Author and Podcaster
Japanese Media’s Complicity On Antisemitism
As is often the case with the Japanese media, in my opinion, their Antisemitic stance is systematic, and it is, in a way, allowed as a part of free speech.” Harassment has been a serious social issue in Japan. I strongly believe that if they continue this systematically, they’re systematically accountable for their Antisemitic broadcasting styles against news on Israel. Sadly, this isn’t a new trend after October 7th, but the stance of the media is most often, “U.S. involvement in the foreign region and unnecessary war, and Israel is always behind the war.”
There is a TV station called TV Asahi that airs a morning program called Toru Tamagawa Morning Show (8:00 am – 9:00 am from Monday-Friday, JST), where they often discuss world affairs, including the current war in Gaza and the ongoing war between the U.S. & Israel against the Islamic regime. I have actually posted the exact same person’s amoral statements on Iran and the U.S. in the past, but this time, it was a remark pointing at Jared Kushner as follows:
“It just looks like he’s there as a representative of the Trump family, and moreover, he’s Jewish, isn’t he? Regarding these talks with Iran, I feel like he’s someone who would be better off not being there…”
In response to this name-calling, Israeli Ambassador to Japan, Gilad Cohen, issued an official letter of protest on April 14, 2026, condemning the use of religious background to question professional legitimacy.
The following statement was made by TV Asahi:
“Regarding the remarks made by Mr. Tamagawa during our broadcast on April 10, in which he referred to Mr. Jared Kushner’s background and religious identity in the context of diplomatic negotiations, we have received a protest from the Israeli Ambassador to Japan.
We would like to clarify that there was no intention to discriminate or to suggest that a specific religion or ethnicity is a disqualification for diplomatic service. However, we acknowledge that the phrasing used was inappropriate and may have led to a misunderstanding of our editorial intent.
We take the Ambassador’s concerns seriously and will strive to ensure that our future reporting and commentary are handled with greater care and objectivity.”
Ambassador Cohen posted on X after TV Asahi’s statement in response to Ambassador’s letter.
“Discrimination is defined by its impact, not just its intent. To suggest that a person’s Jewish faith makes them ‘better off not being there’ is a textbook example of Antisemitic prejudice. Such rhetoric has no place in a leading democracy like Japan.”
He also posted:
“Identity is not a disqualification for diplomacy. We expect our friends and allies to uphold the same standards of dignity and respect for all creeds that they demand for themselves.”
As a Japanese, I don’t take this as any kind of apology by TV station, but “only” an excuse itself. I’ve never called out the entire Japanese Antisemites, but I can’t deny the fact that there are “casual” Antisemitic statements allowed by the Japanese media, not just among one particular TV station, but the Japanese news organizations, including many, if not all, newspaper companies. They mentioned Ambassador’s comments as “being mindful.” What does this expression even mean? Also, to the Japanese, who don’t read foreign news media, not just in English, they wouldn’t understand the real statement after the discriminatory statement was painted with an excuse.
As a Japanese, or my relative having been the victim of the student riots during the 1960s, which led to the creation of terrorists like JRA, I can’t understand why people don’t feel alarmed at Antisemitism. I have a lot to say on student movements during the 60s in Japan, which resulted in extreme violence. JRA is the result of one of the radical student movements of the 60s, which Japan failed to stop, including those in educational institutions and among some left-wing faculty.
JRA has been directly involved in major terrorist attacks in the Middle East and Europe, targeting U.S. and European Embassies. Among so many terrorist attacks, the JRA committed the French Embassy Siege (Hague: September 13th, 1974) and the AIA Building Siege, which directly targeted the U.S. Embassy and Swedish Embassy, which was in the AIA building (Kuala Lumpur: 1975), the Jakarta Embassy Attack targeting Japanese, U.S. and Canadian Embassies (Jakarta: May 14th, 1986), The Rome Embassy Attack (U.S. and British Embassies: June 9th, 1987), and the Naples USO Bombing targeting U.S. military personnel (Naples, April 14th, 1988). Fusako Shigenobu was finally arrested on November 8th, 2000. She was tried only regarding the case of Hague, and was “only” sentenced to 20 years in prison, not even a life sentence, even after being engaged in so many murders of innocent civilians, government officials.
There are realistic reasons why Ambassador Cohen is concerned about the statements like the one made on April 10th. There is an appalling fact: Fusako Shigenobu has been actively giving speeches and writing books to glorify and justify what she did as part of a “revolution” and “humanitarian acts” defined only by herself. Fusako Shigenobu loves the term “Free Palestine.” She has no knowledge of history and creates manipulative stories and justifies her criminal acts, especially after she was released.
Sadly, the reality is that there are apologists of Fusako Shigenobu, the leader of the Japanese Red Army, who directly ordered the Lod Airport Massacre back in 1972, now in the year 2026. Especially after Fusako Shigenobu was released in May 28th, 2022, which was quite a topic when she was released because of her heinous terrorist acts she was engaged in as “revolution.” She was an active terrorist under PLO umbrella in Lebanon for decades.
