Abstract
In Japan the word"access" or"right of access" began to be discussed in the mid-1970s. No.573 (October 15, 1974) of the"Jurist", one of the most popular law journals featured articles and discussions on the right of access to mass media. Jerome A.Barron, Access to the Press-A New First Amendment Right, Harvard Law Review, vol.80, p.1641 (1967) stimulated scholars' interests in the concept. In recent years the right of access to government information has been important issues.
