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Eric Johnston

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Eric Johnston
JAPAN
Apr 17, 2009
Alcoholism remains a taboo issue
OSAKA — He seems to have it all. A tenured university professor in the Kansai region, fluent in English and partially conversant in Chinese, he is consulted by senior local business leaders seeking advice on doing business in the United States and Europe and has served on local government committees...
Japan Times
JAPAN / MIXED MATCHES
Apr 4, 2009
Childhood friends, partners for life
KYOTO — Dan Bertuzzi, 39, and his wife, Asuka, 31, have a relationship that’s a fairy tale come true.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Mar 31, 2009
Child porn hard to define, stop
Japan has a huge adult pornography market. But the country also has a reputation as a haven for child porn, with international human rights groups and governments including the United States all criticizing Tokyo for not doing enough to curb the spread of sexually graphic material that exploits children....
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2009
Hashimoto loses fight to move Osaka HQ
OSAKA — Osaka Gov. Toru Hashimoto suffered his first major political setback early Tuesday when a proposal to move the prefectural headquarters to the World Trade Center building in the harbor district was voted down.
JAPAN
Mar 19, 2009
Baha’i in Japan slam Iran for holding members accused of spying for Israel
KOBE — Japan’s Baha’i community is calling on the government to join the growing list of countries and international organizations that have condemned Iran for its arrest of seven of its members.
JAPAN
Feb 27, 2009
A year in, Osaka Gov. Hashimoto on a roll
After more than a year in office, Osaka Gov. Toru Hashimoto enjoys approval ratings Prime Minister Taro Aso can only dream of, and he’s wielding his popularity to push budget cuts and sweeping fiscal and economic reforms on the way to what he eventually hopes will be a semiautonomous Kansai region.
JAPAN
Feb 24, 2009
Tokyo relieved no drama in Obama’s Japan policy
Prime Minister Taro Aso’s political situation may be tenuous when he meets Tuesday in Washington with President Barack Obama, but so far the new administration’s rhetoric and policies toward Japan appear mainly to be firmly rooted in that of his predecessor, George W. Bush.
JAPAN
Feb 18, 2009
‘Progress’ clause a tangible threat
The agreement Japan and the United States signed Tuesday on relocating U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam notes that the move is dependent on “tangible progress” toward completing a replacement facility for Air Station Futenma in Ginowan and on Japanese money to fund the development of facilities and...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 14, 2009
Choked with visitors, Kyoto takes slow road toward eco-tourism
The ancient capital of Kyoto conjures up many images among international tourists, ranging from quiet rock gardens and temples to performing geisha.
BUSINESS
Feb 7, 2009
Kansai exec proposes secession to cure economic ills
As the national and regional economies worsen, industrial production plummets and tens of thousands of workers lose their jobs, what should the Kansai region do?
BUSINESS
Feb 6, 2009
Kansai business leaders decry job cuts, call for social duty
Amid the deepening economic gloom and growing layoffs at home and abroad, corporate and government leaders in the Kansai region gathered Thursday in Kyoto for an annual two-day seminar on economic, political and social issues.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2009
Namesake town parties into night
The Fukui Prefecture town that shares its name with new U.S. President Barack Obama celebrated his inauguration Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
JAPAN
Jan 22, 2009
Japan hopes new U.S. leader can demonstrate alliance is still vital
Sworn in as the 44th president of the United States, Barack Obama faces high expectations not only at home, but also from close ally Japan, as he grapples with an unprecedented array of domestic and foreign policy issues.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 13, 2009
Respect ‘maiko’ privacy, don’t act like paparazzi, Kyoto tells tourists
KYOTO — It’s a freezing December night but tourists are out in force in Kyoto’s Gion district, on the hunt for one particular attraction.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2009
Osaka school mobile ban resonates
OSAKA — Each morning, Hisako Kuroda sends her sons, Kenichi, 11, and Jun, 8, off to elementary school in Osaka. The kids depart with their textbooks and homework. But one item they are not carrying is a cell phone.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jan 6, 2009
Lessons from when the bubble burst
With the current global financial crisis, there is much talk in the international economic communities about how to prevent the kind of prolonged slump that hit Japan after the end of the bubble economy years.
JAPAN
Dec 24, 2008
Hard times for foreign workers
First of two parts
JAPAN
Dec 6, 2008
Osaka governor only has eyes for China
OSAKA — A year ago, when Osaka Gov. Toru Hashimoto announced his candidacy, he made saving the prefecture from bankruptcy his priority.
JAPAN
Nov 30, 2008
Conference in Nagoya provides writing tips
NAGOYA — Japan has long been a favored destination, and a favorite subject, for Western scribes. In the 19th century, Laficadio Hearn and Isabella Bird penned books that were widely read in Europe and the United States. In the 20th century, novelists like James Michener and beat poet Gary Snyder were...
JAPAN
Nov 28, 2008
An NGO reaches out to bullied foreign kids
KYOTO — Bullying is widely recognized as a problem affecting Japanese children. But non-Japanese kids and their parents who are also harassed can have a particularly hard time finding either sympathy or practical advice in their native language.
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Japan needs caregivers. Young Indians are answering the call.
Young people in India's northeast are increasingly studying Japanese in hopes of building new lives and careers in Japan.
Trump says ‘Japan’ instead of Iran at meeting in Ankara
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a news conference during a NATO leaders' summit in Ankara on Wednesday.
Wakatakakage injury casts pall over July meet, but potential new stars loom
Nicholas Tarasenko trains at Minato stable in August 2024.
Osaka trumps Tokyo as both ranked among world’s top 10 most livable cities
Osaka’s infrastructure earned higher marks than Tokyo’s in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s latest Global Liveability Index.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.
Filmmaker explores history of discrimination against foreign nationals in Japan
Takashi Nishihara, the director of "Now and Then," in Tokyo on Wednesday. The director has spent 10 years traversing politically charged terrain while exploring youth-driven grassroots political movements that scrutinize the status quo.
Okinawa’s prized seaweed under threat as oceans warm
Local harvesters gather <i>mozuku</i> during low tide at Hyakuna Beach in the city of Nanjo, Okinawa Prefecture. As the planet warms, rising ocean temperatures are placing increasing pressure on the seaweed industry.
Japanese nail salons are tourists’ new obsession
Tourists in Japan have always been interested in quintessentially Japanese approaches to modern culture, and, increasingly, visits to nail salons have become the new hot thing.

Podcast

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

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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