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Is Today's Close-Up coming back?

Today's Close-Up (2016–present) on NHK World

The answer: Currently airing — last episode May 22, 2026.
Today's Close-Up poster
Network / streamer
NHK World
Premiered
May 28, 2016
Runtime
~27 min per episode
11seasons
388episodes

About Today's Close-Up

Today's Close-Up is currently between seasons on NHK World; the most recent episode aired on March 6, 2026. There is no confirmed return date for the next season.

The show is a Japanese current affairs program that has been airing since its debut on May 28, 2016. It provides viewers with in-depth analysis and critical insights into significant issues affecting Japanese society, covering a range of topics relevant to contemporary life.

Each episode has a runtime of approximately 27 minutes, offering concise yet comprehensive coverage of important issues.

Today's Close-Up episode schedule

388 aired

Aired · 388

DateEp.Title
May 22, 2026 S2026·E20 Pets in an Aging Society: Who Will Care When Owners Can't
May 21, 2026 S2026·E19 "Cuba's Next" — Trump's Strategy Shakes Latin America
May 15, 2026 S2026·E18 Booming Character Economy: Why Adults Fall for Mascots
May 14, 2026 S2026·E17 Trapped in Poverty: The Darker Side of the Gig Economy
April 17, 2026 S2026·E16 Hidden Undernutrition: How to Improve Your Diet
April 16, 2026 S2026·E15 The Toy Gun That Wasn't: In Search of 17,000 Weapons
April 10, 2026 S2026·E14 Coming Soon to Your Neighborhood? The Pros and Cons of Data Centers
April 9, 2026 S2026·E13 Silent Pandemic: The Dangers of Drug-Resistant Bacteria
April 3, 2026 S2026·E12 Global Quest for Rare Earths: Surviving China's Dominance
April 2, 2026 S2026·E11 15 Years Since Fukushima: The Plant Chief's Final Message
March 6, 2026 S2026·E10 Chewing Well: Health Benefits for Young and Old
March 5, 2026 S2026·E9 Former PM Abe Shooting Trial: What the Attacker Told the Court
February 6, 2026 S2026·E8 Hospice-Style Housing: New Option Emerges for End-Of-Life Care
February 5, 2026 S2026·E7 Closer Than Friends or Family? — Turning to AI for Companionship
January 30, 2026 S2026·E6 Tourism Dream or Local Nightmare? Japan's 'Minpaku' Private Lodging Struggles
January 29, 2026 S2026·E5 Sushi's New Era: Challenges Transform Japan's Food Culture
January 23, 2026 S2026·E4 Aging Well: The Most Private Challenge
January 22, 2026 S2026·E3 Have You Written by Hand Lately? — The Value of Handwriting in the Digital Age
January 16, 2026 S2026·E2 The 'Land of Gold' Returns: Eyes Turn to Japan Amid Record Prices
January 15, 2026 S2026·E1 Braking Point: The Science of Safe Driving as We Age
December 19, 2025 S2025·E59 Shorter Hours With Regular Status: Win-Win Model for Workers, Employers?
December 18, 2025 S2025·E58 Battery Fire Crisis: Defective Products Pose Serious Risk
December 12, 2025 S2025·E57 Threats from Above: Tackling Nuclear Plant Drone Intrusions
December 11, 2025 S2025·E56 Japan's Bear Threat Continues: What's Pushing Them Into Human Habitats?
December 5, 2025 S2025·E55 Japan's "Foreigner Anxiety": How Misinformation and Complaints Fuel Unease
December 4, 2025 S2025·E54 Amazon on the Brink: Global Impact of Deforestation
November 21, 2025 S2025·E53 Inside the 'Black Box' Hospital: Hidden Crisis in Japan's Psychiatric Care
November 20, 2025 S2025·E52 AI Robot Revolution: Impact on Caregiving
November 14, 2025 S2025·E51 Fighting the Yips: The Life-Eroding Disorder
