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Sentiment analysis

What Japan Thinks

Each entry analyzes how Japanese audiences are reacting to a story or topic on social media — sentiments, themes, and the takes you won't get from English-language sources.

  1. What Japan Thinks: Natto Prices Spike 15% and Japan Blames the Government

    Takanofood's 15% price hike on all natto products hit a nerve. Rather than blaming the company, most Japanese commenters directed their fury at the LDP government for failing to control inflation, with many mourning the loss of their…

  2. What Japan Thinks: ‘Utility Pole Women’ and the Dating Market’s Cruelest New Buzzword

    ABEMA coined 'utility pole women' for passive daters in their 30s who wait for men to approach. The X replies are a brutal mix of misogynistic pile-ons, pushback against the labeling itself, and sardonic humor about poles being…

  3. What Japan Thinks: Local Idol at 35 Says She’s Never Dated

    A 35-year-old local idol in Himeji says she's had zero romantic relationships across her 12-year career. Japanese X users are warmly supportive of her dedication, but most don't quite believe the claim, while others question the idol industry's…

  4. What Japan Thinks: ‘You Taught Us This’ — Japan Pushes Back on SNS Face-Hiding ‘Trend’

    When Yahoo News asked why Japanese youth hide their faces on SNS, the dominant reply was a polite 'are you serious?' The most-liked X comment, with 2,362 likes, called face-posting itself the abnormal behavior. Many readers reminded the…

  5. What Japan Thinks: Japan’s ¥1,500 Ramen Fatigue Powers the ‘Chan-Style’ Boom

    As ¥1,500 gourmet bowls become routine, a wave of unfussy ¥900 ramen shops with 'chan' in their names is winning Tokyo back. The most-liked Yahoo comment, with 1,468 agrees, basically pleads with the industry to stop trying so…

  6. What Japan Thinks: Woman Stabs Train Groper With Safety Pin, Internet Erupts in Cheers

    An Akihabara cafe worker said she stabbed a man who groped her on a morning train, posting that her mother had taught her to keep a safety pin handy. The post drew 126,000 likes and 770 replies, with…

  7. What Japan Thinks: Japan’s Egg Freezing Cap at 35 Sparks ‘Why Not Men?’ Outrage

    The Cabinet Office's plan to subsidize egg freezing for unmarried women aged 18-35 drew sharp X reactions, but not over the 35 cap itself. The two most-liked replies, with thousands of likes between them, both demanded equal age…

  8. What Japan Thinks: Korean-Japanese Marriage ‘Surge’ Met With Skepticism and Fury

    A Yahoo News headline about Korean men and Japanese women marrying in record numbers set off a firestorm on X. The most-liked reply was a calm fact-check noting the headline was misleading, but below it, the thread descended…

  9. What Japan Thinks: Help Mark Misuse Sparks a Wave of Personal Testimony

    Tokyo's Help Mark, the red badge given since 2012 to people with invisible disabilities, is increasingly worn by young Japanese with no medical condition, sometimes as a fashion accessory in 'pien-kei' kawaii-vulnerable subcultures. A YahooNewsTopics article on the…

  10. What Japan Thinks: Right-Wing X Sees こども家庭庁 as a Failed Skim Operation

    On April 27, LDP lawmaker Mihara Junko defended the Children and Families Agency in a Diet committee hearing, saying its programs 'cannot simply be eliminated.' Japan's right-wing X reacted with 740 hostile replies across two source threads we…

  11. What Japan Thinks: LDP’s New Foreigner Pamphlet Faces Base Revolt

    On April 28, the LDP's official communications account posted an infographic outlining the Takaichi government's 'orderly foreigner coexistence' policy. The pamphlet was meant to reassure conservatives the LDP was getting tougher on immigration. Their own base revolted: 379…

  12. What Japan Thinks: Agnes Chow Calls Out the “You’d Make a Good Wife” Compliment

    Hong Kong activist Agnes Chow, now living abroad, asked why Japanese TV keeps telling unmarried women they'd "make a good wife" as if it's praise. The Japanese internet did not respond with one voice. Replies split sharply between…