The Chairman and President of Japan’s Fuji TV have resigned over the handling of the sexual misconduct scandal involving TV presenter Masahiro Nakai.
In a press conference held today, Fuji TV Chair Shuji Kano and Koichi Minato, Head of Fuji Media Holdings (FMH)’s TV wing, announced their resignations, bowing their heads alongside other executives before they spoke. EVP Kenji Simizu has been promoted to replace Minato as President. He has committed to “starting from scratch” to ensure no similar incidents occur in future and the BBC reported him saying he will “never tolerate acts that violate human rights.”
Advertisers have been pulling ads from the network in droves after allegations that Fuji TV execs were engaged in a cover-up over Nakai, who was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a dinner arranged by network staff in 2023.
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Last week, Fuji TV held an extraordinary board meeting and established a third-party committee that will oversee a “comprehensive and independent investigation into the facts surrounding a series of reports issued since December 2024 regarding an incident involving a talent appearing on Fuji TV’s program and a woman in June 2023.”
Results of the committee’s investigation are expected by the end of March. “Fuji TV and FMH are committed to fully cooperating with the third-party committee throughout the investigation,” an accompanying statement read.
The committee added that the network “sincerely apologizes” to “viewers, advertisers, advertising agencies and other stakeholders for any inconveniences and concerns arising from recent reports involving Fuji TV.”
The Japanese government has called on Fuji TV, which is one of the country’s biggest commercial networks, to regain viewer trust, and the exit of Kano and Minato will be seen as a first step in that direction. Nakai is not being investigated by police.
Fuji execs had admitted to knowing about the allegation against Nakai, a former SMAP boyband member and host of numerous TV shows, but had not disclosed because the network “prioritized the woman’s physical and mental recovery” and right to privacy. Local reports said Nakai had continued to appear on programs after execs were aware of the situation.
That didn’t sit well with many companies, who immediately began pulling ads. Meanwhile, shareholder Dalton Investments and its UK associate, Rising Sun Management, expressed “outrage” in a public letter to the Fuji board published this month.
“I feel deeply the weight of my responsibility for undermining trust in the media,” said Minato at the Tokyo press conference. “Looking back, I realize there were shortcomings in our response, and I acknowledge my lack of awareness regarding human rights.”
Nakai has denied being violent with the woman. Reports suggest he paid her ¥90M($580,000) after the allegation arose. Last week, he announced his retirement from TV and from show business.
Other networks that ran his shows have opened their own investigations to look for further wrongdoing.
The Japanese entertainment industry has faced a reckoning during the past couple of years or so over these issues following allegations from more than 1,000 people against the late talent agent Johnny Kitagawa.
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