Media Missteps and International Tensions: Nippon TV Fabrication Scandal Echoes NHK’s Senkaku Controversy

Something that should never happen

The president finally bowed his head and issued an apology.

On March 27, the official website for Nippon TV’s Monday Late Show, featuring Matsuko Deluxe (52) and Shingo Murakami (43) of SUPER EIGHT, released a statement apologizing for intentionally edited segments in the broadcast.

The issue stemmed from the March 24 episode. During a street interview, a woman from Guangzhou, China, speaking in Japanese, said:

“There aren’t many crows flying around in China.”

She then added:

“Because everyone eats them, there aren’t many left. Anyway, they just stew and eat them.”

In short, the implication was that there is a crow-eating culture in China, which is why you rarely see crows flying outside. Matsuko and Murakami burst into laughter at this.

The statement explained:

“In reality, the woman never said anything suggesting that people in China eat crows. The production staff intentionally edited her comments, which were on a completely unrelated topic, resulting in content that completely misrepresented the intent of her statement.”

At a regular press conference held by Nippon TV on March 31, President Hiroyuki Fukuda addressed the issue:

“It went beyond the bounds of creative direction and is something that should never happen. We sincerely apologize.”

In television, there are sometimes staged elements—such as interviewees actually being actors from an agency—but this case is different.

“The woman interviewed had no ill intentions. The malicious editing was entirely on the part of the staff. Although the footage included a caption reading ‘※This does not apply to all of China,’ that does not serve as a valid excuse. Monday Late Show has been a popular late-night program on Nippon TV for 13 years, but now that this careless editing has come to light, the show will be viewed with increased suspicion. It’s fair to say the program is facing an existential crisis,” said a source in the TV industry.

There is a risk that the Chinese Communist Party may take an interest and escalate the issue

What makes this issue particularly dangerous is that it could reinforce the stereotype that China is barbaric.

The Chinese Communist Party constantly monitors Japanese media, and there is a possibility that it could highlight this program and lodge a protest, calling it malicious information manipulation.

In August of last year, a Chinese national working as external staff on NHK’s international radio broadcast made an inappropriate remark about the Senkaku Islands in Okinawa Prefecture, stating:

“They are Chinese territory.”

NHK later apologized, saying:

“It was inappropriate for a comment unrelated to the news to be broadcast. We deeply apologize. We will implement thorough measures to prevent a recurrence.”

Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications issued administrative guidance, requesting NHK to enforce those measures and disclose their implementation status.

Regarding this incident, the Chinese Communist Party-affiliated media outlet Fujian Daily introduced voices from online users:

“Since this staff member was employed by NHK, they should not have inserted content that didn’t originally exist based on their own judgment. It’s a serious breach of duty.”

At the same time, they also cited a different opinion:

“As a Chinese person, their action to express a Chinese stance is understandable and even admirable.”

Given such precedents, there is a real risk that the Chinese Communist Party may take an interest and escalate the situation further. A Nippon TV insider commented:

“Inside the station, there’s been an outpouring of criticism, saying this was far too sloppy. It’s the kind of incident that could escalate into an international issue. Why was such editing allowed to happen? Was there any oversight in place? A thorough investigation is absolutely necessary.”

When Nippon TV was contacted by email with the questions: “Why was this kind of editing done?” and “Will the editing process of the problematic footage and the program’s review system be disclosed going forward?” they responded:

“The production staff (the director) edited the footage based on their own judgment in an attempt to make it more entertaining. The director now regrets their misguided decision. Although multiple staff members, including producers and directors, previewed the footage, no one noticed the issue. We will completely review the production process and thoroughly retrain our staff to ensure editing does not misrepresent the intentions of interviewees.”

Matsuko and Murakami surely never imagined it would turn into something like this.