Is Japan's media stuck in the past?
By Jeff W. Richards
From NHK to Fuji TV, Japan's biggest broadcasters once dominated the national conversation. But in the age of Netflix, YouTube and independent creators, they're losing cultural influence — and younger audiences are tuning out.
In this episode of Japan Today Spotlight, we take a critical look at why Japan's legacy media giants are struggling to innovate and how their outdated structures are holding them back.
Is it just slow change — or a system that refuses to change? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Chapters:
0:00 Topic overview
1:25 A media empire in decline
2:46 Weak responses and scattered strategies
4:00 The old boys bottleneck
4:43 Cultural stakes and credibility gap
5:37 Who's actually innovating?
7:53 Outro
Read more on Japan Today:
Join the Conversation!
Should Japan's legacy media be doing more to adapt — or is it already too late? Let us know in the comments below.
Don't forget to like, subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss an update on Japan's biggest news stories on the Japan Today YouTube channel.
Follow us for more updates:
The views and opinions expressed in this video are those of the host and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of GPlusMedia, Inc.
© Japan Today
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Times
2 days ago
- Japan Times
‘A garden is a grand teacher': The Kamakura Gardener nurtures and soothes via YouTube
'Good day from Kamakura, Japan,' a warm, soothing voice says, welcoming you into a verdant world on screen. The voice, honed by five decades in broadcast journalism, belongs to Robert Jefferson, a semiretired news writer and announcer at NHK. For the past seven years, though, he has been offering a different kind of reportage, crafting a distinctive persona as The Kamakura Gardener on YouTube. With his canine co-host Haru beside him, Jefferson has produced, shot and edited several hundred videos for his channel. In weekly half-hour episodes, Jefferson centers his show on the mountainside garden that he shares with viewers around the world. Japan has no shortage of beautiful gardens deserving of attention, but I assure you this one is unique, even powerful. Arrive and hear the birdsong around the sun-dappled terrace. Notice the rows of vegetables, fruits and flowers set against a gentle sea of green hills. Admire the drops of morning dew poised on the edges and folds of emerald leaves. Feel your nervous system, twisted ragged by the relentless news cycle, social media scroll and endless to-do lists, begin to uncoil. This garden offers a glimpse of a gentler world and way of living — a place Jefferson had to create for himself before he could open the gate to the rest of us. Cure for the news blues Before he met American civil rights icons including Coretta Scott King and Stokely Carmichael (aka Kwame Ture) as a teenage radio journalist, before he joined the news service of the U.S. Air Force and took assignments around the world — including an initial stint in Japan in 1982 that would prove life-changing — Jefferson was just a sixth grader in Pennsylvania growing a string bean plant in any empty milk carton. 'Look at that,' he remembers thinking when it grew. 'A little teeny tiny bean placed in soil with some water could sprout into a plant. I'm still fascinated by it at 65.' Jefferson has lived in Japan for more than 40 years and is a semiretired news writer and announcer at NHK. | Alex Michael Dwyer Plants have woven into his life and career ever since: bamboo from his apartment in Koto Ward; cactuses and palm trees he received when friends left Japan; a fern he was gifted by his first car dealer; a rubber plant that fit in his bicycle basket in Tokyo, and now crawls for meters along the beams of his living room. 'Next year will be 50 years in broadcasting,' Jefferson says, citing an array of major news events, from assassinations and wars to natural disasters, that have been burned into his memory. 'From the days of Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan to ... George Bush, Obama, Biden and now Trump, I've seen a lot, and it can take a lot out of you.' Before, he coped with the gruesome business of newsmaking with stiff drinks and jazz. His social world used to be centered around Tokyo's jazz cafes. He frequented Eagle in Yotsuya, Swing in Shibuya and Dug in Shinjuku. 'I used to hang out at all of them,' he says, noting how many friends in his nightlife community had passed away. 'That's why I'm so glad I quit drinking when I did. Had I not, I probably would've suffered the fate of so many others with bad health and a destroyed mind.' Now, even though he still works in a news industry that hasn't become any less stressful, gardening offers not only a way to cope, but a chance to commune with the natural world — and transcend. 