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The linked article ends with this: “Why the Japanese media has refused to identify the ‘religious group’ that formed the motive for the killing must remain as

• ETHisso2017 4y ago
  Why aren't the major Japanese media outlets covering this angle before the polls close in Japan's upper house elections (today)?
  • SllX 4y ago
    Isn’t it controversial whether or not he did have a connection? There is a value of free speech in Japan but it’s not exactly like America’s, and I think the Japanese media would mostly avoid stirring the pot immediately prior to an election, and especially for a claim that may be unfounded. I won’t argue whether their approach is the right one or not and this is just my opinion, but that seems like that would be why the major papers wouldn’t want to cover this angle to me.
    • grapeskin 4y ago
      Controversial in the sense that he’s on video as a presenter in one of their events. It’s as controversial as the My Pillow guy having a connection to a political party. We don’t know whether he literally believes in what he’s saying, but we do know he’s being paid to speak for them. But whether this is the cult he was killed for is yet to be confirmed. He also had heavy involvement with Soka Gakkai through his alignment with the Komeito party. They also drain people of their cash.
    • scaramanga 4y ago
      Strange. I don't see how it could be more controversial than his well known links to Nippon Kaigi. I mean, the cult connection is only important for the fact that someone killed him for it. And I am going to guess that it tells you something about the deranged mind of the killer, and probably not much interesting about Abe. Edit: I mean, come on, "newsflash: prominent politician involved in dubious business or accounting practices", you could probably have safely assumed it :)
      • suction 4y ago
        It could be controversial because it's a Korean sect and Abe was a nationalist hardliner whose image was that he would make Japan "proud" again by refreezing relations with China and Korea. So if he had connections to a Korean sect, and knowing what sects do, the next logical step would be to assume that he was controlled by or at least open to Korean interests, which is the opposite of what people elected him for, and would be a major, major scandal for him and his party.
        • deleted 4y ago
          [deleted]
        • scaramanga 4y ago
          Haha, yes, and that would be pretty deranged given that the Korean ultra-right/fascist movement is very supportive of Japanese fascism, no matter how loudly it denies, downplays, or asks to be thanked for atrocities committed against Koreans. And that includes the vast majority of nutty religious sects. Edit: or to translate, the scandal would be "concern that fascist politician, might not be fascist enough" with an emphasis on "might" since it would be pure speculation
          • suction 4y ago
            Very rare to meet someone who has a realistic view on modern Japan and calls these people what they really are. Nice to meet you! Have you by any chance ever heard of Ryōichi Sasakawa? The man who created the „Nippon Foundation“ which runs a lot of „cultural exchange“ Institutes like Language schools etc. in Europe and maybe elsewhere. His Wikipedia says he was a self-declared fascist. Can’t make it up.
    • peoplefromibiza 4y ago
      > Isn’t it controversial whether or not he did have a connection? Controversial like linking the Kashoggi's death to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman[1], but then participating to the G20 summit in Riyadh or selling them billions worth of weapons (including combat aircrafts), like nothing happened? [1] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56213528 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56213528
      • scaramanga 4y ago
        They mean controversial in the sense of totally nonsensical distraction in which the stakes are basically zero. Not controversial as in, "of any real consequence"
  • shusaku 4y ago
    It’s absolutely insane to me that people are criticizing the Japanese media over this. Why should we be amplifying a murder’s message? Don’t reward a man for shooting someone in the back. After every mass shooting in the US I see widespread criticism of the media for sensationalism and turning mass murders into stars. Yet when another country follows this very advice, they’re criticized for a lack of free speech?
    • pmoriarty 4y ago
      Knowledge and transparency is oxygen to a democracy. Without an informed populace you can not have an effective democracy.
      • Caboose8685 4y ago
        I agree with the theme of your message, but people won't be educated unless they seek it out themselves beyond just what the media spouts. That is all too sadly very rare.
      • peoplefromibiza 4y ago
        > Knowledge and transparency is oxygen to a democracy Democracy can wait a week or two when a man is murdered that way Freedom means also that you have to earn it, if people can't wait to speculate online about things that are still being investigated, they probably don't deserve it. --- What if they waited a bit more before putting Lee Harvey Oswald on the front page of every newspaper? Maybe he would still be alive and we knew a lot more about what really happened. What if Kennedy assassination happened today, with social media and the "pornography of violence"? Think about it.
        • yucky 4y ago
          >Freedom means also that you have to earn it Freedom isn't earned, authority is. Freedom is the default nature of man. Those in power who seek to limit freedom, must earn that right. And it can be quickly withdrawn.
  • makeitdouble 4y ago
    It’s linked to too many hot button issues, and would have way more impact than just anger against a single cult. If it was in the US context I would compare it to an alternative muslim cult founded in China and supporting the Palestinian regime. If someone shooting a US politician was found vaguely linked to that cult, it would be wiser to wait for a strong connection with the crime instead of just throwing around the information and have everyone go wild with the implications they want.
