Japan is one of the world’s most literate societies. Its national newspapers are the most read newspapers in the world, and the country also has a very vibrant local newspaper sector. This book assesses the vital role local newspapers play in the development of local communities, as well as examining their development, industry structure and production conventions. The author employs the key term, ‘revitalization journalism’, to explore in detail the many techniques and conventions that local newspapers employ to engage with, and make an impact in, their specific host regions. The book concludes by comparing Japanese local newspapers to the current state of newspapers worldwide, and assessing how Japanese local newspapers are likely to develop in future.

In Japan, the kisha-clubs are the focal point between the authorities and the media - they are not the counterpart of the leisurely, informal nature of western press clubs of which the free access to information is of the essence.

Japan is one of the most media-saturated societies in the world. The circulations of its "big five" national newspapers dwarf those of any major American newspaper. Its public service broadcasting agency, NHK, is second only to the BBC in size. And it has a full range of commercial television stations, high-brow and low-brow magazines, and a large anti-mainstream media and mini-media. Japanese elites rate the mass media as the most influential group in Japanese society. But what role do they play in political life? Whose interests do the media serve? Are the media mainly servants of the state, or are they watchdogs on behalf of the public? And what effects do the media have on the political beliefs and behavior of ordinary Japanese people? These questions are the focus of this collection of essays by leading political scientists, sociologists, social psychologists, and journalists. Japan's unique kisha (press) club system, its powerful media business organizations, the uses of the media by Japan's wily bureaucrats, and the role of the media in everything from political scandals to shaping public opinion, are among the many subjects of this insightful and provocative book.

This reader introduces Japanese journalism and print media in Japan, focusing on Japanese newspapers and the journalism that produces it. The chapters present research that has either focused on journalistic practice and product as research topic or has used journalism and newspapers as an information source in social science research. In this sense, the contents both describe and evaluate Japanese journalism and its newspapers, while also highlighting the contribution such research has made to the field of Japanese Studies. At a broader level, the contents offer exploratory viewpoints, outline methodological approaches, and present empirical case studies, highlighting not only how journalistic practice and the news it produces constitute a meaningful research area, but also how use of journalism and the newspaper as source can contribute to research across a range of diverse themes.

2019 26th fifth This book summarizes a carefully selected set of basic data to give readers an overview of the information media environment in Japan. Commentaries are provided for data in the following eight fields: Print, Broadcasting, Telecommunications, Films and Videos, Pop Culture, Games, Online Services and Advertising, including 70 charts and graphs. This is the digest version in English of “A Research for the Information and Media Society of Japan” edited by Dentsu Media Innovation Lab . * The original Japanese edition, which offers a wide range of data sets and in-depth commentaries for key industries, has served as a very good reference book for all those interested in grasping the landscapes of information and media industries in Japan. Published every year, the latest 2019 edition marks the 26th publication. The English edition is reorganized from the Japanese and has been released for the fifth time as an e-book, with the first release being in 2014. * Dentsu Media Innovation Lab is the think-tank department of Japan’s largest advertising agency, Dentsu Inc. Media Innovation Lab conducts original and proprietary studies on a variety of fields related to media, publishes key findings and insights, and offers advisory and consulting services to the clients involved in the information and media industries.

This collection of writings from Lafcaido Hern paints a rare and fascinating picture of pre-modern Japan Over a century after his death, author, translator, and educator Lafcaido Hearn remains one of the best-known Westerners ever to make Japan his home. Almost more Japanese than the Japanese--"to think with their thoughts" was his aim--his prolific writings on things Japanese were instrumental in introducing Japanese culture to the West. In this masterful anthology, Donald Richie shows that Hearn was first and foremost a reliable and enthusiastic observer, who faithfully recorded a detailed account of the people, customs, and culture of late nineteen-century Japan. Opening and closing with excerpts from Hearn's final books, Richie's astute selection from among "over 4,000 printed pages" not including correspondence and other writing, also reveals Hearn's later, more sober and reflective attitudes to the things that he observed and wrote about. Part One, "The Land," chronicles Hearn's early years when he wrote primarily about the appearance of his adopted home. Part Two, "The People," records the author's later years when he came to terms with the Japanese themselves. In this anthology, Richie, more gifted in capturing the essence of a person on the page than any other foreign writer living in Japan, has picked out the best of Hearn's evocations. Select writings include: The Chief City of the Province of the Gods Three Popular Ballads In the Cave of the Children's Ghosts Bits of Life and Death A Street Singer Kimiko On A Bridge

