Sankei Shimbun Explained

The Sankei Shimbun
Type:	Daily newspaper
Format:	Blanket (54.6 cm x 40.65 cm)
Foundation:	March 1, 1882 (as Jiji News); June 20, 1933 (as Nihon Kogyo Shimbun)
Price:	-->
Owners:	Sankei Shimbun Co., Ltd. (mostly owned by Fuji Media Holdings)
Publisher:	Takamitsu Kumasaka
Language:	Japanese

The, name short for, is a daily national newspaper^[1] in Japan published by the Sankei Shimbun Co., Ltd, ranking amongst the top 5 most circulated newspapers in Japan.^[2]

Together with its English-language paper Japan Forward, the Sankei Shimbun has been described as having a far-right^[3] or right-wing^[4] political stance. It has previously published books denying the atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II.

Corporate profile

The Sankei Shimbun is part of the Fujisankei Communications Group and is 40% owned by Fuji Media Holdings. The company is also the owner of Osaka Broadcasting Corporation (OBC, Radio Osaka).

History

The Sankei Shimbun was created by the merger of two older newspapers: Jiji News and Nihon Kogyō Shimbun. Jiji News was founded in 1882 by author, translator, and journalist Fukuzawa Yukichi, who also founded Keio University. Nihon Kogyō Shimbun, founded in 1933 by Hisakichi Maeda, specialized in business and was published by the Minami-Osaka Shimbun (the South Osaka Evening newspaper). In 1941, the Osaka Shimbun (renamed from Minami-Osaka Shimbun) merged with Osaka Jiji Shimpō (Jiji-Shimpō Osaka edition). The following year, Nihon Kogyō Shimbun merged with other business newspapers in Western Japan, and changed its name to the Sangyō Keizai Shimbun (or the Sankei). In 1955, the Sankei merged with Jiji Shimpō. In 1959, the Sankei and Jiji Shimpō were placed under the Sankei Shimbun masthead.^[5]

In 1958, the Sankei was acquired by Shigeo Mizuno and Nobutaka Shikanai. After financial difficulties, it changed direction from being liberal to being conservative (Tenkō). Both Mizuno and Shikanai would go on to found Fuji Television a year later.^[6]

The Sankei Shimbun started two online newspapers in 1996: Sankei Web, in website style, and E-NEWS, in personal digital assistant style. In 2001, the Sankei Shimbun started a new electronic newspaper delivery edition, NEWSVUE. In 2002, the Sankei Shimbun merged with Osaka Shimbun. Both editions were placed under the Sankei Shimbun masthead. In 2005, the Sankei Shimbun added video to its digital edition, suitable for smartphone, and renamed it as Sankei NetView. In 2007, the Sankei Shimbun started a new online newspaper,, in collaboration with Microsoft. In 2014 the Sankei Shimbun rebranded its online news as Sankei News.^[5]

In 2017, Sankei Shimbun launched the English language online website Japan Forward.

Ownership

• , a national newspaper.
• , an industry & business & economy newspaper that renamed Nihon Kogyo Shimbun (Japan Industry Newspaper) in March 2004, which ended publication in July 2021.
• , a Japanese daily sports newspaper since 1955.
• , a Japanese daily evening tabloid newspaper^[7] since 1969.
• , a horse racing newspaper since 1971.
• , a Kansai regional evening newspaper that suspended publication in 2002.
• , a targeted at young people newspaper founded in 2006.

Political stance

The Sankei Shimbun is a nationalist^{[8] [9] [10] [11] [12]} and conservative newspaper. Some book and media outlets have called the Sankei Shimbun a far-right newspaper;^{[13] [14] [15]} the Sankei Shimbun has previously published books denying the atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II.^[16]

Sankei Award, Sankei Prize

• – An international art prize founded in 1989 awarded by the Imperial family of Japan on behalf of the Japan Art Association in the fields of painting, sculpture, architecture, music, theatre and film.
• – An award founded in 1952.
• – An award commendating founded in 2002.
• – The oldest children's literature award in Japan.
• – Major traditional culture award for the arts of (comedic Japanese verbal entertainment), (Japanese dance), modern dance, classical music and jazz, awarded since 1964.
• – A major kanji (Japanese calligraphy) award founded in 1984.

