What was Emperor Hirohito's 1945 Japanese surrender broadcast commonly called?

Emperor Hirohito's 1945 Japanese surrender broadcast was commonly called Gyokuon-hōsō.

The Japanese term means “Jewel Voice Broadcast” or “Broadcast of the Emperor's Voice.” It refers to the radio transmission of Hirohito reading the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War at noon on 15 August 1945. The term became associated with the unprecedented public appearance of the emperor's voice.

The address was not a live broadcast. NHK technicians recorded Hirohito in the Imperial Palace on the night of 14 August, and the official recording was later played over the radio. Palace officials hid the recordings during an attempted coup by military officers who wanted to prevent Japan's surrender.

The phrase can be confused with the name of the rescript itself. Gyokuon-hōsō describes the broadcast, while the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War is the document Hirohito read. The formal surrender document was separate and was signed on 2 September.