今日吃瓜

 
今日吃瓜
Search
 
November 11, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

JAPAN

Explainer

Politics
Crime & Legal
Science & Health
Society
Explainer
History
How is the U.S. military responding to the Okinawa murder?
JAPAN / Explainer
How is the U.S. military responding to the Okinawa murder?
The incident has threatened to reignite simmering anger in Okinawa — home to the bulk of U.S. forces stationed in Japan.
JAPAN / Explainer
The ins and outs of ETC cards for highways in Japan
With more expressways going cashless, the handy ETC card is becoming an essential add-on when renting or buying a car in Japan.
JAPAN / Explainer
Who are the former royals who may be reinstated to the imperial family?
A proposal to allow the reinstatement of former male royals along the male line of the imperial family through adoption is being considered by policymakers.
Sendai Station is crowded with people Monday after the Tohoku shinkansen line suspended operation following a powerful earthquake off the Sanriku coast.
JAPAN / Explainer
Apr 21, 2026
How to prepare when Japan is under an earthquake advisory
By Jessica Speed
Authorities in Japan are urging residents from Hokkaido to Chiba Prefecture to be ready in case a major earthquake strikes, following Monday’s magnitude 7.7 jolt.
Visitors head to Shirakawago, a popular tourist spot, in Gifu Prefecture in November.
JAPAN / Explainer
Dec 4, 2025
The key points under discussion on policies affecting foreign nationals
By Himari Semans
Policymakers are looking at tighter restrictions on real estate purchases, higher visa-related fees and better Japanese language education, among other things.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi
JAPAN / Explainer
Dec 3, 2025
Takaichi’s Taiwan tumult: A closer look at the Japanese leader’s contentious remarks
By Gabriele Ninivaggi
The prime minister’s remarks about a Taiwan emergency have caused a diplomatic uproar, sending Japan-China ties to new lows.
With the government's integration of health insurance with My Number cards, conventional health insurance cards will no longer be accepted at clinics and hospitals across Japan from Dec. 2.
JAPAN / Explainer
Nov 17, 2025
What you need to know about the shift to My Number health insurance cards
By Jessica Speed
By integrating health insurance with My Number cards, the government hopes to streamline administration processes, reduce paperwork and make it easier to treat patients.
Police cars leave the Akita Prefectural Police headquarters to cull bears, in the city of Akita on Thursday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Nov 13, 2025
As attacks surge, who can cull bears in Japan?
By Yukana Inoue
In Japan, few people typically own guns, and the process to qualify for a license to hunt the animals takes time and effort.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba waits for a session of the House of Councillors Budget Committee to begin in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Mar 19, 2025
What’s the fuss over Ishiba’s gift vouchers?
By Himari Semans and Gabriele Ninivaggi
The prime minister’s standing has worsened following reports that he handed out gift vouchers worth ?100,000 ($668) each to rookie lawmakers from his party.
Members of the media raise their hands for questions as outgoing Fuji TV President Koichi Minato attends a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Jan 28, 2025
What we learned at Fuji TV’s marathon Nakai scandal news conference
By Yukana Inoue
Longtime executive of Fuji TV Hisashi Hieda, who has been dubbed the “emperor” of the broadcaster, was not present at the news conference and did not resign.

Man arrested over operation of rogue cellular base station in Tokyo
The Metropolitan Police Department has arrested Yu Hai, a 31-year-old Chinese national living in Tokyo's Kita Ward, on suspicion of operating an unlicensed base station from a vehicle in Tokyo's Ginza district on Saturday.
Government betting on language app powered by anime and AI
Japan plans to develop an AI-powered language-learning app that lets overseas anime and manga fans practice Japanese through conversations with popular characters.
Japan works to shield Takaichi from any Xi snub at China summit
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi arrives at the Prime Minister's office in Tokyo on Nov. 4.
Magnitude 5.7 quake injures dozens in central Japan
A magnitude-5.7 earthquake with its epicenter in Shizuoka Prefecture struck central Japan early Sunday, injuring dozens, shattering windows and disrupting train services, with no tsunami warning issued.
Private high schools remain out of reach for many despite tuition-free policy, survey finds
A survey showed that many families with children attending private high schools are struggling to pay expenses other than tuition.
‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ makes monster debut at the box office
Takashi Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus Zero” marked the highest single-day box-office gross for a live-action film in Japan with ?910 million on its opening day.
A toast to Naohiko Noguchi, sake’s first living national treasure
As a teenager, Naohiko Noguchi did not intend to spend his life as a sake brewer, but he has since become a paragon of the industry.
Few signs of thaw in Japan-China relations one year after Takaichi’s Taiwan remarks
Tensions between Japan and China flared after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Nov. 7, 2025, that a Chinese blockade of Taiwan could threaten 今日吃瓜 survival and warrant the use of collective self-defense.
Mariko Mori predicted the future. She’ll do it again.
Artist Mariko Mori is currently working to bring the translucent human-sized “Peace Crystal” sculpture to a cave in Ethiopia. It is part of her foundation’s goal to place a permanent sculpture on each of the planet’s six habitable continents.
A legend reborn: ‘Ocarina of Time’ remake improves on the Zelda masterpiece
The new remake of 1998's "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" manages to somehow improve on one of the greatest games ever.

Podcast

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

Longform

Famima Park Azabudai is a concept store by FamilyMart that combines convenience store staples with branded apparel, merchandise and a landscaped outdoor space.
Convenience stores, toilets and the allure of everyday Japan
By Elizabeth Beattie

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Latest News

Japan not immune to public backlash against data centers, experts say
33 mins ago
16 Japanese detained in Laos for suspected scam involvement
1 hour ago
JR East to introduce touchless ticket gates in spring 2028
1 hour ago
Honda raises outlook even as failed EV bet weighs on profit
1 hour ago
Tokyo court dismisses suit against Meta over fake ads involving entrepreneur
2 hours ago