Fuji TV Criticized for Handling of Nakai Issue and Alleged Cover-Up

On January 27, Fuji TV held a press conference lasting over 10 hours regarding the female-related trouble involving former talent Masahiro Nakai (52).

Koichi Minato, president of Fuji Television, and Shuji Kano, chairman, announced their resignations, with Kenji Shimizu appointed as the new president. On January 28, Vice Chairman Ryunosuke Endo also revealed he would resign after the third-party committee’s investigation concluded.

The main cause of the confusion surrounding this issue appears to stem from the failure of the initial response or suspicions of concealment.

Until reports from “Women’s Seven” and “Weekly Bunshun” in December, the fact that the issue wasn’t reported to the “Compliance Promotion Office” (hereafter referred to as the compliance office) was a significant factor that exacerbated the situation. After the incident occurred, it should have been reported to the compliance office immediately to start an investigation and clarify the solution.

A small group of people handled the female victim once the trouble was discovered

The trouble between Nakai and the woman occurred in June 2023. When employees noticed the woman’s condition, two executives responded and then reported it to Koichi Minato. Minato explained,

He said,

“We prioritized the woman’s desire to return to work naturally and without anyone knowing.”

He added,

“If too many people find out, it will negatively impact the woman’s care. Additionally, if Nakai contacted her, it would hurt her further.”

However, such a careful response should have been handled by the Compliance Office (compra), which was established based on the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare’s harassment guidelines.

While consulting with a doctor, a small group, including Minato, dealt with the female victim upon discovering the issue. They took on a significant problem, which may have led to inadequate handling of the situation.

In cases like sexual harassment, when the perpetrator continues to work in the same environment, it is said that the victim may develop PTSD or other secondary harm. It is typically believed that Nakai continuing to appear on shows would trigger the woman, and this was corroborated by a comment in the January 27th issue of Weekly Post from the woman,

“If the trouble had never been made public, I thought Nakai would have continued to appear on TV, and I felt deeply hopeless.”

This directly contradicts Minato’s explanation that suddenly stopping would have triggered the woman. It sounds more like an excuse to continue Nakai’s television appearances.