Japan Media Review Update: July 5, 2004

JMR Staff (Annenberg School for Communication, University of Southern California)

Review
The following reviews are posted at: http://www.japanmediareview.com/japan/digest/digest.php

Press Keen on Covering Abductee's Family Reunion
From BBC News: Japanese media have been closely following the plight of Hitomi Soga, the former Japanese abductee in North Korea whose husband, Charles Robert Jenkins, is wanted by the United States. Jenkins, a former soldier whom the U.S. considers a deserter, stayed behind in North Korea, along with the couple's two daughters, when Soga returned to Japan. When word circulated that a reunion for the family was planned in Indonesia, journalists from dozens of Japanese media outlets began arriving in the island nation in preparation for the event, a BBC correspondent reports.
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Eric Ulken

Fox News Channel to Pull Out of Japan
From the Daily Yomiuri: Fox News Channel will terminate its service in Japan at the end of July, the network's local agent, News Broadcasting Japan, says. Fox News Channel has been broadcasting in Japan for two years but has been unsuccessful to offset the carriage fees on the SkyPerfect service with subscription and advertising revenue. Janet Alshouse, vice president for news distribution at Fox News, explained the decision this way: "We have had at the most, about 4,300 paid subscribers at any time. With an audience of 4,000, it is impossible to sell advertising. No company will buy air time." The cancellation comes in spite of a "Save Fox News" movement led by the head of the group Republicans Abroad Japan. While Fox News Channel would "welcome any opportunity to air on any platform in Japan," Alshouse says, "We will not enter into a money-losing contract to do it."
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Keiko Mori

Media Urged to Keep Silent on Princess' Trips
From The Japan Times: Media organizations belonging to the Imperial Household Agency's press club were asked to refrain from covering future private trips of Crown Princess Masako. Hideki Hayashida, grand master of the Crown Prince's Household, requested in a letter that the 15 member organizations not report on or take photographs of the crown princess on her trips. He added that "securing as stress-free and as quiet an environment as possible was absolutely necessary for (the crown princess') health to recover." Masako has been away from official duties since last December owing to health problems, including shingles. The Imperial Household Agency's press club decided that the choice of whether to follow the request should be left up to each media organization.
-- By Japan Media Review Associate Editor Keiko Mori