November 13, 2025 S2025·E50 Japan's Fermented Food Crisis: Challenges Amid Global Boom
Show next 200 of 358 earlier episodes
November 7, 2025 S2025·E49 More Than Books: Libraries as Community Hubs
November 6, 2025 S2025·E48 Unusual Boom in Property Market: What's Driving Housing Price Surge in Japan
October 24, 2025 S2025·E47 A Tick Bite Can Be Deadly: Doctors Warn as Infection Spreads in Japan
October 23, 2025 S2025·E46 iPS Cell Therapy: Transforming the Future of Medicine
October 17, 2025 S2025·E45 Predicting Bands of Heavy Rain : Scientists Fight for Higher Accuracy
October 16, 2025 S2025·E44 Rebuilding in the Midst of Conflict : New Developments in Ukraine
October 10, 2025 S2025·E43 The Midlife Crisis : How to Find Your Way Out
October 9, 2025 S2025·E42 Bear Attacks in Japan Residential Areas Face Growing Threat
October 3, 2025 S2025·E41 Redefining Life With Dementia: New Opportunities in the Workplace
October 2, 2025 S2025·E40 Seaweed Power: Harnessing the Ocean's Hidden Potential
September 19, 2025 S2025·E39 The Hidden Threat Below: Japan's Aging Sewer System
September 18, 2025 S2025·E38 Rethinking Retrials: Saving the Innocent in Japan's Courts
September 12, 2025 S2025·E37 AI Accelerates Drug Repositioning: Unlocking New Potential of Existing Medicines
September 11, 2025 S2025·E36 Don't Sweat It! - New Solutions for Perspiration Problems
September 5, 2025 S2025·E35 Brain Drain in Trump's America: Global Hunt for Talent
September 4, 2025 S2025·E34 Our Diet in the Age of Extreme Heat
July 25, 2025 S2025·E33 Find Your 'Just Right': Home Cooking That Lets You Be Free
July 24, 2025 S2025·E32 Car Theft on the Rise: Who Steals Them, Where Do They Go?
July 18, 2025 S2025·E31 Japan's Space Ambitions: From Moonshots to Market Strategy
July 17, 2025 S2025·E30 "Last Letter": Changing Views of Death in Japan
July 11, 2025 S2025·E29 Living With Cancer: Patients Burdened by Costs
July 10, 2025 S2025·E28 "We Want You!": The Heated Tug of War Over Foreign Workers
July 4, 2025 S2025·E27 Tokyo's 'Baby Hatch': Lifeline for Newborns and Their Mothers
July 3, 2025 S2025·E26 Seeking a Partner Later in Life
June 20, 2025 S2025·E25 Aging Hospitals, Rising Costs: Japan's Urban Medical System in Crisis
June 19, 2025 S2025·E24 Drinking to a Better Life: Non-Alcoholic Beverages Are Transforming Japan
June 13, 2025 S2025·E23 Your Account Could Be Next: Japanese Trading Sites Under Attack
June 12, 2025 S2025·E22 Broken Trust: When Attorneys Exploit Fraud Victims
June 6, 2025 S2025·E21 Loneliness Claims Young Lives: The Truth Behind Solitary Deaths
June 5, 2025 S2025·E20 Management: Promotion or Punishment? — How Japan is Rethinking Leadership Roles
May 23, 2025 S2025·E19 Protection vs. Freedom: Children's Social Media Use
May 22, 2025 S2025·E18 Learning to Say How You Feel: Emotional Literacy Helps Prevent Violence, Crime
May 16, 2025 S2025·E17 Home-Visit Care Crisis: Emerging Barriers To Aging in Place
May 15, 2025 S2025·E16 Japan's COVID Vaccine Woes: Slow Relief, Hard Lessons
April 25, 2025 S2025·E15 Japan's Logistics Crisis: Challenges From Working Hour Reform
April 24, 2025 S2025·E14 When Devices Explode: The Hidden Risks of Lithium-Ion Batteries
April 18, 2025 S2025·E13 E-scooter Accidents on the Rise: How to Balance Safety and Convenience?
April 17, 2025 S2025·E12 "Why I Really Quit": Taking on Workplace Sexual Harassment
April 11, 2025 S2025·E11 30 Years in Darkness: Children of the Cult After the Tokyo Sarin Attack
