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criticism

Superstar singer Ayumi Hamasaki criticized by fans for “inappropriate” Instagram picture

People apparently just want the ever-young celebrity to act her age.

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Canadian YouTuber explains why she quit working on Japanese TV

Prominent “J-YouTuber” tells of her bitter experiences working with Japanese TV.

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3 reasons Japanese movies today suck, according to distributor and producer Adam Torel

Ever get the feeling that Japanese cinema isn’t as good as it used to be? You’re not alone.

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Patrick Schwarzenegger comes under fire in Japan after pranking stranger at Kyoto temple

Twenty-one-year-old Patrick Schwarzenegger is currently visiting Japan with his famous mother Maria Shriver, and has so far enjoyed a dip in a traditional hot spring, faced off with a sumo wrestler and eaten enormous amounts of sushi. So far, so fun.

But he’s also come in for some heavy criticism after uploading a video of himself pranking an unsuspecting visitor to a Kyoto temple.

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Oishinbo manga’s depiction of Fukushima’s radiation effects criticized

A chapter of Tetsu Kariya‘s Oishinbo manga series is garnering public outcry after being published in Shogakukan‘s Big Comic Spirits magazine on Monday. The manga chapter follows a group of newspaper journalists who are exposed to nuclear radiation within a plant in Fukushima. After the character’s exposure, they complain of nosebleeds and exhaustion, ailments that are reaffirmed by a character named Katsutaka Idogawa, based on a real-life former mayor of the town of Futaba in Fukushima Prefecture. The reporters also complain of censorship, an issue possibly inspired by Tokyo Electric Power Company’s real-life actions.

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8 reasons why Japanese workers are so slow at making decisions

For foreign companies, one of the more frustrating aspects of doing business in Japan is the painfully slow process by decisions are made. Thanks to a complicated bureaucracy, a heavily ingrained hierarchical society and an overall tendency to avoid risk at all costs, sometimes it seems like Japanese workers are the most inefficient decision-makers in the world. But what is behind this habit of everyone taking their sweet time to make up their minds? We have compiled a list of eight reasons behind this seemingly common Japanese practice of being incredibly indecisive.

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Anime lies! Akihabara is actually “ugly and boring,” Chinese netizens say

If anime culture were a religion, Tokyo’s Akihabara district would be its holiest site. With all the maid cafes, manga shops and cute “moe” cartoon girls plastered everywhere, Akihabara is usually a must for visitors to Japan interested in all things geek. However, Chinese netizens recently argued (on a site that hosts pirated Japanese anime nonetheless) that the geek mecca is actually really boring and Japan is using anime to make other countries think it is cool and beautiful. Sharpen your claws and join us after the jump for more.

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