    • scaramanga 4y ago
      Only if it was supporting a muslims/chinese/palestinians who are known for their vociferous support of the republican party? I mean, these groups tend to be ultra-right wing and the Korean ultra-right are very supportive of the japanese ultra-right wing, like Abe, who is grandson of Nobusuke Kishi, "the devil of manchuria" and thinks grandpa was a lovely guy. Edit: Nobusuke, not Nobuo, Nobuo is the other grandson who is defence minister. My bad.
      • makeitdouble 4y ago
        The issue would be to bring all that cult and culturally heavy discussion in the spotlight when there's still a chance it's completely irrelevant to the incident. The same way we wouldn't be digging deep on where the guy ate at lunch if there wasn't enough link (I know some newspaper do, but imo they shouldn't)
        • scaramanga 4y ago
          My point is that there are much more interesting discussions to be had, like how Abe's grandfather was a class A war criminal who the US sprung from prison and spared the death penalty cos they thought he would be a good pro-US element in Japanese politics. How he then founded the party Abe is a member of. Or any of what Abe's politics are. But there is zero mention of any of it in any western press... ever... Even when very relevant events are happening. Even, for example, when China and South Korea are united in condemnation. Which is strange, because aren't South Korea and Japan supposed to be allies with the US, and all about containing China? So I'm wondering why the "suppression" of that news is so much less interesting than the "suppression" of whatever gobbledygook Crazy McShootyFace believes?? :)
• hugh-avherald 4y ago
  It's also quite chauvinist to suggest that the major newspapers cannot arrive at the same conclusion about disclosure independently, and pretty ignorant to imply that suppressing information is inconsistent with democracy.
  • ehvatum 4y ago
    > pretty ignorant to imply that suppressing information is inconsistent with democracy It sort of is inconsistent with democracy. People should know for whom and for what they vote.
    • safety1st 4y ago
      Not necessarily backing the decision of the Japanese newspapers here, but US politics is basically a circus of unsubstantiated allegations which are front and center because they get more eyeballs. Sensationalism is hardly a pillar of democracy. It's a scourge and the country would be better off if Fox, MSNBC, Twitter's apocalypse algorithms etc. were a little more reserved.
    • paulmd 4y ago
      Is it? In most democracies in the world there are things you cannot publish even if they are true - Britain for example still maintains an official state censor, and even in the US there are still some state secrets that you cannot publish regardless of how true they are. Britain and many other countries also maintain a right to privacy that protects non-public-figure individuals against salacious soap-opera tabloid shit - you can't just go telling the whole world that Joe Q Public cheated on his wife, even if it's absolutely true because it's not a good idea for the panopticon to be pointed at the powerless like that. Again, as should be said every time the topic comes up here on HN - the idealization of absolute and unlimited free speech is kind of a uniquely American phenomenon and even then it is not quite absolute. The rest of the world views freedom of speech as a right that needs to be limited and balanced like every other right. Everyone has frequently talked about how we shouldn't be having media broadcast the manifestos of these shooters and glorifying them, how the media should just suppress information about them and refuse to publish their pictures and only and talk about them in the abstract... isn't that exactly what is going on here? This guy killed the prime minister and you want to know exactly what his cause was in exacting detail...
• hsn915 4y ago
  It's not really any different than the US. Lots of information tends to be "widely known" online to those who care to dig, but the mainstream outlets stick to some narrative that is best described as "half truth".
  • yucky 4y ago
    Yes indeed. And if you really want to go down a rabbit hole, test it out on the subjects that find the likes of CNN & FOX agreeing in lockstep. More often than not it's to hide the truth than to report it.
    • account42 4y ago
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9rbHpA_6W4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9rbHpA_6W4
  • duxup 4y ago
    I find a lot of that information is in the mainstream media… just that you have to pay attention.
  • noobermin 4y ago
    Case in point, the death of Epstein.
    • timmytokyo 4y ago
      I'm genuinely curious. What hidden but verifiable facts have been hidden from the public with respect to the Epstein death?
      • sudosysgen 4y ago
        Not much was hidden, the issue is the pantomime that it was completely reasonable to expect that a suicide of such a figure when the cameras were off and the guards weren't aware the cameras were off is a complete coincidence, and playing coy with his connections to the elite. Those facts weren't hidden but they weren't mentioned far less than they should and eventually not at all. Beyond that the media failed in their duty to confront the authorities.
• Larrikin 4y ago
  It was explained to me when I lived in Japan, that while there are many Japanese media companies that exist independently in Japan, they all have to go to one central government body to renew their licenses to exist. They get some leeway but it's it's not much
  • ekianjo 4y ago
    all these news organizations in Japan are nothing but government mouthpieces. When Abe was in power the journalists could not stop singing his praises and how smart the whole "Abenomics" was supposed to be.