April 10, 2025 S2025·E10 Cashing in on Spare Time: How "Spot Work" is Changing Japan
March 3, 2025 S2025·E9 Behind Closed Doors: Supporting Families With Mental Illness
February 28, 2025 S2025·E8 'Deathonomics': How Russia is Enjoying Growth
February 24, 2025 S2025·E7 Recipes for Survival: How To Save Japan's Disappearing Ramen Shops
February 21, 2025 S2025·E6 Plastics in Our Bodies: Emerging Health Risk
February 17, 2025 S2025·E5 Unusual Flu Season: What's Behind Record Wave of Infections
February 14, 2025 S2025·E4 30 Years Since Hanshin-Awaji Quake: Challenge of Preserving Memories
January 31, 2025 S2025·E3 Fakes, Frauds and Forgeries: The Dark Side of Art and Collectibles
January 24, 2025 S2025·E2 Japanese Elections in 2024: The Impact of Social Media
January 17, 2025 S2025·E1 From Survivors to Victims: Disaster-Related Deaths After Noto Earthquake
December 23, 2024 S2024·E33 Art of Sake Joins UN Heritage List
December 20, 2024 S2024·E32 Restoring Cognitive Health: Key Lies in Combining 4 Strategies
December 13, 2024 S2024·E31 Medical Incidents: How Doctors Become "Repeaters"
December 9, 2024 S2024·E30 Realty Fraud Targeting Seniors: How to Avoid Scam Sales Deals
December 6, 2024 S2024·E29 Is Your Condo Quake Resistant? — For Current & Future Owners
December 2, 2024 S2024·E28 A Champion Born from Change: Japan's World-Conquering Go Player
November 22, 2024 S2024·E27 Is My Pension Enough? Risks Awaiting Japanese Women in Retirement
November 15, 2024 S2024·E26 Uneven Healthcare Crisis: Dual Challenges Facing Japan's Hospitals
November 8, 2024 S2024·E25 Japan's Gastronomy Tourism: Key to Regional Revival?
November 1, 2024 S2024·E24 Beyond the Nobel Peace Prize: Survivors' Fight Goes on for a Nuclear-Free World
October 18, 2024 S2024·E23 "Black Rain" The Unsettled Question Left by the Atomic Bomb
October 11, 2024 S2024·E22 Another Disaster for Quake-Hit Noto: Record Rain, Flooding Break Spirits
October 4, 2024 S2024·E21 My Home is Hot! — Rethinking Housing in the 'Era of Global Boiling'
September 20, 2024 S2024·E20 Unlocking the Secrets to Longevity: The Billion-Dollar Quest for Longer, Healthier Life
September 13, 2024 S2024·E19 Noto Peninsula Earthquake: Learning From First Responders
September 6, 2024 S2024·E18 First-ever Mega-quake Advisory: What Can Be Learned From Confusion
July 19, 2024 S2024·E17 Mt. Fuji's New Entry Rules: Can They Keep Careless Hikers Safe?
July 12, 2024 S2024·E16 Six Months after Noto Peninsula Earthquake: Can Rural Communities Survive?
July 5, 2024 S2024·E15 PFAS Chemicals: Tracking Sources and Health Risks
June 28, 2024 S2024·E14 Bureaucrats in Distress: Why Japan's Government Officials are Stretched Thin
June 14, 2024 S2024·E13 Yen at 34-Year Low: How Can Japan Overcome a Historic Currency Crisis?
June 7, 2024 S2024·E12 Emerging Threats: Super-Resistant Mosquitoes and Dengue Fever
May 31, 2024 S2024·E11 Small Businesses Thrive: Enlivening the Community with Personality
May 24, 2024 S2024·E10 The Third Military Revolution: How AI Will Change the Battlefield
May 17, 2024 S2024·E9 Fighting Fake Ads: The Spread of Investment Frauds on Social Media
April 26, 2024 S2024·E8 Hamburger Economics: What Sizzling Prices Reveal about Japan's Economy
April 19, 2024 S2024·E7 What's Holding up Reconstruction in Noto?: Quake Victims Tell of Financial Struggle
March 1, 2024 S2024·E6 Japan's Booming Stock Market: Another Bubble or Real Growth?
February 23, 2024 S2024·E5 Five-star Gold Rush: Impact of Foreign-operated Hotels on Japanese Society
