Wednesday, October 21, 2009

At nineteen, Jake Adelstein went to Japan in search of peace and tranquility. What he got was a life of crime…crime reporting, that is, at the prestigious Yomiuri Shinbun. For twelve years of eighty-hour work weeks, he covered the seedy side of Japan that few Japanese even see, where extortion, murder, human trafficking, and corruption are as familiar as ramen noodles and sake. But when his final scoop brought him face to face with Japan’s most infamous yakuza boss–and the threat of death for him and his family—Adelstein decided to step down…for a time. Then, he fought back.

In Tokyo Vice, Adelstein tells a riveting, often humorous tale of his journey from an inexperienced cub reporter—who made rookie mistakes like getting in a martial-arts battle with a senior editor—to a daring, investigative journalist with a price on his head.

Jake Adelstein was a reporter for the Yomiuri Shinbun, Japan’s largest newspaper, from 1993 to 2005. From 2006 to 2007 he was the chief investigator for a U.S. State Department-sponsored study of human trafficking in Japan. Considered one of the foremost experts on organized crime in Japan, he now works as a writer and consultant in Japan and the US. He is also public relations director for Polaris Project Japan, which combats human trafficking and the exploitation of women and children in the sex trade.

Dana Lewis (moderator) has served as president of the Japan Society of Northern California since 2007. Previously, she spent three tours of duty in Tokyo as a journalist with Kyodo News Service, Newsweek magazine, and Newsweek Japan magazine.

Time:
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
5:45 pm Program

Location:
USF Center for the Pacific Rim
Fromm Hall
University of San Francisco
Parker St. (between Golden Gate & Fulton), San Francisco
map

Cost:
Free & open to the public.
Reservations recommended; please call (415) 422-6828.

Co-sponsored by the USF Center for the Pacific Rim and Asia Society Northern California.