    • wronglyprepaid 4y ago
      • mkr-hn 4y ago
        You sure about that? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_coverage_of_the_2016_United_States_presidential_election https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_coverage_of_the_2016_Uni... >> 'A 2018 study found that media coverage of Trump led to increased public support for him during the primaries. The study showed that Trump received nearly $2 billion in free media, more than double any other candidate. Political scientist John M. Sides argued that Trump's polling surge was "almost certainly" due to frequent media coverage of his campaign. Sides concluded "Trump is surging in the polls because the news media has consistently focused on him since he announced his candidacy on June 16".[21] Prior to clinching the Republican nomination, Trump received little support from establishment Republicans.[22]' His own party wouldn't even give him the time of day until he was made inevitable by a fawning press gorging itself on easy ad dollars.
        • wronglyprepaid 4y ago
          Not sure how what you cites implies the media was fawning over Trump, if I recall correctly the coverage was not exactly positive, and I explicitly mentioned singing the praises of, not just reporting.
• laurieg 4y ago
  If you are interested in the media in Japan and how it chooses to report or not report news I recommend the book "Exposure: Inside the Olympus Scandal". It tells the story of loss hiding at Olympus. Especially interesting are the chapters about how difficult it was to get any news coverage of some extremely suspicious things.
  • suction 4y ago
    That and for a more general take on why Japan isn't the heaven-on-earth that weeaboos hold it up to be, I recommend "Japan - a reinterpretation" by Patrick Smith. It has a lot about freedom of the press and the Japanese media landscape, especially the infamous "Kisha Clubs" (self-censoring).
• krzyk 4y ago
  And that name is?
  • haunter 4y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_Church https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_Church But it’s also in the submission, literally the first sentence…
    • noSyncCloud 4y ago
      Thanks for linking to more information about it.
    • krzyk 4y ago
      Yes, but the the poster did the same what the newspapers he mentioned did - he avoided mentioning the religious group by name.
• ignoramous 4y ago
  translate.google to en: [1] https://archive.is/4wu9v https://archive.is/4wu9v [2] https://archive.is/xhOAW https://archive.is/xhOAW
• riedel 4y ago
  It really reminds me somehow of the police press relationship described in '64' (Rokuyon) by Hideo Yokoyama
• giantg2 4y ago
  Maybe they don't want copycats. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5296697/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5296697/
• bamboozled 4y ago
  Maybe, or maybe it’s just becoming obvious Japan’s “democracy” isn’t functioning at the level we’d all hope for that scares us all a little bit?
• brightball 4y ago
  I ran it through Google Translate because I was curious. It appears to be something called the Unification Church? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_Church https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_Church > The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church or Unificationism, is a new religious movement whose members are called Unificationists and sometimes colloquially Moonies.[2] It was officially founded on 1 May 1954 under the name Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA-UWC) in Seoul, South Korea by Sun Myung Moon (1920–2012), a Korean Messiah claimant also known for his business ventures and engagement in social and political causes.[3][4][5][6] > The beliefs of the Unification Church are based on Moon's book Divine Principle, which differs from the teachings of Nicene Christianity in its view of Jesus[7] and in its introduction of the concept of "indemnity".[8] The movement is well known for its unique "Blessing" or mass wedding ceremonies.[9] > The Unification Church has been controversial, with some early critics calling it a dangerous cult.[10][11] It also has been controversial for its involvement in politics, which include anti-communism and support for Korean reunification.
  • maire 4y ago
    Moonies used to be a big deal at college campuses in California. When my husband and I went to Berkeley in the 1970s, the Moonies were everywhere. They did many questionable things before fading away. My husband is 4 years older than me - so he was not as aware of their recruitment practices. He said he was invited to dinner by a very attractive young woman who kept flirting with him all through dinner. She then invited him to a weekend retreat. He said he became suspicious and did not go. It was a good thing he did not go. By the time I went to Berkeley - we all knew about the retreats.
    • SoftTalker 4y ago
      Yep I remember the "Moonie" cult in the news from the 1970s. They seemed to fade out after a while, like most fads do. I had no idea they were still operating.
      • bink 4y ago
• alsetmusic 4y ago
  For those curious, the first article linked says it’s the Unification Church (Moonies).
• twelfnight 4y ago
  Seems to me to be good policy not to discuss anything about assassins' motives, names or show photos to avoid accidentally glorifying the act or encouraging others who want to get attention. Why is the silence assumed to be a cover up instead of proper media etiquette?
• simonebrunozzi 4y ago
  Unification Church of the World Peace [0] [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_Church https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unification_Church
• tjpnz 4y ago
  NHK as of tonight have named the organization and broadcasted part of Abe's speech on TV.