February 17, 2024 S2024·E4 Noto Peninsula Earthquake: Wajima Vows to Rebuild Historic Market
February 2, 2024 S2024·E3 Generative AI: Copyright Thief or Creative Genius?
January 27, 2024 S2024·E2 "I will decide how I am" — Message from Author Nishi Kanako
January 19, 2024 S2024·E1 Tokyo Haneda Airport Collision: Critical Decisions that Saved Lives
December 16, 2023 S2023·E31 The Global Boiling Era: Part 2 The Fight to Save Forests
December 8, 2023 S2023·E30 The Global Boiling Era: Part 1 "Climate Refugees"
December 1, 2023 S2023·E29 Japanese Fish Going Global: Export Battles in a Booming Market
November 17, 2023 S2023·E28 Gendered Innovations: Improving Healthcare for All
November 10, 2023 S2023·E27 Alternative Eats: Can Food Tech Feed the Future?
November 3, 2023 S2023·E26 Fujii Sota's Eight Crowns: How the King of Shogi Beat the Odds
October 20, 2023 S2023·E25 Shingles on the Rise: New Risks as Virus Hits 1 in 3 in Japan
October 13, 2023 S2023·E24 Power to the People: Home Solar Panels Tackle Rising Bills
October 6, 2023 S2023·E23 Away from the Tourist Trail: Japan's Hidden Gems See Rise in Numbers
September 22, 2023 S2023·E22 Japanese Agriculture Endangered: Going Organic to Protect Farms
September 15, 2023 S2023·E21 What if it Happened? — Simulating Nuclear War
September 8, 2023 S2023·E20 Fukushima Daiichi Treated and Diluted Water Release: How to Spread Understanding
July 21, 2023 S2023·E19 Hunt for the Missing $620 Million: North Korea's Hidden Source of Money
July 14, 2023 S2023·E18 One Year after Abe's Fatal Shooting: Have Former Unification Church and Politicians Changed?
July 7, 2023 S2023·E17 Not a Single Minute to Waste: How to Make the Most of Your Time
June 30, 2023 S2023·E16 "Who Am I?" ― Left in Dark by Donor Insemination
June 16, 2023 S2023·E15 Designing Out Waste: Circular Fashion Shifts Consumer Choices
June 9, 2023 S2023·E14 Japan's Architectural Legacy at Crossroads
June 2, 2023 S2023·E13 G7 Hiroshima Summit: Were the Voices of the People Heard?
May 26, 2023 S2023·E12 Over-tourism: Handling the Post-COVID Rebound
May 19, 2023 S2023·E11 The "Air Mobility Revolution": How will Flying Cars Change our Lives?
May 13, 2023 S2023·E10 Investigating Ukraine's Missing Children
April 28, 2023 S2023·E9 Japanese Prime Minister Attacked: Looking into the Security and Motives
April 21, 2023 S2023·E8 ChatGPT: Learning to Live with the Revolutionary AI
April 14, 2023 S2023·E7 Russia's Transfer of Ukrainian Children: Abduction or Protection?
March 3, 2023 S2023·E6 Playing to Understand the World: New Video Games Open up Real-life Experiences
February 24, 2023 S2023·E5 More Than a Game: Japan's Trading Card Bubble
February 17, 2023 S2023·E4 Better Off Abroad: Young People Leaving 'Cheap Japan'
February 3, 2023 S2023·E3 Another Giant Leap for Mankind: New Space Race for Settlement on the Moon
January 27, 2023 S2023·E2 Tokyo Makeover: The Megalopolis Transforms for the Future
January 20, 2023 S2023·E1 #RegrettingMotherhood: Japanese Women Reflect on Experience
December 23, 2022 S2022·E32 Anime Director Makoto Shinkai: Depicting Disasters Through Storytelling
December 16, 2022 S2022·E31 Turning Back to Nuclear Power? ― Debate Over Japan's Energy Mix
December 9, 2022 S2022·E30 Digging for Answers: The Growing Threat to Japan's Onsen
December 2, 2022 S2022·E29 Anatomy of a Flawed Investigation: Machine Maker Snared in Export Control Net
