Japanese Literary Awards

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Yomiuri Shimbun

よみうりしんぶん

Yomiuri Shinbun

Aliases: 讀賣新聞 / Yomiuri

Profile

Gender
Unknown
Born
1874-11-02 (Tokyo (founding))
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
1-7-1 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan (Tokyo HQ) → 5-9 Nozaki-cho, Kita-ku, Osaka, Japan (Osaka HQ) → 1-16-5 Akasaka, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka, Japan (Seibu HQ)

Career

Occupations
Newspaper, Media company
Active Years
1874-
Affiliations
Yomiuri Shimbun Holdings, Nippon Television Network Corporation, Chuokoron-Shinsha (publisher)
Memberships
Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association
Influenced By
Edo-period kawaraban (broadside) traditions, Founders' (Koyasu et al.) journalistic outlook
Influenced
Model of mass-market national newspapers and circulation-driven management, Japanese social affairs journalism (scoop-driven reporting)

Awards

Kikuchi Kan Prize
1953
Work: Campaign to eliminate criminal elements in Shinjuku's underworld (Yomiuri social affairs reporting)
Organization: Bungeishunjū
Result: 受賞
Japan Newspaper Association Award
1966
Work: Series 'Price War' (campaign for price reductions)
Organization: Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association
Result: 受賞
Japan Newspaper Association Award
1978
Work: Project 'What to do about medical care'
Organization: Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association
Result: 受賞
Japan Newspaper Association Award
2010
Work: Sato-Eisaku and Nixon nuclear introduction scoop
Organization: Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association
Result: 受賞
Japan Newspaper Association Award
2012
Work: TEPCO OL murder case — alternative DNA reporting
Organization: Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association
Result: 受賞
Japan Newspaper Association Award
2022
Work: Scoop on opaque fund movements between Tokyo Olympic sponsors and the organizing committee
Organization: Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Henshu Techou (Editorial Notebook)

1949 Front-page column (editorial/opinion)

A representative front-page column offering concise commentary on society, politics and culture; a long-running editorial feature.

current affairs commentaryeditorial perspective

Jinsei Annai (Life Advice column; formerly 'Minoe Sodan')

1914 Advice column

A long-running advice column answering readers' questions; a characteristic participatory feature of the paper.

domestic issueslifestyle advicesocial trends

Kobo-chan (comic strip)

1982 4-panel comic strip

A four-panel comic by Masashi Ueda, long-serialized in the paper's morning edition and widely loved.

everyday satirefamily dynamics

Style & Themes

Literary Style
populist, plain-language stylecenter-right / conservative editorial stance (in general)tendency toward sensational headlines
Recurring Motifs
scoop reporting by the social affairs deskemphasis on lifestyle and advice columnsprominent sports coverage (Yomiuri Giants)

Legacy

Founded in 1874, Yomiuri Shimbun is one of Japan's leading national newspapers. It has long maintained the nation's top morning circulation and is known for strong social-affairs reporting and diverse pages. It has also faced repeated criticisms and scandals over errors, fabrications and editorial stance; it remains a major influence on Japanese media, politics and business.

Academic Societies

  • Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association

Archives

  • Yomidas Rekishikan (Yomiuri Online archive)
  • Yomiuri Shimbun microfilm/condensed editions (print archive)

In Popular Culture

  • DoreDore (mascot designed by Hayao Miyazaki)
  • Kobo-chan (newspaper comic strip)
  • Long-running ad slogans and TV commercials (e.g. 'Read now. Read ahead. Read the truth.')

Quotes

  • Read now. Read ahead. Read the truth.
    Source: Yomiuri Shimbun (advertisement / slogan) (2003)
  • Since its founding, it has been one of Japan's leading national newspapers, boasting the country's top morning circulation for many years.
    Source: Wikipedia article (Yomiuri Shimbun) (2025)

Trivia

  • Founded on November 2, 1874.
  • The masthead is sometimes written in the traditional form '讀賣新聞'.
  • Has close ties to sports, including founding the Yomiuri Giants (1934).
  • Introduced the mascot 'DoreDore' designed by Hayao Miyazaki in 2004.
  • Launched the digital archive 'Yomidas Rekishikan' in 2009.