<figure id="attachment_376455" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-376455" style="width: 1548px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="c8bc51b7"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/06/a8292ce29f80a30f56b2a265d8fbec6c.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-376455" class="wp-caption-text">Yasuko, a pin-up comedian who was reportedly &#8220;power-harassed&#8221; when she was in the Self-Defense Forces, has been putting out fires since then. &#8230;&#8230;</figcaption></figure>
 Last year, Yasuko topped the Oricon News ranking of breakthrough comedians for the first half of the year, and in April of this year, she was ranked first in the &#8220;Favorite Comedian Category&#8221; in the &#8220;Spring 2024: The Latest Trend Ranking of High School Students! The most popular comedian of the moment, Yasuko was ranked No. 1 in the &#8220;Favorite Comedian Category&#8221; in the &#8220;Latest Trend Ranking for High School Students&#8221; released in April this year. She wears a camouflage uniform with her hair parted into 7 thirds and sells &#8220;Self-Defense Forces material,&#8221; but it is well known that she herself was a former member of the Self-Defense Forces.
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 She is now suddenly facing allegations of power harassment. In the June 6 issue of Shukan Bunshun (weekly magazine), a junior member of the Japan Self-Defense Forces accused Yasuko of harassment.
 According to the magazine, the junior member, who was assigned to the same garrison as Yasuko at the time, was told by Yasuko late at night in her dormitory that she should quit the Self-Defense Forces.
 She told him to &#8220;quit the Self-Defense Forces.
 Get lost, get lost, get lost!
 The junior member said that Yasuko cursed him and grabbed him at night in his dormitory. The junior member became depressed because of this and ended up quitting the JSDF.
 If a female comedian with a high reputation and high likability was accused of power harassment, which is unimaginable given her image, even though it is in the past, she would be criticized and her entertainment activities would be hindered. Since she had been appearing in an increasing number of TV programs and commercials, there were concerns about the damage she might cause, but surprisingly, there was &#8220;no wind&#8221; in her sails.
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 It is a common occurrence in the entertainment industry for celebrities whose popularity is on the rise to be accused of past mistakes or misdeeds. The more popular a celebrity is, the more damage he or she suffers from scandal and the longer it takes to recover from it.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Un-jash Watabe and EXIT Kanekon&#39;s &quot;fire-fighting&quot; is..."></div>
One of the most memorable is Ken Watanabe of the comedy duo Un-jash. A producer in charge of variety shows at a key station said, &#8220;It depends on the nature of the scandal.
 Depending on the nature of the scandal, if the initial firefighting fails immediately after the scandal is discovered, it will be very difficult to put out the fire later on. A prominent example is Mr. Watanabe. Since the story reported in the media was so outrageous that it was impossible to ignore, many in the industry thought that he should immediately hold a press conference and apologize.
 But he didn&#8217;t do that, goofed around, and it was even discovered that he was planning to make a surprise return to TV as it was. This doesn&#8217;t help.&#8221;
 However, some wounds may be minor.
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 Comedy duo &#8220;EXIT&#8221; Daiki Kanekika was also revealed to have a criminal record in the past.
 In Kanekika&#8217;s case, his criminal record, a past that is inherently much heavier than Watabe&#8217;s, but Kanekika made no excuses, accepted the public&#8217;s condemnation, and apologized in a sincere manner. In an online program, he said
 I don&#8217;t want to be forgiven, and I have no intention of saying that I have been rehabilitated. If I can love myself when I die, then I will feel that I have been rehabilitated.
 The producer commented, &#8220;I don&#8217;t want to be forgiven. The producer of the film, who was mentioned above, commented, &#8220;These words show that Mr. Kanekika was not a rehabilitationist,
 These words show that Mr. Kanekon has made up his mind to &#8220;face up to the mistakes he made for the rest of his life. This may have helped him to fend off the backlash from the public.
 Yasuko also has a strong sense of humor.
 Yasuko responded to an interview with &#8220;Bunshun&#8221; through her office as follows.
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 I was asked to give guidance to the younger students and went to warn them, but I am very sorry if I acted out of consideration and made them feel uncomfortable. I will look back on myself and act more considerately.
 In response, an executive at a major entertainment agency had this to say.
 I can&#8217;t say I give her 100 points, but I think the fact that she made a proper apology completes the issue.
 If she wanted, she should have apologized directly to the woman who made the accusation through &#8220;Bunshun&#8221; and not made any excuses. As long as there are no more accusers, there will be no problem.
 The quick response and sincere attitude of Yasuko&#8217;s staff may have worked, and she will likely suffer no damage. In fact, Yasuko had the &#8220;most necessary elements&#8221; for a long career in the entertainment industry, according to the producer mentioned above.
 The entertainment industry is a rapidly changing one, so even if someone is popular now, he or she often peaks soon and gets tired of it. The more rapidly a person becomes popular, the bigger the drop-off is. What is important for survival in this environment is to be liked by the staff you work with.
 Even amongst TV personalities who are well-liked by the public, there are those who, as they become more successful, are humble toward their superiors on the spot, but are arrogant toward ADs and assistants. When something happens to such people, they are turned away by the onsite staff. On the other hand, a talent who is humble and not arrogant is well-liked by everyone, and people want to work with him or her again, regardless of rank, so there are many people who will help you even when you are in trouble.
 It is not only in the entertainment industry. In times of crisis, &#8220;human nature&#8221; is the key.

Born in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture. At the age of 31, he became a reporter for FRIDAY and has reported numerous scoops. Since then, he has continued to work mainly for weekly magazines. Currently he also appears on TV and radio as a commentator .

 Hiroyuki Sasaki (Entertainment Journalist)

 Ippei Hara

 Yasuko, a pin-up comedian, was reported to have been "allegedly harassed by power" when she was a Self-Defense Forces official. It was the "first scandal" of a successful comedian who is now rarely seen on TV, but the way she "put out the fire" was brilliant. ......

Yasuko&#8217;s &#8220;early response&#8221; and &#8220;reputation in the industry&#8221; saved her from her first scandal of &#8220;alleged power harassment when she was a self-defense official.

Yasuko’s “early response” and “reputation in the industry” saved her from her first scandal of “alleged power harassment when she was a self-defense official.

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