While we are well inured to the knowledge that Japanese politicians spend their large salaries and generous expense accounts in hostess clubs (and sometimes get caught doing research on their next visit when they should be working), even this latest scandal raised some eyebrows, perhaps because it was so brazen.
An event organized by the governing Liberal Democratic Party in Wakayama, hired scantily clad dancers to "entertain" the attendees.
The roughly 50 attendees included members of the Diet part of the LDP youth bureau as well as young assembly members from prefectures in Kansai.
A ...
It is widely perceived that adultery is common in Japan, but what's the reality?
Sure, there are lots of dating apps out there, including ones specifically for people already with partners.
There's also a bustling cottage industry of private detectives whose entire raison d'être is to find out whether your spouse is cheating or not.
It also depends on the definition of adultery and cheating. Prostitution is a large industry in Japan but would a session every now and then with a sex worker count as an affair or cheating?
Well, a survey by the aptly named Love Is All of 1,966 married men ...
When a foreign-born contestant won Miss Japan last month, it sparked much wringing of hands from certain sections of the commentariat and internet, and a roughly equal amount of earnest gushing about how much Japan was changing.
Karolina Shiino, who was born in Ukraine but has lived in Japan since the age of five and eventually naturalized as a Japanese citizen, was awarded the title of Miss Japan in a ceremony in January. The face of Japan was now officially a white woman. This was enough of a news story to make waves internationally.
Now, as they say, the plot thickens. The 26-year-old ...
The biggest entertainment world scandal in Japan of late has been the allegations of past sexual assault made against one of the nation's most famous comedians, Hitoshi Matsumoto.
The reports first emerged in a tabloid magazine in late December and have continued to unfold. At first, Matsumoto, his agency (Yoshimoto Kogyo), and broadcasters ignored or gave the report a minimal denial, and colleagues offered on-air support, but more revelations are still trickling out in further articles, and 60-year-old Matsumoto has now withdrawn from his television commitments, nominally so he can pursue a ...
They say that YouTubers and other social media content creators are the new celebrity elites of our day, and that seems to extend to their romantic escapades.
A list has emerged apparently showing the sexual conquests of the macho male YouTuber Purotan, who has 2.1 million subscribers to his channel.
The list features 127 women. It was supposedly saved on Purotan's phone and then leaked by another YouTuber, Yagi, after their own relationship ended badly. Purotan has apparently paid ¥5 million as compensation for his alleged domestic violence and infidelity. Yagi appeared in Purotan's ...
On October 13, NMB48 announced that Fuuwa Kuroda (黒田楓和) was to leave the music group with her graduation performance being on October 26 and last official day as a member on November 5.
However, on October 28, the group announced that Kuroda will instead leave with immediate effect, and won't attend three hand-shaking events as planned on October 29, November 4, and November 5.
Health issues are nominally cited as the reason, but Japanese netizens have speculated that the real reason is much darker.
It is alleged that the 19-year-old made a sex tape with her boyfriend, which has ...
Takako Uehara is back in the news again over another alleged adultery scandal.
The beautiful former member of pop group SPEED has experienced some real highs and lows since the group disbanded in 2000.
Uehara published a successful semi-nude photo book, Vingt Takako, in 2003, but this divided fans, some of who saw it as a betrayal of her image. We are eternally grateful, though, for the fapping material she provided during this period.
She worked as an actor and model, fronting advertising campaigns for the likes of Shiseido.
But the Okinawan's complicated love life has proved a thorn ...
We recently wrote about the Ryoko Hirosue adultery scandal, which has effectively meant her immediate disappearance from public life (no more TV ads, no more fashion magazine covers, no more acting roles).
When the scandal broke about her affair with a chef, many noted the irony that she had received a "best mother" award in 2022.
The annual awards are given to female celebrities each year to celebrate them as a maternal role model.
The awards are announced each May near Mother's Day, awarded to several celebrities in categories such as acting, business, singing, and sports. The winners ...
The actress Ryoko Hirosue has been accused of adultery with a famous chef.
In a scoop published by Bunshun this week, photos show the 42-year-old going to a luxury hotel where the 45-year-old chef Shusaku Toba, who runs a restaurant called sio that has a Michelin star, was also staying. The two are already known for being close.
There's an aphorism, often muttered by jaded guys on bar stools between swigs of beer, that it doesn't matter what you look like or even about your personality, hot women will inevitably go to bed with you as long as you're funny, tall, rich, or a successful ...
Another day, another celebrity adultery scandal. Sometimes it feels like this.
But there's something a little different about the latest (minor) scandal to hit the news.
Yukie Joji is herself a reporter. The 48-year-old is currently seen doing live reports twice weekly for a show broadcast on CBC and TBS.
Since its employees apparently have little important journalism to do, scoop-hunters from Flash trailed Joji as she enjoyed a date in Yokohama's Chinatown in mid-April. She and a man lined up to enter a popular restaurant. They allegedly left the restaurant after their meal and held hands ...
