🇯🇵 NHK

About NHK

NHK (Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai) is Japan's public broadcaster, established as a statutory corporation under the 1950 Broadcast Law. It is primarily funded by television license fees paid by viewers, and does not carry advertising. Its board of governors is appointed by the Prime Minister and ratified by the Diet, overseeing the corporation's strategic direction, policies, and budget. NHK World-Japan, its international broadcasting service, receives funding from the Japanese government.

Media Bias/Fact Check rates NHK as Right-Center biased due to story selection that favors Japanese nationalism, while NHK World-Japan is rated Left-Center biased. Both are rated High for factual reporting. NHK has faced criticism for alleged pro-government bias, including favoring the LDP-Komeito government and promoting Japanese nationalism. Past controversies include allegations of censorship of a documentary on wartime history due to political pressure. More recently, NHK addressed an incident where a Chinese contract staff member made unscripted, pro-China statements on a Chinese-language radio broadcast, which the broadcaster termed 'broadcast hijacking.' Japan's press freedom environment is categorized as 'problematic' by Reporters Without Borders, citing concerns such as the 2014 Act on the Protection of Specially Designated Secrets leading to self-censorship, and the 'kisha club' system limiting access for some journalists.