Philanthropy

• – a medical fund set up in Japan for impoverished children with heart defects.^[17]
• – a nonprofit organization for societal welfare.^[18]

Offices

• Tokyo Head Office (registered headquarters): Tokyo Sankei Building, 1(Itchome)-7-2, Otemachi, Chiyoda, Tokyo
• Osaka Head Office: Namba Sankei Building, 2(Nichome)-1-57, Minatomachi, Naniwa-ku, Osaka
  • Umeda Office: Breeze Tower, 2(Nichome)-4-9, Umeda, Kita-ku, Osaka
• Western Office (Fukuoka): Sunlight Building, 5-23-8, Watanabe-dori, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka

Sankei Group affiliate companies

• Fujisankei Communications Group
• Fuji Television – is a major Japanese television station, also known as or CX. It is the flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System.
• Kansai Telecasting Corporation
• Osaka Broadcasting Corporation – is an AM radio station of National Radio Network (NRN) in Osaka, Japan, also known as .
• FM 802 – is an FM radio station in Kansai, Japan.
• FM COCOLO – is a multilingual FM radio station owned and operated by FM 802 Co., Ltd
• Iwate Menkoi Television – Iwate area
• Sendai Television – Miyagi area
• Fukushima Television Broadcasting – Fukushima area
• Niigata Sogo Television – Niigata area
• Nagano Broadcasting Systems – Nagano area television station
• TV Shizuoka – Shizuoka area television station
• Okayama Broadcasting – Okayama area television station
• Ehime Broadcasting – Ehime area television station
• Shinhiroshima Telecasting – Hiroshima area television station
• Kochi Sun Sun Broadcasting – Kochi area television station
• Tokyo Tower – was the tower's founder and owner.
• FM Osaka – The owner is Hisakichi Maeda's family.
• Japan Airlines – Descendants of Sankei Shimbun Aviation Department

Notable corporate alumni

• Yoshirō Mori, the President of Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. the 85th and 86th Prime Minister of Japan.
• Fukushiro Nukaga, former Minister of Finance of Japan
• Eriko Yamatani, politician, former Chairman of the National Public Safety Commission (Japan), former Minister for the Abduction Issue
• Tsuneo Kitamura, politician serving in the House of Councillors (Japan)
• Kenta Matsunami, politician serving in the House of Representatives (Japan)
• Hiroshi Nakatsuka, Japanese politician. Former mayor of Hirakara.
• Shoko Yamaguchi, Legion of Honour in 2013.
• Ryōtarō Shiba, author
• Sakunosuke Oda, author
• Ikko Tanaka, graphic designer worked at 1964 Summer Olympics, Expo '70, Expo '85, Expo '90
• Masami Abe, first reported the abduction of Japanese nationals by the North Korean regime in 1979, for which he was awarded the Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association Award.^[19]
• Tsutomu Saitō, Chief operating officer at Sankei. He scooped the Dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1990
• Katsuhiro Kuroda, columnist at Sankei, in Seoul Branch (South Korea)
• Yoshihisa Komori, columnist at Sankei, in Washington, D.C. Branch (United States)
• Tatsuya Kato (journalist), columnist at Sankei, former chief of Seoul branch
• Ayari Aoyama, writer at sankei. She is butterfly swimmer, at the 1996 Summer Olympics
• Monta Mino, radio and television announcer
• Masato Kimura, freelance journalist, former chief of London Branch (United Kingdom)

Controversy

In August 2014, South Korea filed suit against the Sankei for insults against Park Geun-hye, the president of South Korea, published in one of the newspaper's articles, and demanded Tatsuya Kato, head of the Seoul Bureau, present himself for questioning.^{[20] [21] [22] [23] [24]} The article in question covered several rumors about Park during the Sinking of the MV Sewol, referring to Korean news reports in the Chosun Ilbo; however, only the Sankei was charged with defamation, considered an anti-Korean newspaper in Korea.^[25] The Japanese media assumed the suit was a warning to the Sankei.^{[26] [27]} Kato, who was eventually acquitted of defamation charges in December 2015, was under prosecution without detention for a year and two months.^[28] The South Korean court said press freedoms were taken into consideration in arriving at Kato's acquittal.