Written by local expert Sumiko Kajiyama, Cool Japan explores the heart of Japanese culture and must-see places from a uniquely Japanese perspective. First, visit Kyoto, where you will discover 1,000 years of history, from the ancient love story the Tale of Genji to the traditional tea ceremony. Then head to Tokyo to experience Japan's cutting-edge capital, where the 21st-century kawaii culture collides with landmarks like the Kabuki-za Theater and the Imperial Palace. For a different perspective, venture outside the city to the serene towns of Tohoku, the region largely affected by the 2011 tsunami disaster. Informative, entertaining, and useful, this book is an ideal introduction for any traveler looking for a deeper understanding of Japanese culture, past and present.

This book summarizes a carefully selected set of basic data to give readers an overview of the information media environment in Japan. Commentaries are provided for data in the following eight fields: Print, Broadcasting, Telecommunications, Films and Videos, Pop Culture, Games, Online Services and Advertising, including 70 charts and graphs. This is the digest version in English of “A Research for the Information and Media Society of Japan” edited by Dentsu Media Innovation Lab .* The original Japanese edition, which offers a wide range of data sets and in-depth commentaries for key industries, has served as a very good reference book for all those interested in grasping the landscapes of information and media industries in Japan. Published every year, the latest 2018 edition marks the 25th publication. The English edition is reorganized from the Japanese and has been released for the fourth time as an e-book, with the first release being in 2014. * Dentsu Media Innovation Lab is the think-tank department of Japan’s largest advertising agency, Dentsu Inc. Media Innovation Lab conducts original and proprietary studies on a variety of fields related to media, publishes key findings and insights, and offers advisory and consulting services to the clients involved in the information and media industries.

The award-winning author and syndicated columnist shares his humorous observations on his trip to Japan, sharing his thoughts on culture shock in all its numerous forms--from kabuki to public bathing. Reprint.

A landmark narrative history of American media that puts race at the center of the story. Here is a new, sweeping narrative history of American news media that puts race at the center of the story. From the earliest colonial newspapers to the Internet age, America’s racial divisions have played a central role in the creation of the country’s media system, just as the media has contributed to—and every so often, combated—racial oppression. News for All the People reveals how racial segregation distorted the information Americans received from the mainstream media. It unearths numerous examples of how publishers and broadcasters actually fomented racial violence and discrimination through their coverage. And it chronicles the influence federal media policies exerted in such conflicts. It depicts the struggle of Black, Latino, Asian, and Native American journalists who fought to create a vibrant yet little-known alternative, democratic press, and then, beginning in the 1970s, forced open the doors of the major media companies. The writing is fast-paced, story-driven, and replete with memorable portraits of individual journalists and media executives, both famous and obscure, heroes and villains. It weaves back and forth between the corporate and government leaders who built our segregated media system—such as Herbert Hoover, whose Federal Radio Commission eagerly awarded a license to a notorious Ku Klux Klan organization in the nation’s capital—and those who rebelled against that system, like Pittsburgh Courier publisher Robert L. Vann, who led a remarkable national campaign to get the black-face comedy Amos ’n’ Andy off the air. Based on years of original archival research and up-to-the-minute reporting and written by two veteran journalists and leading advocates for a more inclusive and democratic media system, News for All the People should become the standard history of American media.