Friday (magazine)
Friday (フライデー, Furaidē) is a Japanese weekly magazine that contains celebrity gossip, politics, news, and porn. It is published by Kodansha. New issues are released every friday, hence the name.
| Categories | Photographs |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Shūkan (weekly) |
| First issue | 9 November 1984 |
| Company | Kodansha |
| Country | Japan |
| Based in | Tokyo |
| Language | Japanese |
| Website | friday |
History
Friday, often called Friday Saseru (フライデーされる, Friday will be done), was launched on November 9, 1984. The magazine is best known for its candid, paparazzi-style photographs of celebrities and politicians, accompanied by often scandalous rumors of their private lives. It has been compared to as a mix of the magazinesPeople and Newsweek. A special supplementary issue called Friday Dynamite is published several times a year.[1][2]
Friday usually covers stories too risqué for the daily newspapers. Their covers usually depict either female celebrities or scantily clad models.
In 2003, the magazine published its 1,000th issue – a double issue covering both the Golden Week and the Bon Festival/Christmas and holiday season.
Friday is one of three Japanese weekly magazines, along with Flash, also published by Kobunsha, and Focus, published by Shinchosha, that are collectively known as the "3F".[3] In the early 1990s, following the rapid rise of the 3F, other major publishers began issuing their own tabloid-style magazines. In addition to the appearance of Emma (Bungeishunjū) and Touch (Shogakukan), the "3F" became the "3FET"; however, Emma and Touch were not able to compete with Flash and Friday. Both were shut down by the end of the decade. After Focus was discontinued in 2001, Friday became the most widely circulated weekly magazine. It has 409,082 subscribers according to the Japan Magazine Society. At its peak in the mid-1990s, Friday was selling roughly 600,000 issues per week.[4]
Editors
※ Source: Kodansha no 100-nen (company history)
| Name | Term | Remarks |
| Toshio Ito | Jul 1984 – Jun 1985 | Former "Shūkan Gendai" editor-in-chief. Later founded Tamis Co. Ltd. and issued Shūkan Tamis at Gakken.[5] |
| Akihiko Terashima | Jun 1985 – Apr 1987 | After retiring from the editorial office he took on the editor of "Shūkan Gendai". |
| Shin Sugawa | Apr 1987 – Apr 1988 | |
| Iwahiro Mori | Apr 1988 – Mar 1991 | After retiring from the editorial office he took on the editor of "Shūkan Gendai". |
| Masahiko Motoki | Mar 1991 – Mar 1993 | After retiring from the editorial office he took on the editor of "Shūkan Gendai". |
| Tetsu Suzuki | Mar 1993 – Jul 1996 | After retiring as editor-in-chief, he transferred to another department, and appointed editor-in-chief of "Shūkan Gendai". |
| Masashi Tani | Jul 1996 – Mar 1998 | |
| Haruyuki Kato | Mar 1998 – Jul 2000 | After being editor-in-chief, he was in charge of the publication department of the Gakugei Tosho Publishing Department, and editor in charge of "Shūkan Gendai". |
| Tomoyuki Suzuki | Jul 2000 – Jun 2002 | |
| Ichioya Delhi | Jun 2002 – Jul 2004 | |
| Kenji Nakamoto | Jul 2004 – Mar 2006 | |
| Ichioya Delhi | Mar 2006 – Apr 2008 | Second inaugural editor-in-chief. From the "Shūkan Gendai" editorial department (editor-in-chief) transfer. |
| Hisayuki Senba | Apr 2008 – Jun 2009 | |
| Atsushi Akiyoshi | Jun 2009 – Jun 2012 |
Controversies
- In December 1986, Friday published an article alleging that the TV personality Takeshi Kitano was having an affair with a college student. Kitano was furious and felt that he and his family had been harassed by the magazine. He and a group of followers attacked the Friday offices in retaliation.[6] The men involved were charged and received suspended sentences. During the trials, the information and sources that the magazine used were criticized. Thus, this incident directly caused a decline in the magazine's circulation.
- In September 1991, Happy Science protested the content of an article. This caused widespread demonstrations and calls for legal action. A feature article posted later in the 1,000th issue said, "the work of Kodansha was temporarily stopped due to this one case."
