On the 2nd, the Japan Newspaper Association announced the 2026 Newspaper Association Award, which is given to outstanding reporting that approaches the truth and shows the presence of journalism. In the news category, Nishinippon Shimbun's investigative report titled ``Distorted Relationships: Pursuing Fukuoka Prefectural Government'' was selected.
Nishinippon Shimbun's Fukuoka prefectural government reporting team reported on the systematic purchase of party tickets by employees, moves to restrict interviews, and diversion of proposed questions, starting with the fact that overseas inspection expenses at the prefectural assembly had increased by up to 10 times. It was praised for revealing the opaque practices that had continued for many years between Congress and the executive branch, and for demonstrating the presence of journalism nationwide.
The two works selected for the planning category are ``Hidden Blade: Black Record,'' a project based on documents disclosed in the Kyoto Shimbun's information disclosure lawsuit, which approaches the reality of forced sterilization under the former Eugenics Protection Law, and a series of reports examining social media elections, including ``In the Heat of That Passion,'' a Kobe Shimbun series that conducted repeated interviews with voters during the 2024 Hyogo Prefecture gubernatorial election.
In the photo/video news category, Kyodo News' photo coverage of the two years since the Gaza battle, ``The Endless Chain of Sadness,'' was selected.
The photo and video project category was chosen to go to Sanyo Shimbun's ``Seto Inland Sea Kayak Journey across the Islands'' and Japan Broadcasting Corporation's NHK special ``Brown Bear: Living in the Strange Sea.''
In addition, the Yomiuri Shimbun Tokyo Head Office and Miyazaki Nichinichi Shimbun's ``development of a next-generation standard rotary press'' were also selected for the Newspaper Technology Award.
The award ceremony will be held at a newspaper convention in Matsue City on October 16th.
Nishinippon Shimbun “Distorted Relationships: Pursuing Fukuoka Prefectural Government”
Starting with a special report in the morning edition dated December 22, 2025 regarding the Fukuoka Prefectural Assembly's expensive overseas tours, Nishinippon Shimbun has scooped up allegations of cash exchanges involving prefectural employees purchasing party tickets for political funds and holding the positions of president and vice president. A move to restrict coverage of the parliament building, which had been proposed in the midst of a series of reports, was brought to light, and the paper was forced to be withdrawn.
Through careful interviews and continuous reporting, we were able to point out the structural problems of the prefecture's excessive patronage of the assembly, as well as the opaque practices of the assembly, leading to successful outcomes such as the resignation of the president and vice chair, optimization of expenditures, and a ban on the purchase of party tickets. It played the role of a news organization monitoring local politics and was highly praised for its investigative reporting that showed the presence of journalism nationwide, and was worthy of the Newspaper Association Award.
Kyoto Shimbun “Hidden Blade Black Record”
The Kyoto Shimbun has filed an information disclosure request and filed a lawsuit regarding forced sterilization under the old Eugenics Protection Law, reporting on the 7-year history of the process, and is running a planned report starting with its April 26, 2025 morning edition that approaches the reality of severe human rights violations based on administrative documents disclosed in the lawsuit. Through repeated analysis of materials, he uncovered the lives and dignity of each individual who had been taken away by national policies, and also reconsidered the contemporary issues surrounding people with disabilities. By fighting and finalizing document disclosure all the way to the Supreme Court, 24 prefectures that had been non-disclosure changed their policies to disclosure.
A series of activities that overturned the reluctance of administrative agencies to disclose documents and revealed the dark side of postwar society were highly praised and deserved the Newspaper Association Award.
Kobe Shimbun “In that fever”
The Kobe Shimbun has published a serial project delving into the reality of the 2024 Hyogo Prefecture gubernatorial election, which was the beginning of the SNS election, for 1 year and 4 months starting with its morning edition on February 28, 2025, and has also developed a multifaceted linked project.
By listening to the lives and feelings of voters, we carefully reported how the enthusiastic support for the re-elected governor came about and why distrust of the existing media spread. In addition to confronting and verifying criticism of its own election reporting head-on and exploring the possibility of dialogue and restoring trust, the company also questioned the state of modern democracy and election reporting by verifying authenticity and analyzing social media in a linked project.
As SNS transforms elections and community consensus-building, this story has been highly praised for its contemporary and documentary reporting, and is worthy of the Newspaper Association Award.
Kyodo News “An endless chain of sadness”
Kyodo News reported on the sadness of citizens of both sides who are at the mercy of the conflict, using 11 photos taken in Israel and Palestine two years after the fighting in Gaza.
With restrictions on reporting, the film captures the faces of people thinking about the lives lost and their hometowns. The film depicts the loss and division that the protracted conflict has left on people, with a composition that depicts both sides without bias, such as Israeli demonstrators calling for the release of hostages and Palestinian vigilantes staring at a bonfire.
The series of photographs has great significance as international reporting that conveys the reality of citizens living under the ravages of war, and has been highly praised as an excellent work that demonstrates the power of photography, and is worthy of the Newspaper Association Award.
Sanyo Shimbun “Crossing the Island: Setouchi Sea Kayak Trip”
Starting in October 2024, Sanyo Shimbun has launched a serial project in which reporters and photographers will tour 121 islands in the Seto Inland Sea by sea kayak and record the history, nature, and lives of the people living there.
While using realistic and beautiful photographs to convey the expression of a remote island that can only be seen from the perspective of being on the sea, it also reported on social issues such as the decline in the number of islanders and the scars caused by illegal dumping of industrial waste, highlighting the island's individuality and current situation. The digital version features a variety of content, including videos and comics that tell behind-the-scenes stories from the interviews, increasing readers' familiarity with and interest in the islands. It was highly praised as a photo project that showed new possibilities for local journalism through original ideas and action, and was worthy of the Newspaper Association Award.
NHK Special “Brown Bear: Living in a Sea of Strange Things”
On May 31, 2026, the Japan Broadcasting Corporation broadcast a program depicting the impact of warming in the Sea of Okhotsk on the ecology of brown bears living in Shiretoko, a world natural heritage site.
