A critique of Japanese mainstream media, arguing that coverage in Nikkei and NHK has overstated China’s rise and overlooked key political realities. Examines media responsibility, historical narratives, and the influence of journalism on international perception.

January 20, 2019
This morning’s Shunju column has laid bare before the entire nation the fact that Nikkei, Asahi Shimbun, and NHK have long encouraged and emboldened China and the Korean Peninsula—whose very essence is that of nations of “bottomless evil” and “plausible lies.”
Last night’s feature program ignored entirely the question of the sustainability of China as a one-party communist dictatorship, or its legitimacy for humanity, and focused solely on the fact that it possesses a population of 1.3 billion.
Having stolen every possible technology and piece of information from Japan, the United States, and Europe…having ensnared Japanese media such as Asahi and NHK and political figures in money traps and honey traps…having fabricated historical issues to extract the greatest financial assistance in human history and technological support represented by Panasonic…and having continued to receive ODA from Japan until just last year…China achieved rapid economic growth.
Yet the program focused only on that and, from beginning to end, repeatedly called it a superpower rivaling the United States.
There could be no program more shameful, more disgraceful, more traitorous to the nation.
They continued to feature Ian Bremmer—who, as I have already mentioned, is not merely a petty figure but precisely the kind of person any Chinese intelligence agency would surely target.
A program constructed as if the world were dividing into two poles—the United States and China—as if only those two existed.
It presents itself with a plausible appearance, yet in reality it is clearly a pro-China special program produced by NHK, Japan’s de facto state broadcaster.
And then this morning’s Shunju column on the front page of the Nikkei—its praise of the Korean Peninsula is equally appalling.
It is the ultimate example of pseudo-moralism and masochistic historical views, completely ignoring historical facts clarified by figures such as Masayuki Takayama and Atsuko Miyawaki, and representing the culmination of thought formed by defeat.
If this were not a newspaper that at least reports on markets, I would cancel it immediately.
As of today, I am seriously considering canceling this paper and seeking other means of obtaining only market information.
As a Japanese citizen, I cannot accept that at a time when the Korean Peninsula reveals itself as a hostile entity toward Japan—a nation of “bottomless evil” and “plausible lies”—this newspaper is effectively sending aid to one of the worst states in history.
Worse still, it even writes that historically the Korean Peninsula stood above Japan.
Is the journalist who wrote this Shunju column truly Japanese?
I feel profound regret that I have subscribed to such an unpleasant newspaper for so long.
There is no newspaper more foolish—except perhaps Asahi Shimbun or TBS.
Apart from what is revealed by the joint works of Yoichi Takahashi and Hideo Tamura, in terms of the philosophy and intellectual foundations most essential to a nation, Nikkei is filled with fools.
This morning’s Shunju column has openly revealed to all that Nikkei, Asahi Shimbun, and NHK have been encouraging and emboldening China and the Korean Peninsula—nations whose essence is that of “bottomless evil” and “plausible lies.”