'Grow, my lovelies' You won't find Jefferson's garden in the guidebooks, but the comment section below each of his YouTube videos is a testament to the inspiration he instills in viewers from around the world, or just across town. 'Watching your channel is so relaxing,' reads a comment from a subscriber in Florida. 'It makes me feel as though I was right there with you in Kamakura.' Jefferson began working on his Tokyo apartment's balcony garden in 2006 before moving to Kamakura the following year, but the impetus to share what he did online came during the COVID-19 pandemic as he became increasingly health-conscious and felt the desire to grow more of his own food. Kamakura is often pictured as a getaway. A popular daytrip from Tokyo, the city's beaches, trails and connections to history draw visitors in equal measure. For those of us who call Kamakura home, we experience the town, first and foremost, as a close-knit community. I discovered The Kamakura Gardener in December thanks to a neighbor who ran into Jefferson on a hike. I had become horticulturally curious after frequent gifts of fresh vegetables and jams from that same neighbor's garden. Embarrassed that I had made it nearly 40 years into life without ever growing a single plant, I didn't know where to start. The Kamakura Gardener provided guidance in the form of a weekly episode of must-see TV. If watching a garden grow sounds too slow in a lightning-fast world, turn your attention to the gripping anecdotes hiding just below the soil: the antagonistic rodents and insects that visit the garden uninvited; the water and fertilizer ratio riddles Jefferson seeks to decipher; the unexpected appearance of hard-won delights like pineapple and avocado. Episodes continue in the kitchen where he prepares meals and treats with his homegrown goods. Once Jefferson sets the gardening shears aside and dons the chef's apron, all bets are off. Have a napkin nearby because it's hard to get through an episode without drooling. Don't worry about indulging too much. We'll hike it off with Haru, the French bulldog — running into old buddies and making new friends along the way — to a viewpoint of Mount Fuji behind the storied Kuzuharaoka Shrine. The Kamakura Gardener is more than a gardening, cooking or travel show; it is a balm for our present milieu. After one episode, I was hooked. What plants will survive and fruit this year? What new sagas will unfold? Why put so much effort into things you can buy from the grocery store? These questions float in my head when I visit The Kamakura Gardener's headquarters this spring. Jefferson gives me a tour of his home — some 50 plants grow indoors alone — before we step out to the sprawling garden terrace. Haru zooms around as we explore, and there's so much to take in: tiny white blossoms dangling off blueberry plants, bright yellow zucchini flowers and radish sprouts that have popped up in the lower garden. Over a glass of homemade ginger ale and freshly baked strawberry cupcakes, I ask Jefferson what I should pick for my first foray into the gardening world. 'Eat what you grow,' Jefferson says, 'and grow what you eat.' Haru, a French bulldog, is Jefferson's constant companion in his videos and in life. | Alex Michael Dwyer My curiosity accelerates. There's a delight in Jefferson's voice when he sees new growth, and you can feel his resolve when presented with a challenge. His passion and determination are contagious. 'Grow, my lovelies, grow,' he frequently says with a chuckle in his videos. His words are fully sincere. They are like prayers to himself, his plants — and all of his viewers. The nudge of encouragement we all need to reach toward what lights us up and to release what dims us. 'I don't listen to (jazz) anymore,' he reveals in a moment of reflection. 'I listen to the birds.' It becomes clear then, with the natural soundtrack of spring in the background, surrounded by plants Jefferson has cared for with such dedication for so many years, what makes this garden so unique and powerful. It's a reciprocal relationship: The garden has grown him as much as he has grown it. 'There's a saying,' Jefferson explains. 'A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness. It teaches industry and thrift. Above all, it teaches entire trust.' These words ring in my head when I pick out my first seeds. A week later tiny, tender cucumber leaves sprout up. I run into the house, celebrating the growth like a child. I don't know what to do when the sprouts outgrow their tiny cup container. I can only trust that I'll figure it out. After all, there's a garden I know I can visit anytime, from anywhere, for guidance on how to grow.