In December 2014, the newspaper apologized after running an advert for Richard Koshimizu promoting antisemitic books.^{[29] [30]}

On February 11, 2015, regular columnist Ayako Sono wrote an opinion piece opining that though she considered it necessary for Japan to accept more immigrants to bolster its decreasing workforce, it would also be necessary for Japan to take steps to ensure the separation of immigrants in regards to living conditions, citing South African apartheid as an example of how to achieve this goal.^{[31] [32] [33]}

See also

• Anti-Korean sentiment in Japan
• Praemium Imperiale
• Tokyo Marathon
• Osaka International Ladies Marathon
• Japanese media
• Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
• Shinzo Abe
• Nippon Kaigi
• Japan Institute for National Fundamentals – Yoshiko Sakurai

External links

• 産経ニュース, Sankei News, website since 2014.
• MSN産経ニュース, MSN Sankei News, website in MSN Japan since 2007 till 2014.
• JAPAN Forward -REAL ISSUES, REAL VOICE, REAL JAPAN- English edition of SANKEI, since 2021.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Japan . 2023-10-06 . Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism . en.
2. Web site: 産経新聞 (Sankei Shimbun) · The Economic and Industry · in English — Press Translator . 2023-10-06 . mrtranslate.ru . en.
3. Web site: Curtis . Paula R. . 2021-05-30 . Ramseyer and the Right-Wing Ecosystem Suffocating Japan – Tokyo Review . 2024-03-05 . en-US.
4. News: Kim . Youmi . Ives . Mike . 2021-02-26 . A Harvard Professor Called Wartime Sex Slaves 'Prostitutes'. One Pushed Back. (Published 2021) . 2024-03-05 . . en.
5. Web site: History: COMPANY . sankei.jp . January 29, 2017 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140731013628/http://sankei.jp/company/co_history.html . July 31, 2014.
6. Web site: ja:楽天、TBS買収に挑む ベンチャー三国志 Vol.19 . ja . http://kigyoka.com/news/magazine/magazine_20130508.html . https://web.archive.org/web/20150201073918/http://kigyoka.com/news/magazine/magazine_20130508.html . 2015-02-01 . 2013-05-01 . Kigyoka Club .
7. Web site: 41. Fuji Media Holdings, Inc. . 2022-07-10 . 2023-01-13 . Media Data Base / mediadb.eu . https://web.archive.org/web/20201231121940/https://www.mediadb.eu/en/data-base/int-medienkonzerne-2015/fuji-media-holdings-inc.html . 2020-12-31 . live . . en.
8. Web site: The Struggle for the Japanese Soul: Komori Yoshihisa, Sankei Shimbun, and the JIIA controversy . 2023-08-02 . The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus.
9. Matthews . Eugene A. . Japan's New Nationalism . January 28, 2009 . ... And such sentiments appear regularly in Sankei Shimbun, Japan's nationalist daily ... . February 21, 2020. Foreign Affairs.
10. Web site: Japanese right muzzling liberal media: Analysts . The Sankei Shimbun, a robustly nationalistic paper, and the right-wing Yomiuri Shimbun – the world's biggest newspaper with 10 million copies sold daily – devoted acres of coverage to the episode.. December 9, 2014. February 21, 2020 . The Straits Times.
11. Web site: Japan mulls revision of comfort women apology . Suga's comment came after a weekend opinion poll, jointly conducted by the nationalistic Sankei Shimbun daily and Fuji TV, in which 59 ... . . February 24, 2014 . February 21, 2020.
12. Web site: Bartlett . Duncan . Japan and South Korea: Headaches and Headlines . This suggestion is rejected outright by the conservative Japanese newspaper the Sankei, which is noted for its nationalism. . . November 20, 2019 . July 4, 2020.
