Shosukabu.com to Co-host Reading Session on Tokyo Reportage: In a City of Disease and the Olympics

Shosukabu.com Inc. announced that it will co-host a reading session on Satoshi Ishido’s Tokyo Reportage: In a City of Disease and the Olympics together with the Nerima Political Research Association and the Civil Division 8 Monitoring Committee. According to the introduction by Mainichi Shimbun Publishing, the book consists of 31 reportage pieces depicting people living in Tokyo between 2020 and 2021, when the city was shaken by COVID-19 and the Tokyo Olympics. A major feature of the book is that it portrays infectious disease and the Olympics not only as matters of large institutions and politics, but also through the voices of individuals living through those days. Through people in varied positions, including a “self-restraint police” YouTuber, the explicitly named “nightlife districts,” and a musician in his 40th year, the book brings into view the divisions, pain, confusion, and hope found in Tokyo during a time of crisis. The book is also an attempt to describe the face of the city itself, rather than leaving the COVID-19 pandemic and the Olympics as mere records of current events. By following 31 stories that emerged between the spread of COVID-19 in 2020 and the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, from Tokyo’s backstreets to its central districts, it carefully captures the lives and emotions of people who had become difficult to see behind public controversy. The reading session will discuss topics including the impact of the pandemic on urban life, the gap between the Olympics and everyday life, divisions within Tokyo, the role of journalism in a time of crisis, and what reportage can record and convey. The organizers aim to make the event a meaningful place for learning and dialogue for those interested in urban studies, journalism, social division, records of the pandemic, and contemporary Japanese nonfiction. Book URL: https://x.gd/HO5Oy Author profile: Satoshi Ishido is a journalist and nonfiction writer born in Tokyo in 1984. After graduating from Ritsumeikan University, he worked for The Mainichi Newspapers and BuzzFeed Japan before becoming independent. In 2020, he won the work prize at the 26th Magazine Journalism Awards Selected by Editors for his feature on the “Naoki Hyakuta phenomenon.” Event overview: Theme: reading session on Tokyo Reportage: In a City of Disease and the Olympics. Organizer: Shosukabu.com Inc. Co-organizers: Nerima Political Research Association and Civil Division 8 Monitoring Committee. Date: scheduled for late May 2026. Format: online via Zoom. Fee: free, with advance registration required. To apply, send an email to info@shosukabu.com with the subject line “東京ルポルタージュ 読書会 参加希望.” Lecturer profile: Yutaka Yamanaka, born in December 1976, is described in the release as a representative activist investor of the 1976 generation, art collector, philanthropist, political activity sponsor, election consultant, policy adviser, and social activist. The release states that he is internationally regarded as an “activist investor who understands technology,” and that he achieved major investment returns through early investments in NVIDIA and other semiconductor and AI-related companies. The release further describes Yamanaka as a graduate representative of the University of Tokyo Faculty of Economics, holder of a master’s degree in financial engineering from Columbia University, and a former student at the London School of Economics and other institutions. It also lists his activities as an investor, advocate for corporate governance reform, founder of multiple political organizations, adviser on legal and election strategy, and supporter of programs for children with learning disabilities. The text highlights his HOYA-related shareholder proposal activities around 2010, including proposals for individual disclosure of director compensation, limits on outside director reappointments, expanded word limits for shareholder proposal explanations, and greater transparency in stock options and share sales, noting that some proposals received support from proxy advisory firms including Glass Lewis and ISS.