Behind Hieda’s Resignation, Fuji TV’s Third-Party Committee to Announce “Investigation Results”…Current Employees Reveal “Unusual Changes at the Station

Fuji Television’s “Don” Hisashi Hieda, advisor to the board of directors, also resigned.

The results of the third-party committee for Fuji Television’s problems stemming from former TV personality Masahiro Nakai’s (52) troubles with women are about to be announced.

How far will the committee be able to go in disclosing the background and internal circumstances that allowed Mr. Nakai to continue to use Ms. A on his regular TV programs even after he had committed an act that could be considered a violation of her human rights?

Also, we would like to know whether Mr. X, a former senior executive at Fuji, was involved when Ms. Ako was summoned to Mr. Nakai’s apartment.

And whether there were other cases similar to the trouble between Mr. Nakai and Ms. Ako. These three points seem to be the main points for the time being.

In the midst of all this, Fuji Television announced the resignation of 12 of its directors on March 27, including 87-year-old advisor to the board, Hisashi Hieda, who was known as the “Don.

The number of directors was reduced from 22 to 10, with three of them being women, thereby increasing the ratio of women on the board. Hieda will also resign as director of Fuji Media Holdings and representative of Sankei Group.

At its peak, the number of sponsor companies that have suspended the airing of commercials due to the series of problems peaked at more than 300. At present, only about 10% of them have resumed commercials, and it is unclear to what extent they will return after the results of the third-party committee are announced. It is difficult to imagine an immediate resumption of commercials, and some believe that the confusion will continue through the end of the year.

It seems that the “awareness” of people inside Fuji Television has changed since the “before” and “after” of the Nakai issue.

A current Fuji Television employee in his 40s said

It is natural, but each and every employee has started to think about the company. Although only the TV commercials have been the focus of attention, sales of web advertisements have also plummeted after the riots. The number of people joining the labor union has also increased dramatically, which I think is a sign of their awareness that ‘this can’t go on like this,'” he says.

He continued, “The number of workers who have joined labor unions has increased dramatically.

The January 23 briefing for employees was a stormy affair, with some criticizing Hieda. The news department of the station spearheaded the criticism.

The station’s variety team used to be the mainstay of the station’s news department, which advocates the slogan “If it’s not fun, it’s not TV. ……

Dining Rules” Have Changed Significantly in the Wake of Nakai’s Problems

According to a female reporter in her 20s at the news bureau

The news bureau is now thoroughly pursuing this issue. It was one of our executives who forcefully demanded a briefing session for employees. The news section is increasing the number of verification projects and is willing to criticize upper management at times. This is not a Fuji TV policy, but rather the strong will of the news bureau. They are very dissatisfied with the station’s handling of the Nakai and Xoko’s trouble.

The rules regarding dining have also been changed.

The rules regarding the dinner have also changed. In the past, if one wrote down the recipient and the amount of money on an application form after the meal, the application was approved without any change, except in very rare cases, but due to the series of disturbances, it is now necessary to submit an application in advance.

The secretary of the dinner must now fill in the date, time, place, and recipient in detail, and obtain permission in advance. The application form also includes a section that asks for the ‘consent’ of those attending the dinner, and we can clearly feel the impact of the series of disturbances. I am not sure how many employees filled out the form correctly, though. In the case of an irregular dinner on the day of the meeting, I was told that it would be all right if I followed the procedures separately.

In terms of programming, a “major reform” will be implemented over the next year or so.

One might think that this was a matter of production costs, but it is not. Rather, the programming schedule will be drastically revised in order to give the impression of a “new Fuji TV.

Most recently, they have announced that the popular anime “One Piece” will be moved from its longtime favorite Sunday 9:30 AM to Sunday 11:15 PM.

One piece” is popular among adults as well, and the move to the late-night slot is expected to attract new viewers. The new program “TO BE HERO X” to be aired in that slot is a completely original anime, and Fuji Television is probably trying to develop it into a big content like “One Piece” from the ground up.

Also, the morning information program “Mezamashi 8” will end at the end of March and be replaced by “Sunshine!　Shine” will replace it. I think more and more programs will be terminated in the future. Fuji is doing what it can to give the public the impression that it has changed. The impact is likely to spread to local stations as well.

Fuji TV is starting from zero ……, or even from the negative. The road to revival is a steep one.