- According to a report in May 2000, Prime Minister Yoshirō Mori offered a delicate English greeting to the President of United States, Bill Clinton. This was reported on 21 July, in the 2000th issue of Friday relating to 26th G8 summit and Shūkan Bunshun.[7] In addition, journalist Shūkan Asahi is skeptical of the report of Friday and verified the articles, exposing that the articles were created by Akio Takahata, editorial writer of Mainichi Newspapers.[8][9]
- In October 2006, the magazine published a Scenic Kiss Photo in Minamiaoyama, Minato, Tokyo with Democratic Party of Japan member Goshi Hosono and freelance announcer Mona Yamamoto at the top of the spread page. Because Hosono was in a relationship, the affair triggered a scandal, leading to his resignation in October of that year. As a representative on behalf of the Democratic policy investigation, Chairman Yamamoto stopped making appearances on Tetsuya Chikushi, News23 from October 2 on the grounds of "poor physical conditions", and left on October 23. This photo was awarded the 2006 "Editors' Choice Magazine Journalism Award Topic Award."
- In August 2011, Friday published an exposé of TV personality Shinsuke Shimada and his ties to Yakuza. Shimada admitted exchanging text messages with the leader of an Osaka-based gang affiliated with Yamaguchi-gumi and was forced to resign as a result. He later sued Kodansha for compensation in the amount of 55 million yen, stating that his honor and reputation had been irreparably damaged by allegations. The Tokyo District Court ordered Kodansha to pay 3.3 million yen and rejected Shimada's demand to have the magazine apologize.[10]
- In the June 23, 2017, issue, an article alleged that actor Keisuke Koide had been drinking with and had sex with a female minor. Koide admitted to the crimes and was subsequently suspended by his talent agency. Prosecutors indicted him on the charge of drinking but dropped the charge of statutory rape against Koide, as the minor-in-question desired an out-of-court settlement.[11]
Issue circulation
| Jan–Mar | Apr–Jun | Jul–Sep | Oct–Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 380,000 copies | 375,834 copies | 364,616 copies | |
| 2009 | 345,000 copies | 335,417 copies | 340,000 copies | 330,231 copies |
| 2010 | 330,231 copies | 315,734 copies | 324,892 copies | 305,546 copies |
| 2011 | 303,625 copies | 306,000 copies | 308,131 copies | 311,250 copies |
| 2012 | 311,250 copies | 296,100 copies | 311,850 copies | 305,910 copies |
| 2013 | 293,334 copies | 275,917 copies | 269,167 copies | 269,167 copies |
| 2014 | 273,637 copies | 275,834 copies | 277,500 copies | 278,462 copies |
| 2015 | 260,000 copies | 263,334 copies | 260,910 copies | 253,847 copies |
| 2016 | 254,167 copies | 256,364 copies | 257,500 copies | 254,167 copies |
| 2017 | 254,167 copies | 254,167 copies | 250,833 copies |
References
- "総合誌：講談社" (in Japanese). Kodansha. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- "フライデー襲撃事件からちょうど30年！ 成宮寛貴をスクープした『FRIDAY』". Excite News (in Japanese). Excite. 10 December 2016. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- "創刊60周年、週刊女性古参記者が語る「田原俊彦と中山美穂の幻のデート取材」ほか" (in Japanese). Shūkan Josei Prime. 12 January 2017. p. 2. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
- "フライデー創刊編集長で襲撃事件の当事者・伊藤寿男さんに聞く「怒られても前向きでいる方法」". Pasona Career (in Japanese). Hata Labo –Hataraku Koto Kenkyūjo–. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 23 Mar 2018.
- "編集者ほど面白い仕事はない/伊藤 寿男【著】- 紀伊國屋書店ウェブストア" (in Japanese). Books Kinokuniya. Retrieved 23 Mar 2018.
- "Kitano Takeshi: Marching to His Own Creative "Beat"". nippon.com.
- "サミットで首脳夫人にも嫌われた森喜朗首相の英会話". Shūkan Bunshun (in Japanese). Bungeishunjūdate=3 August 2000. 42 (29): 27–28.
From the National Diet Library Search (Detailed Information)
- "ブッシュ再選と今後の日米関係" (PDF) (in Japanese). Ryūkyū Shimpō. 8 Dec 2004. Retrieved 23 Mar 2018. At the 141st Ryūkyū Forum lecture meeting, Takahata acknowledged that it was creative.
- Nakamura, Mariko (11 Aug 2000). "森首相、クリントン大統領に「フー・アー・ユー」失言の真偽". Shūkan Asahi (in Japanese).
- "島田紳助さんが勝訴 フライデー記事で賠償命令" (in Japanese). 47News. Kyodo News. 26 Sep 2012. Archived from the original on 29 September 2012. Retrieved 24 Mar 2018.
- "Prosecutors drop case against actor Keisuke Koide for drinking with under-age girl". Japan Today. Retrieved 2018-12-08.
External links
- Kodansha – Publisher of Friday (in Japanese)
- Official Friday – General site of Friday (in Japanese)
- Gendai Business – Web magazine created by its publisher Kodansha (in Japanese)