Deep Dive from The Japan Times

Since the end of December, worries about new strains of COVID-19 have prompted Japan to reimpose border restrictions, including stopping the issuance of new visas to people hoping to move to Japan. We look at how these new border restrictions are affecting foreign residents. Also, Sam Seghers recounts her experience being left in limbo by the new restrictions, and Aska Ross walks us through his th...

Bloomberg reporter Lisa Du joins Deep Dive to discuss when Japan will start to distribute a vaccine for COVID-19, and why it has fallen so far behind other countries. Also, Oscar's Grandma Elizabeth recounts her experience being vaccinated in the U.K. Read more:  Japan's bitter vaccine history creates hurdle in COVID-19 fight (Lisa Du via The Japan Times) Japanese approval of Moderna COVID-19 vacc...

Thank you to everyone who submitted their stories, it was lovely hearing from you all. We received stories from around the world, from as far away as India, Australia and Brazil, to name but a few places. A very Happy New Year to all of our listeners, take care in 2021. Regular episodes of Deep Dive will return in January. Until then, podtsukaresama! On this episode: Deep Dive listeners: Thank you...

In Episode 1 of Recultured, we look at how 2020 ground to a halt through the lens of "Terrace House," and hear from stars of the show about its dramatic ending amid the arrival of COVID-19. Guests on this episode : Aya Nogami , international music consultant Eric Margolis , Japan Times contributor Farrah Hasnain , Japan Times contributor Kai Kobayashi , Terrace House member Lauren Rose Kocher , co...

In Episode 2 of Recultured, we look at what happened when the world was made to stay at home, and how one game from Nintendo provided us an escape into a fantasy land full of fishing, decorating and bug collecting.  Guests on this episode : Chris Broad , YouTuber and podcaster, Abroad in Japan  Claire Williamson , Japan Times food and lifestyle editor Farrah Hasnain , Japan Times contributor Imad...

In Episode 3 of Recultured, we discuss what happens when the government lifts Japan's state of emergency, and the country attempts to adjust to a "new normal." Pop group NiziU’s song “Make You Happy” provides an upbeat soundtrack for the summer, and hints at bigger changes underway. Guests on this episode : Aya Nogami , international music consultant Chris Broad , YouTuber and podcaster, Abroad in...

In Episode 4 of Recultured, we look to the movie releases of Ufotable's "Demon Slayer" and Kyoto Animation's "Violet Evergarden" for hope, as we wait out the long winter for a vaccine and brighter days in 2021. Guests on this episode : Hannah Lee , writer for Arama Japan Kim Morrissy , Anime News Network Tokyo correspondent Lauren Rose Kocher , co-founder Zaiko PTE Matt Schley , Japan Times anime...

Send us your stories about what got you through the challenges of 2020. It could be new hobbies you started, different things you discovered online, unexpected moments that brought you happiness, or things you did for other people. Record a voice memo on your phone — the inbuilt app is totally fine — and tell us your story along with your name and where you're recording from.  Once you're done, ju...

Our guest is Sheila A. Smith, a senior fellow for Japan studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, and the author of books including “Japan Rearmed: The Politics of Military Power” and “Japan's New Politics and the U.S.-Japan Alliance.” Sheila joined us from Washington earlier this week to give her take on what a Biden presidency might mean for Japan going forward, where the U.S. and Japan might...

Our guest today is Alex Kerr, best known for his books “Lost Japan” and “Dogs and Demons.” Through his work in Shikoku’s Iya Valley and Kyoto’s teahouse districts, Alex has become one of the country’s pioneers of new models of heritage-based and sustainable tourism.  On this episode we’ll be discussing what a sustainable future for Japan’s tourism could look like, and whether Covid-19 offers a spa...

Gearoid Reidy, a senior editor at Bloomberg, joins us to discuss whether we might see a new state of emergency and the hope provided by the recent news about vaccines. Read more: Tokyo reports record-breaking daily cases as capital prepares for highest alert level (Ryusei Takahashi, The Japan Times) COVID-19 updates (The Japan Times) Hokkaido raises alert level for Sapporo as virus surge continues...

The Ainu are Japan's indigenous population and Japan Times contributor Mara Budgen has been meeting with them to better understand their remaining culture, the difficulties they face, and to learn about the ongoing efforts to preserve their language. Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Kokoro Care Packages , delivering curated care packages from Japan, filled with locally made, premium-quality,...

