Top Fuji TV executives resign over sex scandal in Japan sexual harassment news
The speaker and president stepped down to take responsibility for the widespread sexual harassment scandal involving the celebrity host.
Japan’s Fuji Media says its president and the head of its TV unit will step down immediately amid an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct by a celebrity TV host.
Chairman Shuji Kano and television president Koichi Minato stepped down on Monday, weeks after host Masahiro Nakai was accused of sexual harassment, sparking a public relations storm and a massive walkout from advertisers.
Nakai, 52, reportedly later paid the woman 90 million yen ($580,000) and the pair signed a non-disclosure agreement.
While Nakai has worked for several TV networks in Japan, the dinner at which the incident occurred was reportedly arranged by an executive of the broadcaster.
One of the magazines, Shukan Bunshun, also reported that the same executive had gathered female TV celebrities at a hotel to entertain Nakai and other celebrities in a separate program.
Dozens of brands including McDonald’s and Toyota pulled their ads from the private broadcaster after employees were accused of trying to cover up the scandal.
As pressure mounts, Kano and Minato announce their decision to leave.
“I want to sincerely apologize to the women concerned for failing to provide adequate care due to lack of awareness of human rights,” Kano told reporters.
“I apologize to viewers, advertisers, company members, shareholders for the great concern and inconvenience caused by the series of news reports,” he said.
Earlier this month, Minato admitted that Fuji TV knew about the scandal before it was reported by local media.
The company denies claims that its employees were involved in arranging Nakai’s meeting with the woman, which reportedly took place at the star’s home.
Nakai, a former member of the boy band SMAP, which swept across Asia in the 1990s and 2000s, announced his retirement on Thursday after being dropped from shows on Fuji TV and other channels.
Nakai said, “I am solely responsible for everything” and “sincerely apologized”. He had earlier issued a statement saying that what was reported was “far from the facts”.
Fuji Television, with its soap operas and popular comedy and variety shows, claimed Japan’s highest viewership ratings in the 1980s and early 1990s.
It aired the first domestically produced animation Astro Boy in 1963, and also produced films including Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Shoplifters, which won the 2018 Palme d’Or at Cannes.
The Nakai scandal follows another major incident in the industry, involving the now-defunct boy band empire Johnny & Associates, to which SMAP belonged.
Johnny & Associates, which has now changed its name, admitted in 2023 that its late founder Johnny Kitagawa had sexually assaulted teenage boys and young men for decades.
