The latest craze in Japan - eyeball licking?

Date: 2013 August 02 14:46

Posted by Joe

We know readers of Otaku News are up to date with all the latest crazes in Japan, but have you heard about eyeball licking? If you read some news websites they state that it's the latest craze in Japan. They all give the impression that it's sweeping the country. They also interview various doctors who confirm that eyeball licking isn't a healthy thing to do. What they don't do is actually double check with anyone in Japan about this strange craze, because if they did, they'd find out that it isn't really happening. It's another one of those weird Japan stories that people just assume is true.

The Number 1 Shimbun has an excellent article by Mark Schreiber who analyses the origin of the story and how lack of any fact checking caused the article to be picked up by more prestigious news outlets.

Thanks to Matt Alt for making us aware of this story.