February 13, 2026 – Japan Headlines

Story gist: In Japan’s centrist party leadership election, a University of Tokyo Law Faculty graduate became a new representative candidate. His son was an actor who appeared in the drama ‘Gekokujō Kyūji’ and played baseball like his father for 15 years. The election prioritizes avoiding divisions, with zero recommenders and no Komeito candidate.

Bias summary: Left-leaning Asahi emphasizes political strategy, highlighting division avoidance, zero recommenders, and Komeito’s non-participation for a serious tone. Center outlet Daily Sports focuses on human-interest details of the candidate’s son’s acting career and baseball ties, using light celebrity framing. Right-leaning coverage is absent, omitting any conservative perspective on the election dynamics.

Story gist: Special fraud scams in Japan caused record 141.4 billion yen in damages last year, with fake police impersonations rising sharply, mostly via international calls. Police plan to expand a phone blocking app.

Bias summary: Left-leaning Okinawa Times emphasizes a local woman’s fear and 5.44 million yen loss, highlighting victim impact and scam expansion. Center NHK provides neutral national statistics on record losses and fake police increase. Right-leaning Sankei stresses cross-border calls as main source and ‘angry’ police aggressively deploying ‘trump card’ blocking app, praising law enforcement.

Story gist: Japanese weather service forecasts spring-like warm weather for the weekend, with increased cedar pollen dispersal and snowmelt risks.

Bias summary: Left- and right-leaning outlets offer no coverage, leaving partisan perspectives absent. Center outlet Weather News frames the story neutrally via its title, balancing positive warm weather note with cautions on pollen and snowmelt hazards, without sensationalism, omissions, or emphasis on climate implications.

Story gist: In the 2026 Japanese House of Representatives election, Liberal Democratic Party proportional representation votes decreased from the previous election only in Tottori Prefecture, hometown of former Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. Ishiba’s own votes also declined there.

Bias summary: Left-leaning Asahi provides neutral live updates across all districts without highlighting negatives. Center NHK emphasizes high voter turnout in Nara Prefecture, omitting vote specifics. Right-leaning Sankei spotlights LDP vote drop solely in Ishiba’s Tottori hometown and his personal decline, implying localized unpopularity.

Story gist: In Minnesota, USA, a large-scale immigrant enforcement operation ended with Donald Trump’s agreement. Immigrants vowed not to leave despite Trump’s description of them as ‘trash.’

Bias summary: Left-leaning outlets like Mainichi emphasize immigrants’ resolve with sympathetic tone, spotlighting Trump’s ‘trash’ label as dehumanizing. Center outlets like Nikkei frame neutrally, focusing on operation’s end and Trump’s consent without emotional emphasis. Right-leaning coverage absent, omitting potential emphasis on enforcement successes or immigration control.