The massacre at Ben Gurion Airport back in 1972 resulted in the deaths of 26 people. 17 of the victims were Christian pilgrims from Puerto Rico. Among the 7 Israeli victims, Aharon Katzir, a world-renowned scientist and the brother of Ephraim Katzir, who would later become the President of Israel, was the victim. The terrorist act by JRA was heinous, indiscriminate and cruel, taking the lives of innocent people, injuring over 80 people.
PFLP later made several statements that this Lod Airport Massacre was “the attack was carried out in retaliation for the 1948 Deir Yassin massacre, where over 100 Arab villagers were killed by Zionist militias.” As many Israelis know, PFLP is part of the PLO, which Fusako Shigenobu was directly involved in training in Lebanon. At the same time, this manipulative statement by PFLP is taken as if it were legitimate and realistic that the Arab population wants to retaliate against the “occupation” in the Japanese media.
If you listen to the Japanese media in general, there are often Antisemitic terms used, such as “settlers,” “occupation,” exactly in a way the terrorists actually use. NHK airs and refers to words from Al Jazeera, whose reporters were verified as Hamas commanders on the October 7th.
I usually don’t like to blame someone and take things personally. However, in my opinion, the Japanese media systematically airs the platform that news with Anti-Semitic contexts and implicitly expresses “Anti-Semitism” as “Jewish supremacism like Nazi.” This narrative was actually aired by NHK with the statement, “Why are the Israelis doing something that was done during the Holocaust?” in one documentary.
Back on May 14th, 2024, I was talking about Israeli Independence Day with some friends. I even asked a guest to come on my podcast to speak about Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzmaut. When I was checking the content of Kokusai Hodo on NHK, a female newsreader started to speak about Nakba, completely ignoring the Israeli Independence, and stressed over and over that it is the day “The Palestinians lost their homeland and became refugees.” I realized that these news stations don’t even check the facts and report news just like “stories.” Facts matter, and it was obviously intentional that they chose to discuss Nakba on the date of Israeli Independence.
Does Israel, as a state, have no right to exist according to these Japanese news networks? They invite the commentators and the “specialists” who say something that is “in favor of” the TV programs. Do the news authorities have the right to decide whether the Jewish state has the right to exist? What kind of authorities do they have to call out “Zionists” as if they were extremists? As a Zionist, from my perspective, they spread the “hate,” the very hatred directed at certain people with a certain creed and a religion who decided to exercise self-determination after thousands of years of tragedies resulting from Antisemitism.
Feeling sorry is enough? There are actual victims of Antisemitism, especially after October 7th. Sorry isn’t enough to me. These journalists who consider Antisemitism as a part of some kind of “excuse by the Jewish” must realize how much it is painful to be stripped of everything just because of “who they were” back in the Holocaust.
The Japanese media portrays the bombings in Japan during WWII as crimes against humanity. After 80 years, blaming and pointing at the U.S. because of the policy of the journalists or the news organization, is fair broadcasting? If they consider the victims of the earthquakes or the bombings from 80 years ago and try to convey messages, why don’t they even try to understand why the Holocaust matters to not only the Jewish people, but also people who were arrested as a result of frivolous family members who cooperated Nazi or who praised Nazi?
To me, “never again” is a part of memory that should never be repeated. This isn’t from my “preaching,” but from the lesson of history. As a Japanese, I don’t want to easily call out that “history repeats itself,” not only because of the Holocaust. The Japanese news readers often speak of “peace,” “peaceful education,” and “democracy.” Targeting a certain people with a certain sexual orientation, creed, religion, race, and “to be discriminatory” is against the Constitution.
Now, I’m sick of the media using the term peace so easily as if “Israelis” are some kind of group that loves war. I’m not speaking of just one person, but I strongly believe this systematic Antisemitism spread by the Japanese media is very alarming at various levels. Not only because of the radical apologists of Fusako Shigenobu, but also because of the politicians who call out Israel as a “criminal state” without realizing that they’re targeting and instigating discrimination and hate against “Israelis” and the nation Israel among the people, without understanding the nature of the Arab-Israeli Conflict.
Lastly, I have to say that Israel does acknowledge the terrorist operations by the Palestinian terrorists very thoroughly. The Japanese news media call out, “innocent Palestinians are being arrested illegally by the IDF.” The Japanese media have no intel information or have no access to the military intel information, and they actually call out “innocents arrested” based on the “statements,” without proof. If we cry and say “we didn’t do it,” does that make it a fact or evidence?
This is the Japanese media. They still tend to report the terrorist act as a kind of “retaliation.” They give their platform for terrorists, including JRA members, and their apologists to speak “freely,” and speak about “free Palestine.”
I didn’t write this to plant hate against the Japanese. There are Japanese who hate the major media’s stance and their policies for many reasons, manipulating stories.
Do you consider TV Asahi’s statement sufficient? Actually, many Japanese don’t feel that way.
Why can’t the person who made the comment apologize sincerely and directly, at least on air? It still seems like the TV stations are making excuses, saying they didn’t make any mistakes and there is nothing to apologize for.
It was an Antisemitic statement, and sadly, there are many Antisemitic narratives in the Japanese news media.
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