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The nuclear incident at Fukushima is an important media focusing event that drew attention from the Japanese public, government officials around the world, and private organizations. Since focusing events and frames influence policy decisions, this research examines the rhetoric associated with the incident, and compares the rhetoric presented across media sources from Japan, the US, and Europe for the two-week period following the initial tsunami. The content analysis demonstrates that a single focusing event maintains several frames for different actors. The paper illustrates the different immediate frames after the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in regard to the Fukushima nuclear power plant. In particular, the research shows the differences in frame presentations between the European news outlets, the US, and Japan. These differences parallel subsequent policy choices made within these regions toward nuclear power. Keywords: comparative policy, focusing events, framing, Fukushima, media