of America
The abrupt freezing of U.S.-funded outlets will be a blow to efforts at countering Russian and Chinese information offensives.
Jalen Brunson of the Knicks during an NBA All-Star Game event in San Francisco on Feb. 16.
BASKETBALL / NBA
Mar 16, 2025
To get big in China, NBA stars enlist social media surrogates
The trend comes as recently fraught ties between the NBA and China thaw.
According to the Nippon Bonsai Growers Cooperative, there were about 30 cases of bonsai theft last year.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 14, 2025
Bonsai thefts sweep Japan as miniature trees grow more popular
About 30 cases of such theft occurred last year, according to the Nippon Bonsai Growers Cooperative.
By type of social media, crimes against children in which they were targeted through their use of social media took place most frequently through Instagram for the first time, at 461 victims, followed by X at 398 victims, and TikTok, at 82 victims.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 13, 2025
Children targeted for crime through social media fell 10.8% in 2024
The total was the lowest in the past 10 years and fell for the fifth consecutive year, the National Police Agency said.
Voters believe they are active participants in democracies, but the real power is concentrated in the hands of the few.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 12, 2025
Social media and playing at democracy
Voters believe they are active participants in democracies, but the real power is concentrated in the hands of the few.
Elon Musk, head of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, wears a shirt that says "Tech Support" as he speaks during a Cabinet meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington on Feb. 26.
WORLD
Mar 11, 2025
Elon Musk says X hit by major cyberattack
The attack raises questions as to whether the politically divisive billionaire — and top adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump — is being targeted.
England and Wales Cricket Board signage is seen at Lord's Cricket Ground before the second Ashes test in London on June 28, 2023.
ECB signage before the start of the second test Action Images via Reuters/Peter Cziborra
MORE SPORTS / Cricket
Mar 7, 2025
England and Wales Cricket Board apologizes for 'ill-judged' post about pope
"This was an ill-judged post and was swiftly deleted," an ECB spokesman said. "We apologize for any offense."
Globally, women are severely underrepresented among leading roles in cinema, with female directors accounting for just over 10% of the industry in Japan. Achieving gender equality on-set would have far-reaching consequences for the whole of society.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 7, 2025
Without women behind the camera, equality stays out of the frame
Cinema isn't only about what stories are told, but who tells them. Overcoming severe underrepresentation, women are reshaping the film industry and cultural narratives.
The Eastern District of New York Court Federal Court House in New York on Feb. 5.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 6, 2025
Judges face rise in threats as Musk blasts them over rulings
In recent weeks, Musk, congressional Republicans and other top allies of U.S. President Donald Trump have called for the impeachment of some federal judges.
TikTok has complained to Australia’s government for excluding YouTube from a nationwide move to curb social media.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 5, 2025
TikTok blasts Australia for YouTube carve-out in social media ban
The Chinese-owned short-form video platform described the move as a "sweetheart deal” that’s "illogical, anti-competitive and short sighted.”
Shiori Ito is the first Japanese director to have been nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary feature film. "Black Box Diaries," which tells the story of her quest for justice following her rape in 2015, hasn't been released in Japan.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 4, 2025
Can Shiori Ito’s documentary open Japan’s black box?
Concerns about footage in "Black Box Diaries" have stopped its release in Japan. But Shiori Ito's story needs to be brought to people’s attention — in all its harrowing details.
Prince Hisahito attends his first news conference at Akasaka Estate in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2025
At first news conference, Prince Hisahito pledges to fulfill royal duties
The prince, who is second in line to the throne, underlined the importance of thinking of the people as a member of the imperial family.
Yarn shortages are a sign that hobbies like knitting and crochet are gaining in popularity.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Mar 4, 2025
‘Granny hobbies’ are the new self-care
Pastimes long associated with Japanese grandparents are booming on social media as young people look for new (old) ways to relax.

Longform

The sun shines from behind a waving Philippine flag at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.
Eighty years after the Battle of Manila, old foes forge new ties