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On Friday, Koichi Minato, the head of Japan’s Fuji Television network, stated that a new independent investigation will be conducted into sexual misconduct allegations against one of the country’s highest-profile celebrities, Masahiro Nakai, and the possible involvement of company officials. Nakai was a leader of SMAP, a five-member singing and dancing boy band, which debuted in 1988 and quickly surged to stardom in Japan and across Asia until it was disbanded in 2016, and he is now a popular TV host at the network.

The incidents in order.

The December 19, 2024 issue of “Josei Seven” (Shogakukan) was the initial publication to report Nakai’s troubles with a woman, which resulted in a major impact on Fuji Television. A dinner in 2023 resulted in the ‘trouble behind closed doors’. The dinner was planned to include Nakai, Mr. A, an executive from Fuji Television, and a woman, but Mr. A suddenly became sick, leaving Nakai and the woman alone. It was later reported that a serious issue occurred between the two in the closed room, and it became problematic.

Following the incident, Nakai and the woman met with a proxy, and Nakai made a settlement payment of 90 million yen(($580,000). Nakai’s agency, through a lawyer representing him, said, ‘Please understand that the matter has been resolved through previous discussions between the two parties.’ They continued, “It’s important to note that the matter has been settled through previous discussions between the two parties, and we both have a mutual obligation to be discreet, so we won’t provide any information to the public.” Nakai acknowledged that there was a problem.

In the December 25 edition of ‘Shukan Bunshun‘ (Bungeishunju), it was reported that there was supposed to be a large drinking party at the dinner where the trouble occurred, but everyone except for the female victim cancelled the meeting.

Fuji Television’s public relations department denied that Mr. A was involved in Bunshun’s situation, saying, ‘The inquiry about our employee A is not true, and we deny it without hesitation.’ Fuji Television issued a statement on its official website on December 27 of that year titled ‘Regarding Reports about Our Employee A in Some Weekly Magazines, etc.,’ stating that none of their employees were involved in the situation

The January 8 issue of Shukan Bunshun featured a new confession from female victim, who and her associates testified that Nakai used sexual acts against her will. According to the article, she had consulted with Sasaki, who was the head of the announcements office at the time and with whom she had strong professional connections, but Sasaki was not able to take the problem seriously.

The magazine’s 16th issue contained an interview with another female announcer from Fuji Television who testified that she was not the only victim. Other female announcers were invited to the dinners by Fuji Television’s upper management to entertain executives of influential entertainment production companies, as reported.

The tide has changed.

The issue has caused a negative impact on the television company’s share price and caused a letter from one of its biggest shareholders to express concerns about its corporate governance.

In a public letter published this week, a group representing investors affiliated with US’s Dalton Investments expressed outrage over an alleged lack of transparency in a report of Nakai’s harassment of a woman and involvement of an employee of Fuji TV, “The lack of consistency and, importantly, transparency in both reporting the facts and the subsequent unforgivable shortcomings in your response merit serious condemnation that serves not only to undermine viewer trust, but also leads directly to erode shareholder value. As one of your largest shareholders, controlling over 7% percent of the company’s stock, we are outraged!”

Major Japanese TV networks have suspended programs hosted by him or edited him out of footage following the allegations. Nippon Television Network Corp. said Nakai was to step down as host of a variety program following a thorough review of the situation.

Fuji TV President Koichi Minato apologized on Friday for the significant trouble and concern caused by the media reports and stated that an external panel would probe the actions of company officials, including himself.

Problems

President Minato held a special press conference, and there was a lot of criticism about only allowing newspapers, TV stations, and radio stations who belong Kisha Club(a Japanese news-gathering association of reporters from specific news organizations）.

The “Investigative Committee of Third-Party Lawyers” that Fuji Television is about to set up is not in line with the “Guidelines for Third-Party Committees in Corporate Misconduct Cases” set forth by the Japan Federation of Bar Associations. It may end up with an investigation that lacks objectivity.

Nakai’s incident occurred in the middle of Johnny Kitagawa’s(Kitagawa established Johnny & Associate, Nakai was ) human rights issues in 2023. Until 2023, TV stations did not report any issues and the former Johnny’s office did not face any consequences.

My opinions.

I used to work at the TV program called, “Morning Satellite” at TV Tokyo, I had a hard time understanding that Fuji Television’s President Minato and the other members placed the most importance on the relationship with Ms. Nakai, a major celebrity, and the direction of the program’s continuation, instead of actively addressing human rights violations as a news organization. 

Then, during the press conference, president Minato stressed the importance of taking into account the mental and physical health of women who were victims, stating, ‘We took into account the mental and physical health of the victims.’ However, I did not perceive that’s the case. If that is the case, it should have been taken care of with the utmost care in 2023.

And the biggest problem is that the president and others were aware that Mr. Nakai had harmed women in some way a year and a half ago, but they still used him as though it had not happened. After the Johnny Kitagawa’s incidents, the TV stations that were criticized, didn’t they pledge to take human rights violations seriously in the future? I personally think that it is common sense in the TV industry to suspend the appearance of a person who is “suspected of human rights violations” until the facts are clarified, even if the facts are not conclusively confirmed.

But the real issue is that Fuji Television’s planned Third-Party Lawyers Investigator Committee is not in accordance with the guidelines for Third-Party Committees in Corporate Misconduct Cases set forth by the Japan Federation of Bar Associations. It may end up with an investigation that lacks objectivity.

Fuji’s poor response suggests a lack of crisis awareness in the upper management of the station, as well as a desire to escape responsibility.

Hope 

However, many TV people on the frontline are furious with the way the upper management is handling the situation, saying, “Enough is enough. Mid-level and younger workers want to make good programs even in a difficult environment, and are sincere in dealing with the viewers. The field is frustrated that the entire TV industry is viewed negatively by the upper management due to their self-preservation.

Providing a reality-based perspective on sexual assault and harassment in Japan, the film ‘Black Box Diaries‘ was shown worldwide and collected some accolades at some prestigious film festivals, but it hasn’t even been released yet in Japan. This case requires action due to the #MeToo movement in Japan and foreign media scrutiny that exposed like Johnny Kitagawa’s incidents.

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