This article examines the controversy over an Asahi Shimbun editorial board member’s tweet describing the new coronavirus as “in a sense, an exhilarating presence.” It argues that the incident exposed a grave pathology within the Asahi Shimbun’s editorial culture and Japan’s media establishment.

March 15, 2020
There can be no doubt that the editorial board members of the Asahi Shimbun are the ringleaders of a group of madmen.
The following is an article I found online after searching for the matter reported on last night’s television news.
There can be no doubt that the editorial board members of the Asahi Shimbun are the ringleaders of a group of madmen.
It is surely as an extension of people like these that we find Noriko Ishigaki, a disgrace to my home prefecture of Miyagi, and Isoko Mochizuki of the Tokyo Shimbun.
The Asahi Shimbun Apologizes for an Inappropriate Post by an Editorial Board Member: The New Coronavirus May Be “In a Sense, an Exhilarating Presence”
On the 14th, the Asahi Shimbun Company apologized for an inappropriate Twitter post made on the 13th by its reporter and editorial board member, Chihiro Kotaki, concerning the new coronavirus.
The content of the tweet was as follows: “Even though it is not a war, the president of a superpower is trembling in fear. The new coronavirus may be, in a sense, an exhilarating presence.”
The company said it took the matter seriously as an act incompatible with its journalistic stance, and revoked his status as a “social media reporter,” a role responsible for specialized information dissemination.
According to the company, he acknowledged his mistake and apologized, saying, “I sincerely apologize. I deeply regret it.”
A storm of criticism had erupted online over the reporter’s post.
On the afternoon of the 13th, Editorial Board Member Kotaki tweeted: “It has swept across the world in the blink of an eye, and even though it is not a war, the president of a superpower is trembling in fear. The new coronavirus may be, in a sense, an exhilarating presence.”
His Twitter profile read: “Asahi Shimbun editorial board member, in charge of temples, shrines, and cultural properties. My hobby is karate, Shinkyokushinkai first dan. I am a 57-year-old man on the verge of becoming an old man. I have also been appointed unofficial ambassador in support of the Kōfukuji Karura.”
As criticism mounted, he deleted his account on the 13th.
The statement released by the company’s public relations department on Twitter was as follows.
Chihiro Kotaki, an editorial board member and reporter of the Asahi Shimbun, made an inappropriate post on Twitter on the 13th.
The company takes this seriously as conduct incompatible with our journalistic stance, and has revoked his role as a “social media reporter,” which involved specialized information dissemination.
It was also inappropriate that he deleted his account without any explanation or apology.
We deeply apologize.
The post stated: “Even though it is not a war, the president of a superpower is trembling in fear. The new coronavirus may be, in a sense, an exhilarating presence.”
It appears he intended to express the magnitude of the virus’s power, but the word “exhilarating” was extremely inappropriate, and caused distress to many people, including those infected and the bereaved families of those who died.
He has acknowledged his mistake and stated, “I sincerely apologize. I deeply regret it.”