Rafu Shimpo
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Rafu Shimpo began in April 1903 as a simple news sheet posted on local bulletin boards and today is the nation's leading bilingual Japanese American daily newspaper, read by over 45,000 each day.
Rippo Iijima, Masaharu Yamaguchi, and Seijiro Shibuya, attending the University of Southern California at the time, decided to publish a mimeographed newspaper from their small office at 128 N. Main Street in downtown Los Angeles. For a name, they combined the "ra" from the old Chinese name for Los Angeles, "Rashogiri", and "fu" meaning prefecture, then added the Japanese word for newspaper, "shimpo".
The young men struggled to maintain their publishing business and carve out a share of the growing Nikkei population, which at the time was around 500. Soon, they were printing 250 copies per week. The newspaper served the newly arriving Japanese who searched its pages for jobs and housing. Over the next decade, The Rafu Shimpo confronted several economic challenges and came close to shutting down.
Then, in 1914 a new management team entered the picture. Sho Inoue became president and Henry Toyosaku "H.T." Komai was named manager. Eight years later, H.T. Komai was elevated to publisher. For the next three generations, the position has remained in the Komai family.
In the 1920s, H.T. realized that the young Nisei represented future subscribers and, of course, future advertisers. H.T. hired 20-year-old UCLA education major, Louise Suski, and on Feb. 21, 1926, the English section was launched.
Another UCLA student, Togo Tanaka became co-editor in April 1936 and helped lead the paper through the outbreak of World War II and the forced removal of all West Coast Japanese Americans. H.T. was arrested and unjustly imprisoned along with other prominent community leaders. The Rafu Shimpo ceased publication on April 4, 1942.
Three and a half years later, interned Japanese Americans began returning to the West Coast. H.T. was still being held in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His son, Akira, assumed leadership of the paper and, with a $1,500 loan from three employees, restored the business. The postwar years saw rapid growth. The circulation of 500 in 1946 grew to over 20,000 over the next 30 years, making it the most widely read of any Japanese American newspaper. The Rafu Shimpo is currently located in Little Tokyo.
Since 1983, H.T.'s grandson, Michael M. Komai, has led the award-winning publication. Under Michael's guidance, the newspaper modernized its operation and launched the Rafu Shimpo Foundation, which sponsors an annual charity golf classic and gives monetary gifts to worthy causes serving the community.
