Asahi Shimbun

Asahi Shimbun (朝日新聞, Asahi Shinbun) is a Japanese national newspaper, and it is the second most circulated newspaper in the world, after it's Japanese rival, the conservative Yomiuri Shimbun. The newspaper forms, together with the Yomiuri Shimbun and the Mainichi Shimbun, what is called "the big three" in Japanese newspapers[1]. Its circulation was as of June, 2005, 8.2 million copies of the morning edition and nearly 3.8 million copies of the evening edition[2].

History

The newspaper's first issue was published in Osaka on January 25, 1879, by politician Murayama Ryohei and Ueno Ri'ichi. The paper was a small-sized 4 page publication, complete with pictures and furigana (Japanese signs used to indicate pronounciation).