Skip to content
Facing Backward Podcasts
By Isaac Meyer and Demetria Spinrad
  • Home
  • The History of Japan Podcast
    • Listen to the show
    • See all show notes
    • Maps
    • Glossary
  • Criminal Records Podcast
  • Watching Backward
  • Support Our Shows
  • About Us
    • Press and Projects
    • Social Media & Contact Information

Tag: Yakuza

Episode 571 – The Revolutionary, Part 6

March 28, 2025 Isaac Meyer

This week: Miyazaki’s time as a politics reporter, the end of his reporting career, and his return to the family…

Continue Reading →

Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Podcasts Filed under: 1970s, History, Japan, LDP, Postwar, Yakuza

Episode 145 – An Offer You Can’t Refuse, Part 2

April 16, 2016 Isaac Meyer 3 Comments

  What does organized crime look like in modern Japan, and why does anybody put up with it? Also, how…

Continue Reading →

Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Uncategorized Filed under: Yakuza

Episode 144 – An Offer You Can’t Refuse, Part 1

April 9, 2016 Isaac Meyer 5 Comments

  Someday, and that day may never come, I’ll call upon you to do a service for me. But until…

Continue Reading →

Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Uncategorized Filed under: Yakuza

Episode 10 – A Day in the Life of Edo Japan

June 2, 2013 Isaac Meyer 2 Comments

This week, we’ll be discussing the life of your average city-dweller in Edo Japan. This is a huge topic, and…

Continue Reading →

Posted in: History of Japan Podcast, Uncategorized Filed under: Bunraku, Edo, Geisha, Kabuki, Prostitution, Samurai, Tokugawa, Yakuza

About Me

My name is Isaac Meyer, and I’m a  former PhD student at the University of Washington, specializing in modern Japan (with sub-specializations in modern China, modern Europe, and international relations). Today, I work as a teacher at an independent school in the Seattle area.

I also have a tendency to go off on random historical tangents. One day, I decided to combine these two traits in podcast form, and thus was born the History of Japan Podcast!

In 2018, I decided start the Criminal Records Podcast with my wife, Demetria Spinrad. This podcast gives me the chance to talk about world history–and the weird, wonderful world of historical crime and punishment.

Support the Show

Support the Facing Backward network on Patreon to get access to our bonus features, including our bonus episodes about historical fiction.

The History of Japan Patreon is still live, and subscribers will be able to get the weekly newsletter there as well.

Search This Site

Recent Posts

  • Episode 577 – The Kings of the Ring, Part 4
  • Episode 576 – The Kings of the Ring, Part 3
  • Episode 575 – The Kings of the Ring, Part 2
  • Episode 574 – The Kings of the Ring, Part 1
  • Episode 573 – The Revolutionary, Part 8
Copyright © 2025 Facing Backward Podcasts — Primer WordPress theme by GoDaddy