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July 01, 2026
 

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CHILDREN

The number of elementary school children in Japan who became victims of sex crimes and other offenses through social media rose by about 20% from 2024 to 2025.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 27, 2026
Elementary schoolers targeted for crime via social media hits 10-year high
As the age of victims is believed to be decreasing, the National Police Agency plans to monitor social media posts and issue warnings.
By prefecture, only Tokyo and Ishikawa recorded increases in births compared with the previous year.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 26, 2026
Number of births in Japan falls to record low for 10th straight year
The data for how many babies were born in 2025 marks the lowest level since comparable records began in 1899, despite government efforts to reverse the trend.
A government report shows that high school students spend an average of 6 hours and 44 minutes online per day.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2026
Nearly half of Japanese high school students use AI, report shows
The child agency survey found that students are spending more time online, with some experiencing disruptions in their sleep schedules or studies.
A South Korean women takes care of her baby at her home in Seoul on Feb. 17.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Feb 25, 2026
South Korea’s baby bump extends into second year, offering hope
The improvement comes as marriages show signs of recovery after a prolonged slump, supported by incentives designed to ease the financial burden of raising children.
French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech during the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi on Thursday.
WORLD
Feb 20, 2026
Macron is setting up a G7 showdown with Trump over social media
The French leader says protecting children from the harms of social media and artificial intelligence will be a priority for his country’s Group of Seven presidency.
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s chief executive, arrives to testify in a tech addiction trial in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 19, 2026
Zuckerberg says ‘difficult’ to enforce Instagram age limits
The CEO of Meta Platforms was sharply questioned on the witness stand Wednesday about the company’s efforts to attract and engage teenage users.
Co-representative Yasuyuki Tokuda (left) of the defense team speaks at a news conference in the city of Fukuoka on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 17, 2026
High court rejects retrial appeal over 1992 Fukuoka child murder
The defense plans to file a special appeal with the Supreme Court against the decision.
Cavity rates among children in Japan have hit records lows, a government survey has shown.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 16, 2026
Cavity rates for children hit record lows in Japan
“Toothbrushing programs at schools and greater health awareness at home could be behind the results,” an education ministry official said.
Takeshi Hasuda, head of Jikei Hospital in the city of Kumamoto, speaks during a news conference in Kobe on Jan. 29.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 13, 2026
Experts raise alarm over women giving birth alone
Access to anonymous childbirth services — currently available in only two medical institutions nationwide — is essential for protecting both mothers and newborns, they say.
Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri (center) leaves the LA County Superior Court after testifying in a social media trial in Los Angeles, California, on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 12, 2026
Instagram chief defends youth mental health decisions at trial
Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, testified in Los Angeles as part of a trial on what plaintiffs ‌call “social media addiction” ‌in children and young adults.
Children take part in a mock election held at KidZania Tokyo, an edutainment theme park in Tokyo's Koto Ward, on Feb. 6.
JAPAN
Feb 11, 2026
Over 60% of local governments in Japan listen to children’s opinions
Many of the prefectural and municipal governments sought children’s opinions to better reflect them in policies.
Social media networking apps
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 11, 2026
YouTube lawyer sees no addiction from half hour of videos a day in trial
A 20-year-old Californian was presented by her lawyers as the face of a scourge that has allegedly poisoned millions of American youths — overconsumption of social media.
An error message appears on the Instagram app in Australia, whose government recently banned youth from social media in 2025. Brazil is now considering similar restrictions on online gambling and pornography.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 10, 2026
Brazil moves to ban teen access to online gambling and pornography
The move will make Brazil the latest nation to take significant measures meant to address concerns about toxic content, exploitation and other harms.
Singapore’s stalled birthrate reflects a broader pattern across wealthy Asian economies where higher living standards, shifting values and gender imbalances have made low fertility persistent and resistant to quick policy fixes.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 10, 2026
Why Asia can’t undo decades of falling fertility rates
The challenge is shared by most successful nations. Ultralow fertility is a byproduct of rapid development and elevated living standards.
Parents from the United Kingdom — Mariano Janin and George Nicolaou — hold photos of their children, who were victims of bullying on social media, outside the Los Angeles County Superior Court in California, on Monday as landmark trial on the effects of social media on minors began.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 10, 2026
U.S. trial lawyer says Meta and YouTube ‘engineered addiction’ in children
A California court is hearing a landmark trial on the effects of social media on minors.
A collection of wooden toy cars is displayed at the family home of Koshiro Kido, a boy who died from childhood cancer at the age of 13 in 2021.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Feb 9, 2026
Campaign aims to raise funds in memory of boy who loved woodcraft
Yasunobu Tsuruta crafted wooden toys with Koshiro Kido, who later died of pediatric cancer at the age of 13.
Parents who lost children to social media–related harms hold a vigil on Feb. 5 ahead of a social media addiction trial set to begin this week in Los Angeles.
BUSINESS / Tech
Feb 9, 2026
Arguments to begin in key U.S. social media addiction trial
The outcome in the case in the Los Angeles Superior Court could set the tone for a tidal wave of similar litigation across the United States.
A person holds a sign calling for the protection, and not detention, of children as people gather during a demonstration and vigil outside the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, on Jan. 28.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Feb 8, 2026
Toddler returned to ICE custody was denied medication, lawsuit says
Detention center staff allegedly took away medication and nutritional drinks given to the 18-month-old girl after she was hospitalized with a life-threatening respiratory illness.
Junior high school students holding a debate involving comedian Nana Takamatsu (second from left), on Wednesday in Tokyo's Suginami Ward
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 6, 2026
Tokyo students learn importance of elections through comedy
For the past 10 years, comedian Nana Takamatsu has held classes at schools nationwide for a total of about 100,000 students.
Students at a bus stop with an advertisement for instructors at a famous hagwon, or after-school cram school, in Gangnam, a wealthy part of Seoul on Jan. 28. Academic pressure has become so intense that even preschoolers are taking private extracurricular classes, raising worries about children's rights.
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 5, 2026
In South Korea, questions about cram schools, success and happiness
Eighty percent of South Korean school-aged students now receive some form of private extracurricular education, according to government data.
Uruguay federation reportedly cancels charter flight after World Cup exit
Uruguay's Jose Maria Gimenez reacts after the team's loss against Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Yen hits 40-year low against the dollar, breaking ¥162 level
Japan's currency broke ¥162 to the dollar on Tuesday in Tokyo.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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