In his research, Dan discovers the long history of cannabis in Japan, talks to groups campaigning for the legalization of medical marijuana and the people selling CBD as a relaxation agent during these ever so slightly stressful times. Read/hear more: Is Japan ready to embrace CBD? (Dan Buyanovsky, The Japan Times) Cannabis — The fabric of Japan (Jon Mitchell, The Japan Times) Japan’s First Lady T...

As Halloween approaches, author, Bram Stoker Award nominee and host of the podcast " Uncanny Japan ," Thersa Matsuura joins us to share her fascination with the Japanese supernatural, and reads us her version of one of Japan's most famous ghost stories, "Okiku and the Nine Plates." Sponsor : This episode is sponsored by Democrats Abroad Japan , a volunteer organization that helps Americans oversea...

Japan has an uncomfortable relationship with tattoos, which are associated with the yakuza and the criminal underworld of Japan. We’re joined by Japan Times contributor and former columnist Alice Gordenker, who hopes to challenge that stereotype, through a new documentary she’s produced called “Horimono: Japan’s Tattoo Pilgrimage,” which follows the annual pilgrimage of the Choyukai, a group unite...

News editor Joel Tansey discusses the impact of Naomi Osaka’s support for the Black Lives Matter movement both in the U.S. and Japan, and what a new wave of activism in sports might mean for next summer's Tokyo Olympics. Sponsor : This episode is sponsored by Democrats Abroad Japan, a volunteer organization that helps Americans overseas register to vote. VoteFromAbroad.org makes the ballot request...

Ginny Tapley Takemori is probably best known for her 2018 translation of "Convenience Store Woman," the bestselling novel by Sayaka Murata, which won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize when it was first published in Japanese in 2016. Like the original, the English translation was a bestseller, and the author and translator have collaborated again to translate Murata’s 11th novel, "Earthlings," which...

Japan Times food editor Claire Williamson joins Deep Dive to discuss her new found passion for Aspergillus oryzae, the mold better known in Japan as kōji. Jeremy Umansky and Rich Shih, authors of "Koji Alchemy: Rediscovering the Magic of Mold-based Fermentation," also give us the lowdown on what makes the mold so exciting for them. Hosted by Oscar Boyd Read more :  ‘Koji Alchemy’: Fermentation ent...

This episode is based around an extract from the audiobook of "Pure Invention." We join in the middle of chapter 5, which is all about the invention of the Walkman. We hear from Matt as he describes a conversation between the two co-founders of Sony, Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka — a conversation that would lead to the creation of the iconic portable music player that completely redefined how we li...

Staff reporter Ryusei Takahashi joins Oscar Boyd to discuss the idea, opportunities and difficulties of a green recovery in Japan. Sponsor: This episode is sponsored by Democrats Abroad Japan, a volunteer organization that helps Americans overseas register to vote. VoteFromAbroad.org makes the ballot request process simple and easy, so if you need to vote from overseas, visit VoteFromAbroad.org ....

We’re joined by Tobias Harris, author of “The Iconoclast,” a biography of Shinzo Abe. Harris gives his take on Abe’s legacy, examining everything from his foreign policy to the missed opportunities. Also on the show is Wakako Fukuda, one of the cofounders of the activist group SEALDs, who led some of Japan's biggest protests since the 1960s against Abe’s proposed changes to security laws in 2015....

We're joined by Tobias Harris, author of "The Iconoclast," a  biography of Shinzo Abe that was published the day before Abe resigned. Harris talks about Abe's last few months in office, and who might be the next prime minister of Japan. Also, Japan Times politics reporter Satoshi Sugiyama describes his day reporting on Abe's historic resignation announcement. Read more:  Suga, Abe’s right-hand man...

In next week’s episode we’ll be looking at the latest news in much more depth, but for now we’re bringing you an episode from the archives, episode 32, somewhat ironically titled "What’s the secret to Shinzo Abe’s longevity?" This episode was originally recorded in December 2019, in a world that had not yet gone through the trials of the coronavirus, and when Japan was looking ahead to hosting the...

On this episode we’re taking a look at how Japan’s international students and academics have been affected by the entry bans. Though the government is expected to change its policy imminently, to date the border closures have had an overwhelmingly negative impact on Japan’s universities, even as the country tries to position itself on the international stage as a more attractive place to study.  W...

This episode, our guests are Robbie Swinnerton and Melinda Joe. Robbie has been writing Tokyo Food File, his restaurant review column for The Japan Times, since 1998 and Melinda has been writing her column Kanpai Culture, all about Japan’s drinking culture, since 2011. With well over 30 years experience of eating, drinking and writing about the capital's food scene between them, we hear from Robbi...