<figure id="attachment_311594" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2385px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-311594"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="c0a1a44e"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2023/05/45458e009a40bf0e155b3e2edcd8fe2b.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-311594" class="wp-caption-text">Akira Kawashima of the comedy duo &#8220;Kirin&#8221; is the host of &#8220;Lavit.&#8221; He apologized on behalf of the show to Hiroshi Yamazoe, but &#8230;</figcaption></figure>
The comedy duo &#8220;Lavit!&#8221; (TBS), a scene was shown of Hiroshi Yamazoe of the comedy duo &#8220;Aiseki Start&#8221; on location in Korea, picking and eating fried food from a food stall with a used toothpick, which caused a flood of criticism on the station. Yamazoe has yet to publicly apologize or comment on the incident, which has caused a mixed reactions on the Internet.
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Speaking of TBS, last year, actor Teruyuki Kagawa, who was the MC of &#8220;THE TIME,&#8221; dropped out of the program for assaulting a hostess in Ginza. Recently, a former employee of the Japan Agricultural Cooperation Agency (JA), who was interviewed on &#8220;news23&#8221; with his name and face hidden, was forced to resign after his employer found out his identity due to inadequate editing of the video by the program.
This reminds us of the &#8220;falling penguin pond&#8221; incident involving Toshiaki Kasuga of &#8220;Audrey&#8221; on &#8220;Sukkiri&#8221; (a NTV program).
Fortunately or unfortunately, the program had been canceled regardless of the incident, so the uproar did not last long. However, because Kasuga&#8217;s actions seemed to have been encouraged by MC Koji Kato or directed by the production side, the program and NTV came under a flood of criticism. Of course, Kasuga was also slammed.
However, in the case of &#8220;Lavit!&#8221;, it was taped, unlike &#8220;Sukkiri,&#8221; the question was raised as to why it was not cut, and the criticism of the program was louder than that of Yamazoe.
A TBS official said, &#8220;Maybe the editors were too lax,&#8221;
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 A TBS official said, &#8220;Perhaps the editing and checking were not thorough enough. The previous program, &#8220;Good Luck!&#8221; was handled by the Information Production Department, but &#8220;Lavit!&#8221; is produced by the content production department, which mainly focuses on variety and drama. The staff tends to have a strong variety sensibility, so it is possible that they saw what Mr. Yamazoe did as funny and did not think it was a socially offensive. Many staff members at the station saw the broadcast and immediately thought it was a bad idea.
The production side was largely to blame.
Indeed, in the scene where Yamazoe sticks a toothpick into his hand, his hand is highlighted with a red arrow. Did the staff think that the act of stabbing a pre-purchased fried bean curd directly into the mouth with the toothpick they had used would be well received with the viewers in terms of variety? If so, checking the VTR would be of no use.
However, it would be unwise to blame the TV station alone and defend Yamazoe.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead="Yamazoe is now making a name for himself as a &quot;trashy comedian.&quot; ......"></div>
He is a full-fledged adult. Even if he needs to get a laugh, he should be able to distinguish between what is right and wrong. Even if he is urged to do so by the production side, he should refuse.
Yamazoe is currently making a name for himself as a &#8220;trashy comedian.&#8221; Therefore, some reports suggest that his inappropriate behavior this time may have been the result of being asked to play the &#8220;scum character&#8221; too much. However, previous reports also states, &#8220;I was addicted to gambling and spent a great deal of time on it,&#8221;
Some people have suggested that his inappropriate behavior may have been the result of being sought after too much as a &#8220;bum.&#8221; &#8220;I can understand if he is addicted to gambling and has huge debts, or if he is slutty with women, but what he did was not a story to promote his &#8220;bum&#8221; character. As Maki Fukuda of &#8220;Heroine at 3 o&#8217;clock&#8221; who accompanied him on location pointed out on the spot, it was a breach of etiquette and a dirty act that is physiologically repugnant. It doesn&#8217;t fit the concept of a scruffy character,&#8221; said the broadcaster.
Like the production team, which thought it would be a hit, Yamazoe could be seen as lacking in common sense.
And the fact that Yamazoe himself has decided to remain silent is seen as problematic.
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A producer involved in the production of information programs at a key station commented on this situation.
 It was later revealed that he had actually apologized to the zoo privately. However, he did not apologize in the program or in public. For a TV station, a program is a &#8216;broadcast product,&#8217; and all responsibility lies with the TV station,&#8221; he said.
That is why, in the case of &#8220;Lavit! was also a case where the station&#8217;s own announcer, Mako Tamura, and the MC, Akira Kawashima, apologized on behalf of the station.
 For example, if something a celebrity does in a program is staged, the individual is not responsible for it. But if he is forced to apologize, neither he nor his office will be satisfied. The relationship of trust between the talent and the office would be destroyed.
 There is no problem in going to the office to apologize personally, but it does not necessarily mean that it will go in the right direction. In the case of Mr. Kasuga, it was good that the zoo announced it on SNS, but if it is not clear that he apologized, the situation where he is blamed will not change.
For this reason, the TV station does not welcome individuals going out to apologize in cases such as this one, as it would become the standard.
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However, Yamazoe will not be able to escape the storm of criticism if the situation continues as is.
 He said, &#8220;Now you can send out a message on social networking sites. If you want, you can go to a Korean food stall and apologize in person and release a video of it.&#8221;
 As a token of their apology, they could help out at the stall or buy all the fried food and hand it out to everyone. If you are a comedian, you have to do something that will be popular. It&#8217;s no good imitating Haruhi. He should think of his own way.
Even a &#8220;trashy comedian&#8221; should not lack manners. How will Yamazoe overcome this crisis? It may be the time to test his skills as a comedian.

Born in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, Hiroyuki Sasaki became a reporter for FRIDAY at the age of 31. During his time at FRIDAY, he reported numerous scoops and has since worked mainly for weekly magazines. Recently, he has also appeared on TV and radio as a commentator .

 Hiroyuki Sasaki (Entertainment Journalist)

 Toshikatsu Tanaka

 Akira Kawashima of "Kirin" fame is the MC of TBS's "Lavit! The show was aired on TBS, where Akira Kawashima of "Kirin" is the MC. The show was still under fire for the actions taken by Hiroshi Yamazoe of the comedy duo "Aiseki Start". Kawashima and Tamura Mako apologized for the program, but Yamazoe himself is still under fire. ......

Yamazoe Hiroshi’s of “Aiseki-Start” Despicable Act on His “Lavit!” Show Causes Criticism!

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