From the Editor
David McNeill
For those of us who came of age consuming and later working for what is now often derisively called old media, the pace of internet-driven change can be bewildering. Newspaper circulation in the US is about a third of its heyday. Television viewing, since topping out in 2010, is also declining and fracturing. Meanwhile, the Internet overflows with misinformation, disinformation and conspiracies. Millions of people no longer agree on simple, provable facts, such as that former president Barack Obama is a US citizen, or that his successor, Donald Trump, lost the 2020 presidential election. Japan may have believed itself relatively insulated from all this but the political rise of Sanae Takaichi, one of Nagatacho’s more savvy users of social media, shows it is not immune. This month’s cover story looks at magazine claims that Takaichi’s office used hundreds of fake online accounts to smear political rivals. In this issue, you’ll also find Eric Johnston’s take on Takaichi’s political fortunes, and Jake Adelstein exploring the dark side of the internet with a story about online vigilantes. Anthony Trotter brings us a terrific, illustrated report from inside Japan’s largest women’s prison. One of the best English-language writers in Japan, Mark Schreiber, writes about his recent visit to the remote gravesite supposedly containing the remains of seven Japanese war criminals executed in 1948. And the brilliant Phil Brasor tackles the alarming decline in Japan’s food self-sufficiency. Number 1 Shimbun is, in my view, an unmissable read for anyone interested in this country but it can only continue to be so with the help of our members, so please pitch your stories.
Cover artwork by Julio Shiiki
The Number 1 Shimbun
July 2026
Publisher FCCJ
Editor David McNeill
Designer Julio Kohji Shiiki, www.sedo.co.jp
Website Paul Braganza
Editorial Assistant Naomichi Iwamura
Photo coordination Hiroko Moriwaki
Publications Committee
Justin McCurry (Chair), Suvendrini Kakuchi, David McNeill, Andy Sharp
FCCJ Board of Directors
President Dan Sloan
1st Vice President Randy Schmidt
2nd Vice President Aviraj Gokool
Treasurer Anthony Rowley
Secretary Kathleen Benoza
Directors-at-Large
Michael King, Taeko Nagayama, Michiyo Nakamoto, Masayuki Watanabe
Kanji Martin Fackler, Knopf Doubleday Publishing & Simon Farrell, Custom Media K.K.
Reserve Director
David Umeda
FCCJ Committee & Ad-hoc Committee Chairs
Publications (Number 1 Shimbun) Justin McCurry
Associate Members’ Liaison Simon Farrell & David Umeda
Entertainment Simon Farrell & Douglas Montgomery
Exhibition Peter Lyon
Film Karen Severns
Finance Anthony Rowley
Food & Beverage Shuri Fukunaga & Michiyo Nakamoto
Freedom of Press David McNeill & Ilgin Yorulmaz
House & Property Randy Schmidt
Human Resources Avi Gokool
Library, Archives & Workroom Suvendrini Kakuchi & Robert Whiting
Membership Randy Schmidt & Dan Sloan
Professional Activities Eric Johnston & Martin Fackler
DeRoy Memorial Scholarship Martin Fackler
Compliance Yoshisuke Iinuma & Masayuki Watanabe
Election (2025-2026) Yoshisuke Iinuma
Deep Dive Anthony Rowley
Information Technology (Web) TBD
Membership Marketing TBD
Sports Akihiko Tanabe
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Published by the FCCJ All opinions contained within the Number 1 Shimbun are those of the authors. As such, these opinions do not constitute an official position of Number 1 Shimbun, the editor or the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan.