<figure id="attachment_389222" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 3028px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-389222"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="f02686f3"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/f43192f8147d344d7ceb2c99126bac03.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-389222" class="wp-caption-text">During the marathon, Yasuko maintained a constant smile.</figcaption></figure>
The finale of ‘24-Hour Television 47’ (NTV) took place on September 1st, and comedian Yasuko (26), who took on the charity marathon amid Typhoon No. 10, successfully completed the run within the broadcast time.
At the end, YOSHIKI of “X JAPAN” (age undisclosed) performed “Kurenai” at the main venue, Ryogoku Kokugikan (Sumida, Tokyo). In the heavy rain, the sight of Yasuko running with one foot dragging and tears streaming down her face brought an emotional conclusion to the event.
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<h3>Yasuko Raised 438,014,800 Yen in Donations Alone</h3>
&#8220;This time, in addition to the usual charity donations, a &#8216;Marathon Children’s Welfare Facility Fund&#8217; was set up due to Yasuko’s upbringing in a children’s welfare facility until she was 18. Thanks to her hard work, the total amount raised was 438,014,800 yen, which exceeds 50% of the total fundraising amount for 2023 (848,050,000 yen). Given that Yasuko raised such a large amount, her marathon challenge can be considered a great success,&#8221; said a TV magazine writer.
Former NTV announcer and current freelancer Shinichi Hatori (53), who served as the main MC, explained:
&#8220;The donations we have received will be used entirely for children’s welfare facilities. According to the survey results on what is needed at the 610 children’s welfare facilities nationwide, we plan to deliver the items from the end of the year to April next year.&#8221;
However, on social media, there were still many critical comments such as, “Will some of it be used for staff’s slot machine expenses?” and “Isn’t proper feedback needed on where and how the money was used?” Even though a large amount of donations was collected, it seems that the lingering discomfort viewers felt about the overall program could not be completely erased.
&#8220;Regarding &#8217;24-Hour Television,&#8217; it was revealed in November of last year that a man from Nihonkai Television Broadcasting (Tottori City), a NTV affiliate, had embezzled a total of 11.18 million yen in donations since 2014. This included donations from the program. The man was dismissed and a report was filed with the Tottori Police Station.
Viewers naturally expected an explanation and apology about this issue within the program. However, while the hosts, including Shinichi Hatori and Shinya Ueda from ‘Cream Stew,’ as well as NTV announcer Mami Mizuto, appeared smiling at the beginning of the show, there was no explanation regarding the embezzlement issue. It seems the perception was that everything was resolved when Mizuto apologized on the morning news program &#8216;ZIP!&#8217; in June of this year,&#8221; said an NTV insider.
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<div data-friday-nextpage-lead="Hatori only explained the significance of the program."></div>
<h3>Announcer Hatori provided an explanation about the program&#8217;s significance, but…</h3>
At the end of the program, amid criticism, Announcer Hatori explained the meaning behind the decision to continue the broadcast. He addressed the reason for placing a question mark on the long-standing theme “Love Saves the Earth” from the first episode:
“We returned to the basics, re-evaluated the meaning of the program, and approached it with a determination and resolve to re-examine the essence of charity.”
And explained.
And then,
&#8220;And while we do not know how much understanding we have gained from the public, there are areas where charity would not reach if we did not broadcast. We decided to proceed with this year’s broadcast with the belief that continuing has its own significance,&#8221; he said.
However, frankly speaking, this explanation also faced criticism on social media, with comments such as, &#8220;There was time to explain the purpose of the event but no time to address the embezzlement,&#8221; and &#8220;Why is Announcer Hatori explaining this now? It seems NTV officials have no intention of providing a full explanation.&#8221;
With issues such as the embezzlement of donations, Mizuto’s apology, and the “question mark” notation due to the typhoon, this year’s 24-Hour Television generated a lot of controversy even before the broadcast. Although Yasuko’s efforts ultimately provided some relief, it remains uncertain when the viewers&#8217; lingering discomfort will be fully addressed.
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<div data-friday-nextpage-lead="Yasuko keeps smiling during the marathon"></div>
<figure id="attachment_389223" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 3129px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-389223"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="d44c6efc"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/8500d9701c445e69c8e7efba0b513eff.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-389223" class="wp-caption-text">Children from welfare facilities wore T-shirts with &#8220;dreams&#8221; written on them and ran.</figcaption></figure>
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<figure id="attachment_389225" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 1765px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-389225"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="21d95e09"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/019f0bdbd5a24587f3d0e3258374b45d.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-389225" class="wp-caption-text">NTV&#8217;s Announcer Erina Iwata, who reported on Yasuko&#8217;s activities at Nissan Stadium.</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_389224" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 3806px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-389224"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="cd9eb814"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/a96cce7fe214b9f2a08950901879985b.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-389224" class="wp-caption-text">Announcer Iwata waiting for her turn with a serious expression.</figcaption></figure>
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<figure id="attachment_389227" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 2846px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-389227"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="63d46221"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/1aa4b1f3fd90dbe05f0a1e2c0891ab1d.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-389227" class="wp-caption-text">Occasionally showing signs of struggle.</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_389228" class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 3331px;" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-389228"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="e093b187"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/09/6d6d74b5c78e17a6106b79be0e653f5e.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-389228" class="wp-caption-text">She always responded with a smile when called out from the roadside.</figcaption></figure>

 24 Hour TV 47" was broadcast on August 31 and September 1, and comedian Yasuko successfully completed the marathon. The donations raised by Yasuko alone exceeded 400 million yen, and it seems as if Yasuko's efforts helped her to get through the marathon, but some people on social networking sites pointed out the problem of "money laundering.

Yasuko’s Efforts Were the Only Reliance for 24-Hour Television Despite Marathon Fundraising Exceeding 400 Million Yen

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