Asahi Shimbun
24-05-2025
- Asahi Shimbun
Vietnamese craftsmen save Yamagata ‘flower hat' fest
From right, Yoshiaki Henmi, president of Shobido, Yamagata Mayor Takahiro Sato, Kenji Koga, director of the Yamagata commerce information center of the Japan External Trade Organization, and Koga's wife, Tran, show off prototype 'hanagasa' floral hats crafted in Vietnam at the Yamagata city office on Feb. 13. (Koichi Anzai) YAMAGATA--Hats off to Vietnamese artisans who have come to the rescue of a long-established festival here that is famed for its beautiful dancers holding 'hanagasa' in their hands. The Yamagata Hanagasa Festival is among the most renowned summer events in the northeastern Tohoku region of Japan. Last summer, the organizer of the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival discovered that the traditional flower straw hats carried by the dancers were in short supply. Causing this grave 'incident' was the dearth of materials and craftsmen. In the end, with the kind assistance of Vietnam, which has historically been skilled in making straw hats, the Japanese festival successfully overcame the crisis, at least temporarily. Hanagasa, adorned with imitation flowers and small bells as its Japanese name meaning 'floral hats' suggests, constitutes the essential part of the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival. Shouting energetically and twirling flower-decorated hats in their hands, some 10,000 dancers, led by floats, parade through the central area of Yamagata city in the annual ritual period in early August. A total of 700,000 visitors attended the three-day festival in 2024, according to its organizer. More than 90 percent of the hanagasa are made and sold by Shobido, a souvenir wholesaler and retailer based in Yamagata city. Yoshiaki Henmi, 64, president of Shobido, said that his company sells 4,000 hats primarily to performers' groups every year. Despite this, Shobido had no choice but to decline orders for 1,000 hanagasa last year. LINKED VIA NHK TV DRAMA The hanagasa shortage in 2024 was attributed to not only underdeveloped sedge--the grass-like material used for the floral headwear--but also the lack of successors capable of weaving hanagasa. Sedge in Yamagata Prefecture is cultured mainly in Yamagata city alongside Iide and Obanazawa. The plant did not grow thick due to high temperatures and dry weather over the past few years. Thinner sedge stalks required more stems to complete each hat, reportedly resulting in a plunge in hanagasa output. Aside from this, hanagasa artisans in areas like the Nakatsugawa district of Iide, where the old-style hat is aggressively crafted by hand by farmers for earning money on the side in the off-season, are becoming increasingly elderly. About 15 individuals were engaged in hanagasa production in Nakatsugawa 10 years ago. Now, only five women in their 70s to 90s continue to make the headgear, marking a sharp decline in the number of makers. In the peak period, as many as 10,000 hanagasa were shipped annually from Nakatsugawa. The district has delivered 2,000 pieces in the face of the challenging situation in recent years. A dedicated training program was organized to nurture and develop younger craftsmen. However, the workshop was reportedly discontinued shortly thereafter. Last summer, 2,000 hats were barely completed. An additional 1,000 pieces were prepared by releasing stockpiled hanagasa and applying floral-printed surfaces to their frames. Still, the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival found itself short of 1,000 hanagasa. As a result, performer groups and individual dancers were encouraged to share floral hats in an effort to hold the event as usual. After the festival, Henmi therefore decided to secure a 'new procurement source.' 'We must preserve the representative summer festival of Yamagata,' Henmi recalled thinking at the time. Henmi contacted the Yamagata commerce information center of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) through the mediation of Yamagata city. Kenji Koga, 44, director of the center, aka JETRO Yamagata, had, incidentally, been stationed at the JETRO's Hanoi office in Vietnam for three and a half years. His wife, Tran, 37, is from Vietnam, too. After being consulted by Henmi, Koga quickly had an idea in his mind: importing the 'non la' cone-shaped headwear, which is worn to block the harsh sunlight in Vietnam, might work. The hat, commonly donned in the agriculture-rich country, resembles Japan's hanagasa in appearance. Koga suggested that substitutes for hanagasa 'could be made in Vietnam,' advising that Henmi purchase flower hats