November 18, 2022 S2022·E28 Is Free Delivery Truly "Free"? — Truckers Struggle with Long Hours, Low Pay
November 11, 2022 S2022·E27 Are We as Eco-friendly as We Think? — The True Cost of Going Green
November 4, 2022 S2022·E26 Authentic Chinese Cuisine Arrives in Japan: A Sign of a New Age in Bilateral Ties?
October 21, 2022 S2022·E25 Russia Turns to Africa: New Ties in Face of Global Isolation
October 14, 2022 S2022·E24 Vacant House Investment: Finding Value in Abandoned Homes
October 7, 2022 S2022·E23 20 Years after Japan-North Korea Summit: Can Lessons Help Bring Home All Abductees?
September 23, 2022 S2022·E22 Spousal Organ Transplants: New Option Leads to New Challenges
September 16, 2022 S2022·E21 A New Generation of Idols: How Tech is Bridging the Gap with Fans
September 9, 2022 S2022·E20 Ties Revealed: Former Unification Church and Japan's Politicians
July 22, 2022 S2022·E19 Heatstroke Misconceptions: Beat the Heat with the Right Knowledge
July 15, 2022 S2022·E18 Waste Not, Want Not: Unused Fish Find Favor at Dinner Table
July 8, 2022 S2022·E17 Ukraine Cyberwar: Battlefield With No Borders
June 24, 2022 S2022·E16 Secret Power of Bacteria: How Gut Health Shapes Our Well-being
June 17, 2022 S2022·E15 Ant Attack: Fight Against Invasive Species
June 10, 2022 S2022·E14 Japan's Fried Chicken Craze: What's Behind the 'Karaage' Business Boom?
May 29, 2022 S2022·E13 50 Years Since Okinawa's Reversion to Japan: Bridging History with the Future
May 20, 2022 S2022·E12 The Murky World of "No. 1" Rankings: How Marketing Misleads Consumers
May 13, 2022 S2022·E11 Changing Gender Stereotypes via Education
April 29, 2022 S2022·E10 From Kids' Comics to Black Comedy: The Life of Fujiko Fujio (A)
April 22, 2022 S2022·E9 North Korea Ramps up Missile Program: Global Divisions Fuel Urge to Arm
April 15, 2022 S2022·E8 Information War in Ukraine: The Battle for Truth
March 18, 2022 S2022·E7 11 Years After Great East Japan Earthquake: School Ruins Reconnect Survivors
March 11, 2022 S2022·E6 11 Years After Great East Japan Earthquake: Young Survivors Open Up to Families
March 4, 2022 S2022·E5 Confessions of an Ex-Radical: Fifty Years after the Asama Sanso Incident
February 4, 2022 S2022·E4 Japan's Elderly Care Going Digital
January 28, 2022 S2022·E3 Cybercrime Thriving in Pandemic: Japan a Major Target
January 21, 2022 S2022·E2 Young Survivors Find Their Voice: 27 Years since Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake
January 14, 2022 S2022·E1 New Year, New Society? — Key Figures Share their Thoughts
December 17, 2021 S2021·E33 New Space Age: Private Companies Take on Final Frontier
December 10, 2021 S2021·E32 Cage-Free Eggs Highlight Animal Welfare
December 3, 2021 S2021·E31 Peter 2.0: Living as a Cyborg
November 19, 2021 S2021·E30 "Never Give Up" — Atomic Bomb Survivor's Final Message
November 12, 2021 S2021·E29 "Social Tipping" — Fans Fall into Livestreaming Pitfall
November 5, 2021 S2021·E28 General Election in Japan: Voters Look Beyond Pandemic
October 29, 2021 S2021·E27 "Stigmatized Properties" — Dark Truth of Japanese Society
October 22, 2021 S2021·E26 Timeless Legacy of "Golgo 13": Artist Saito Takao Drawing on Human Nature
October 15, 2021 S2021·E25 Social Prescribing: Tackling Isolation in the COVID Era
October 8, 2021 S2021·E24 "No More Dropouts" — High School as a Safety Net
October 1, 2021 S2021·E23 Bidding Farewell Without Regret: Changing Trends in the Way We Mourn
September 17, 2021 S2021·E22 Hoping to Conceive: Sperm Donation in the Social Media Age
