Emperor Hirohito's surrender broadcast began at noon on August 15, 1945, Japan Standard Time. It was transmitted by the Japan Broadcasting Corporation, NHK, to the Japanese public.
The broadcast was not live. NHK technicians recorded Hirohito reading the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War inside the Imperial Palace late on August 14. A second recording became the official version, and it was replayed at precisely noon the next day. The broadcast lasted about four minutes and 36 seconds.
For many Japanese listeners, this was the first time they had heard the emperor's voice. Hirohito used formal classical Japanese, and the poor sound quality made the message difficult for many people to understand. The speech announced acceptance of the Allied declaration rather than using a simple conversational statement that Japan had surrendered. Because of time-zone differences, the announcement was August 14 in much of the Americas.