13. Book: Myles Carroll . The Making of Modern Japan: Power, Crisis, and the Promise of Transformation . ... These organic intellectuals also have expression in the mainstream media, most notably the increasingly reactionary and Abealigned nhk and the far-right Sankei Shimbun, but also the centre-right Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan's largest ... . 2016 . 205 . . 9781317234357.
14. Web site: Japanese Gov't to Restrict Chemical Material Exports to S. Korea . Even the Sankei Shimbun, a far-right newspaper, criticized the Japanese government for the possible repercussions of the restrictions. . August 1, 2019 . July 3, 2020 . BusinessKorea.
15. Web site: Japan May Be Moving Right Politically, But Its Communist Party Still Holds Some Sway With Voters . They are subject to constant surveillance and harassment. Yet, their popularity has not waned. The party's newspaper, Akahata (赤旗), has over 1.12 million readers and one weekly magazine predicts they may eclipse Japan's far right newspaper, Sankei Shimbun in the near future.. October 30, 2017. July 3, 2020. Forbes.
16. Web site: Nippon Kaigi and the Radical Conservative Project to Take Back Japan.
17. Web site: 2016-10-19 . 明美ちゃん基金 . 2023-07-11 . October 19, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161019012140/http://sankei.jp/business/bu_akemi.html . bot: unknown .
18. Web site: 社会福祉法人 産経新聞厚生文化事業団 . 2023-05-10 . 社会福祉法人 産経新聞厚生文化事業団｜つなぐ・結ぶ・輪を広げる.
19. News: Reopening the Abduction Case Files – Part Five: "Something strange is happening along the Sea of Japan" JAPAN Forward. February 24, 2017. Japan Forward. 2018-10-23. en-US.
20. http://www.koreaherald.com/view.phpōud=20140810000273{{dead link|date=May 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
21. Web site: Headline News The DONG-A ILBO . 2023-05-10 . The Dong-a Ilbo.
22. Web site: Sankei Seoul bureau chief grilled over Park article. August 18, 2014. Japan Times Online.
23. Web site: Sankei reporter appears at prosecutors' office over Park article - 毎日新聞 . 2014-08-18 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140819085749/http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20140818p2g00m0dm039000c.html . 2014-08-19 .
24. News: Korean Prosecutors Indict Japanese Journalist on Defamation Charge. Alastair. Gale. Wall Street Journal. October 10, 2014. online.wsj.com.
25. News: August 11, 2014 . Sankei Shimbun's defamation of Korea goes too far . . South Korea . 2014-10-27 .
26. News: September 3, 2014 . EDITORIAL: South Korea's suppression of press freedom undermines democracy . . Japan . 2014-10-27 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20141027160322/http://ajw.asahi.com/article/views/editorial/AJ201409030027 . 2014-10-27 .
27. Web site: Seoul court acquits Japanese reporter of defaming president. December 17, 2015 .
28. News: Report: Park Geun-hye's office intervened in trial of Japanese journalist. UPI. 2018-10-23. en.
29. News: Japan Newspaper Apologizes Over Advertisement for 'Jewish Conspiracy' Books. Mitsuru. Obe. Wall Street Journal. December 6, 2014.
30. Web site: Conservative Daily Sankei apologizes for running anti-semitic ad. The Japan Times.
31. Web site: Author Sono calls for racial segregation in op-ed piece. Eric. Johnston. Tomohiro. Osaki. February 12, 2015. Japan Times Online.
32. News: Author Causes Row With Remarks on Immigration, Segregation. Yuka. Hayashi. Wall Street Journal. February 13, 2015.
33. News: Japan PM ex-adviser praises apartheid in embarrassment for Abe. Elaine. Lies. Reuters. February 13, 2015.