GAVIN BLAIR came to Japan 10 years ago to study and began his writing career working part-time for a Japanese magazine in 2000. Blair now contributes news stories and predominantly business-related features to newspapers, Web sites and magazines in the U.K., U.S., Hong Kong, Ireland and Japan.

DANIELLE DEMETRIOU is a British freelance writer and photographer based in Tokyo. For seven years she worked as a news reporter in London for The Independent, Evening Standard and the Daily and Sunday Telegraph. Freelancing since 2005, she writes travel, lifestyle and news feaures for a number of newspapers and magazines.

JOHN JUNKERMAN is an American filmmaker living in Tokyo. His first film, “Hellfire: A Journey from Hiroshima,” was nominated for an Academy Award. He wrote the subtitles for the 2008 documentary “Yasukuni.”

MASUO KAMIYAMA is a pseudonym.

STEVE McCLURE is Asia bureau chief of Billboard magazine and a dedicated fan of Led Zeppelin, whom he saw play live in 1976 or thereabouts.

TONY McNICOL has worked as a freelance journalist in Tokyo for over four years. His writing and photos have appeared in Discover, Wired, The Japan Times, the JAL and ANA in-flight magazines and Newsweek Japan. Web site: www.tonymcnicol.com

PETER O’CONNOR teaches English at Musashino University, Tokyo and lectures part-time on propaganda and journalism at Waseda University. His book “The English-language press networks of East Asia, 1918-45” and edited 10-volume series, “Critical Readings on Japan: Countering Japan’s Agenda in East Asia, 1906-1948” will be published in the UK and US this autumn.

Regular contributor JULIAN RYALL is the Japan correspondent of The Daily Telegraph.

DAN SLOAN works for Reuters TV and is a former FCCJ president.

FRED VARCOE is a freelance journalist and secretary of the FCCJ. He worked for The Japan Times for 15 years, rising to the level of bucho. He was fired from his post as sports editor in 2002. He now covers sports, cars, music and travel. His hobbies include lasagna, champagne and loud music.