WRITES TOM PLATE FROM LOS ANGELES IN HIS SYNDICATED ASIA COLUMN – ‘Ukraine Isn’t Armageddon.’ Now, how bold and direct is that?! This was the banner headline splashed over the most incisive journalism I have read on Vladimir Putin and the Crimea crisis. It led the April edition of Le Monde Diplomatique, the…
Category: East Asia
JAPAN: The Yakuza Does Philanthropy?
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – Organizations looking to publicize usually turn to the Internet. But what if you’re the yakuza? Often considered Japan’s version of the Italian mob, the yakuza feels so misunderstood it has turned to the Net to help tell a more nuanced story. The Yamaguchi-gumi, a branch of the…
JAPAN: Crimea Controversy Leads to Net Sensation
JEREMIAH FAJARDO WRITES – While some countries snort derisively at Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Crimea, in Japan it’s been love at first sight with the Republic’s new attorney general. In the immediate aftermath of the Russian land grab, a press conference featuring 34-year-old Natalia Poklonskaya went viral — and it…
AT LMU: A Triumph of Insight and Intellect
By the staff of Asia Media: It was a packed house that took in the sweeping and insightful presentation on today’s Japan, from the noted international journalist David Pilling. The Asia Editor and Asia Columnist of the Financial Times offered the LMU community an intellectually thrilling tour d’horizon of the issues…
NORTH KOREA: The Grass is Greener in South Korea
RYAN LIPPERT WRITES – The North Korean government may slowly be losing the battle for the hearts and minds of its people. How is this happening in a country where the government uses propaganda, political repression, and secrecy to control public opinion? It appears that many North Korean citizens have…
JAPAN: Leaving the Past in the Past?
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – “Forgive and forget” is often easier said than done. When two countries have as rough a history as South Korea and Japan, it’s not surprising that tensions would be high between their leaders. For years, South Korea has requested that Japan offer compensation to the many…
JAPAN: Social Networking Criminals ‘Like’ Minors
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – Through the wonders of social media, communicating with loved ones (and even not-so-loved ones) is now just a few clicks away. But with this power comes great responsibility. Through the ages, parents have warned children not to talk to strangers. But how effective is such advice…
NORTH KOREA: U.N. Releases Report on Human Rights in North Korea
RYAN LIPPERT WRITES – It’s now even safer to assume that North Korea is not the utopia its leaders would like the rest of the world to believe. Recently, the United Nations published the findings of an inquiry on the state of human rights in the country. The report contains…
THE PLATE COLUMN: Skating on Thin Ice
TOM PLATE WRITES IN HIS SYNDICATED COLUMN APPEARING IN THE JAPAN TIMES (Tokyo) – Like so many people around the world, I was totally blown away not only by Olympic skater Kim Yuna’s performance on the ice in Sochi, but even more so by her cool and classy performance off…
HONG KONG: Reporters Without Borders — Media Watchdog of the World
LAUREN CHEN WRITES–Hong Kong’s media independence is in jeopardy, according to the annual 2014 World Press Freedom Index. Reporters Without Borders released its latest study, considered an objective reference tool measuring press freedom, and ranked 180 countries based on aspects such as levels of censorship, number of attacks on journalists,…
POVERTY PROJECT: Measuring Inequality, How Asia Stacks Up
AUSTIN SZABO WRITES: When you want to know the economics of a country, you usually look at its gross domestic product — the amount of wealth it produced over the course of a year. But GDP tells only part of the story; it leaves out how the wealth is distributed.…
JAPAN: Language and Gender Spark Debate at 2020 Olympic Press Conference
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – Is it English or ego? Former Prime Minister and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Organizing Committee President Yoshiro Mori sparked controversy at a news conference held at the Main Media Center for the Sochi Games when questioned about why he spoke in Japanese rather than English. Mori,…
NORTH KOREA: It’s Not What You Know, It’s Who You Know
RYAN LIPPERT WRITES – In today’s world, connections are everything. Knowing the right people can get you job offers and admission into prestigious schools. Or it can get you a prison sentence in North Korea. Forty performers were arrested and imprisoned in North Korea just for knowing Jang Son Thaek,…
SOUTH KOREA: A Bittersweet Win for South Korea
CATHERINE KIM WRITES – Victor Ahn, a.k.a. Ahn Hyun-Soo, is now a Russian hero after winning the nation’s first-ever gold medal in the 1,000 meters short-track speed skating at the Sochi Winter Olympics. After winning first place, Ahn skated to the center of the ice, got down on all fours and…
POVERTY PROJECT: Introducing the Asia Media Poverty Project
AUSTIN SZABO WRITES: In September 2011, a group of young activists occupied Zuccotti Park in Manhattan. The movement, dubbed Occupy Wall Street, became a rallying point for progressives around the world. Subsequent police crackdowns generally failed to disperse the activists, and their tenacity inspired people from all walks of life…
TAIWAN: Leaving China? Welcome to Taiwan, Ramzy
BRIAN CANAVE WRITES – In the wake of New York Times reporter Austin Ramzy’s unceremonious departure from Beijing, neighboring Taiwan has warmly welcomed him for a temporary stay while he continues his coverage of the mainland. Taiwan’s Central News Agency reported that the government “welcomes international media enterprises and their staff” such…