from makers in the country. Koga enlisted the help of an acquaintance in Vietnam for the plan at the same time. He likewise won his spouse's cooperation to embark on expanding the supply chain for the sake of the Yamagata festival. The project was further buoyed by the popularity of the 1980s Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK) TV drama 'Oshin' in Vietnam, which was filmed in Yamagata, to enhance the Vietnamese affinity for the Japanese prefecture. Zai Tay village in the outskirts of Hanoi was specifically selected because 200 residents there produce 80,000 non la hats each year. The village mayor agreed to 'assist in Japan's hanagasa making given their difficulty' in response. Both the Japanese and Vietnamese sides discussed the issue numerous times via video conferences. Toward the end of last year, Koga and Henmi left for Vietnam. They spent three days at the village mayor's home so they could provide guidance on the weaving method for hanagasa. INTERVENTION SAVES THIS YEAR'S FESTIVAL Vietnamese craftspeople promptly created a prototype hanagasa by combining palm leaves and bamboo bark, achieving strength and flexibility simultaneously. Seeing that, Henmi became confident about the plan's success. 'I was stunned by their adeptness, though the materials and techniques used were different from ours,' said Henmi. 'I felt that simply fine-tuning the details would lead to the completion of a quality hat.' Koga was similarly satisfied with the outcome. 'I covered all the costs of the business trip to attend meetings on my own, beyond my official duties at JETRO,' Koga said. 'It was a valuable experience for me, as a Yamagata citizen, to be able to think of and contribute to the conservation of the festival, taking full advantage of my personal connections.' Henmi placed an order for Zai Tay village for a total of 1,500 hanagasa in two sizes--33 centimeters and 48 cm in diameter, respectively--in late January of this year. They are expected to arrive in Yamagata by the end of May, with finished hanagasa inspected by Koga during his visit to Vietnam in late April. Koga expressed high expectations for the two nations' mutual relationship in the future. 'I believe it will be best for Japan and Vietnam if our initiative this time deepens the bonds between Vietnam and Yamagata,' Koga said. Henmi made a courtesy call to Yamagata Mayor Takahiro Sato in February. 'I have heard about the shortage of hats from citizens, so it is delightful for all relevant parties to come together with full force to start on a solution on an international scale,' Sato said about the hanagasa prototype presented to him. 'I am looking forward to seeing hats from Vietnam add color to the festivity.' Whereas the envisioned delivery from Vietnam will likely allow the Yamagata Hanagasa Festival to avoid a critical situation for some time, the lack of hanagasa producers remains unresolved. Offers have come from nearby Iwate and Miyagi prefectures to make up for the latest scarcity of hanagasa. 'We will maintain our deal with Vietnam for the time being, while fostering hat weavers in Japan in earnest,' Henmi said. The iconic scene of performers dancing in Yamagata while holding up made-in-Vietnam hanagasa will soon be seen this summer.
22-05-2025
Fuji TV Panel Defends Recognition of Sexual Violence by Nakai
News from Japan Culture May 22, 2025 19:29 (JST) Tokyo, May 22 (Jiji Press)--A third-party committee set up by Fuji Television Network Inc. on Thursday defended its report concluding that former popular television personality Masahiro Nakai had committed sexual violence against a former Fuji TV announcer. The move came in response to a statement released by a lawyer for Nakai on May 12 that argued that a violent or coercive sexual act typically associated with the Japanese term for 'sexual violence' could not be confirmed between Nakai and the woman. The third-party committee said in a statement Thursday that its recognition of sexual violence was based on the World Health Organization's definition because Fuji TV and its parent, Fuji Media Holdings Inc., needed to fulfill their accountability to global shareholders. The committee rejected the Nakai side's request to disclose interview records and other evidence, claiming that disclosure would undermine its independence and neutrality. Regarding the Nakai side's claim that for the committee's hearing, it had initially proposed waiving a confidentiality obligation under an agreement between him and the woman, the committee admitted that the Nakai side had been positive about taking such action. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