September 10, 2021 S2021·E21 Dying in Japan: Foreign Residents Struggle to Find Graves
July 16, 2021 S2021·E20 "Put Yourself in Someone Else's Shoes": How to Bridge the Gender Gap
July 9, 2021 S2021·E19 Halting Virus Variants: Infection Paths and Preventive Strategies
July 2, 2021 S2021·E18 Corona-Driven "Easy Money": Will the Party Continue?
June 25, 2021 S2021·E17 Bidding Goodbye to Companies: Lifestyle Shift in an Era of Longevity
June 17, 2021 S2021·E16 The Battle Between Variants and Vaccines
June 4, 2021 S2021·E15 Kariko and Yamanaka: Pioneering Scientists Discuss Covid Vaccines
May 28, 2021 S2021·E14 Braving the Storm: Novice Nurses During the Pandemic
May 21, 2021 S2021·E13 Sustainable Fashion: Clothes for a Better Future
May 14, 2021 S2021·E12 Coronavirus Variants Changing the Stakes
April 23, 2021 S2021·E11 Living with Family, but All Alone: Solitary Deaths in Japan
April 16, 2021 S2021·E10 Lost Education: "Voluntarily Absent" During the Pandemic
April 9, 2021 S2021·E9 Live Streaming E-commerce: Sales Booming During the Pandemic
March 19, 2021 S2021·E8 Diving for a Missing Daughter: Ten Years After 3.11 Tsunami
March 5, 2021 S2021·E7 Storytelling Bus Tour: 2011 Tsunami Survivors Keep Memories Alive
February 26, 2021 S2021·E6 Myanmar Coup: Future of the Protests
February 19, 2021 S2021·E5 Pandemic Hits Troubled Teens
February 5, 2021 S2021·E4 Mobile Finance Revolution Driven by Pandemic
January 29, 2021 S2021·E3 Goodbye, Izakaya? Japanese Pubs at Crossroads
January 22, 2021 S2021·E2 Frontline of COVID-19 Fight: An Escalating Medical Crisis
January 15, 2021 S2021·E1 How to Prevent Worst-Case COVID-19 Surge: Latest Findings Provide the Key
December 18, 2020 S2020·E50 Hayabusa2: Secrets of Japan's Asteroid Mission
December 11, 2020 S2020·E49 In Search of the Stolen Pigs: The Plight of Vietnamese Technical Trainees
December 4, 2020 S2020·E48 A Workplace Where Women Can Shine: Overcoming Innate Gender Bias
November 27, 2020 S2020·E47 Are the Tokyo Games Possible? - Int'l Gymnastics Meet Held as Test
November 20, 2020 S2020·E46 How Will Japan Change Without "Hanko"?
November 13, 2020 S2020·E45 Small Scale Farming: A Lifestyle for the Post-Pandemic World
October 30, 2020 S2020·E44 Traditional Culture at Risk: Pandemic Hits Historic Businesses
October 23, 2020 S2020·E43 Life in a Post-Pandemic World: Women Lead Push for Sustainability
October 16, 2020 S2020·E42 Inside the "Click Fraud" Industry
October 9, 2020 S2020·E41 Growing Uncertainty over US Presidential Race
October 2, 2020 S2020·E40 Kurosawa Kiyoshi in the Limelight: Venice Award - Winner Talks Film
September 18, 2020 S2020·E39 Batten Down the Hatches: Life in the Super Typhoon Era
September 11, 2020 S2020·E38 Pandemic Spawns New Kind of Loan Shark
September 4, 2020 S2020·E37 COVID-19: Frontline Battle with "Second Wave"
August 7, 2020 S2020·E36 Lest We Forget: The Struggle to Pass on War Memories
July 31, 2020 S2020·E35 Supporting "Hikikomori": Social Isolation Amid a Pandemic
July 24, 2020 S2020·E34 Frontline Response to Resurgent Virus
July 17, 2020 S2020·E33 Pandemic Increases Online Shopping Pitfalls
July 10, 2020 S2020·E32 Predicting the Virus with Big Data
July 3, 2020 S2020·E31 COVID-19: Untold Stories of Life and Death
June 26, 2020 S2020·E30 Life After the Virus: Former Patients Speak Out
June 19, 2020 S2020·E29 Antibody Testing: Bracing for the Second Wave of COVID-19

…and 158 earlier episodes not shown. Long-running show.