Japanese media "encouraged" to report exclusively "official" news when it comes to status of nuclear power plants after earthquakes, according to this Mainichi account excerpted below.
Professor Hiroyoshi Sunakawa was quoted as saying this move to rely exclusively on official reporting would have a "chilling" effect:
NHK president: Nuclear power reports after quakes shouldn't stir up needless alarm. April 23, 2016 The Mainichi Japan, http://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20160423/p2a/00m/0na/009000cThe unstated issue is of course the status of the NPPs in Kyushu that may have been impacted by the 500-plus earthquakes that recently occurred on the island.
"Ongoing reporting on nuclear power plants should be based on official announcements so as not to stir up residents' anxiety unnecessarily," a source quoted him as saying in the meeting at the NHK Broadcasting Center in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward.
...Hiroyoshi Sunakawa, a professor of media theory at Rikkyo University, commented, "President (Momii) has strong authority over personnel-related matters, and if the remark (on nuclear power) was indeed made, it is a problematic statement that has a chilling effect on on-the-ground reporting."
Sunakawa added, "It could threaten independent reporting that aims to verify the appropriateness of evacuation plans in the event of a nuclear power plant accident, assuming that traffic networks would have already been disturbed due to the preceding Kumamoto earthquakes, and review the cooperation between the SDF and local governments."
In particular, the status of the Sendai nuclear power plant is at issue because it is the only one (officially) operating in Japan right now.
I've been checking Netc regularly to identify unusually high radiation readings. The levels in Kyushu seem to fluctuate quite a bit while the levels in the far north of Japan have remained elevated for the last week or so (what is going on up there?).
Here is a map of the location of NPPs in Japan:
Page 21 of 330
It is impossible to determine where the elevated radiation levels are coming from but there have been peaks in levels around the Sendai plant over the last few days but elevated readings have NOT been sustained beyond about 12 hours or so (suggesting venting may have occurred):
April 22, 2016 (netc time stamp)
April 23, 2016 9:50 (Netc time stamp)
The levels in Kyushu (southern area) were more elevated last night. You can run animation at Netc to see the changes across time: Netc.com
The LDP will NOT want to shut down the Sendai plant so we are unlikely to get any "bad news" about NPPs in Japan after earthquakes.
80 years ago the world was creeping towards a terrible war from which no nation benefited. And none of the major powers were innocent. Presently we have three significant social and economic blocks, Japan, the USA and the EU, acting contrary to their best interests. Nuclear power plants, unregulated and excessive immigration, sanctions on Russia based on lies provided by the US, and prospects of disastrous trade deals. Not to mention the continuing preoccupation with wars and more wars. Unfortunately there are no mental hospitals for nations; otherwise, now would be the ideal time to stick the above three in one for some therapy! What we do have is a school of red herrings out and about to distract citizens from what is going on as well as a propaganda saturated media acting as the ultimate criterion of truth. Currently America's inept President is giving advise to Europe! Surely by now the Europeans recognize that he is either lying or simply not himself well informed. Probably fuzzy minded as well. Somehow the world has gotten entranced again and its behavior is unintelligible.
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