<figure id="attachment_450972" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-450972" style="width: 1957px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="02ea5b58"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/12/788a77c2eac0f2acb187852042ce7f0a.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-450972" class="wp-caption-text">Shigeru Jojima (right) and Taichi Kokubun refused Nippon TV&#8217;s apology.</figcaption></figure>
<h2> Jojima was asked to explain before Matsuoka, who was &#8220;raging&#8221;.</h2>
 The rift between the former TOKIO and NTV over Taichi Kokubun, 51, is not likely to be easily mended.
 In June, a compliance violation was discovered, and NTV&#8217;s &#8220;The! DASH! DASH! DASH! However, Nippon TV did not give a detailed explanation to Shigeru Jojima (55) and Masahiro Matsuoka (48), with whom he has shared many years of hardship. In an interview with Shukan Bunshun and Shukan Shincho, Matsuoka said
 We are frankly wondering what position we should take and how we should deal with the program from now on. Since there is no explanation, we are wondering, &#8216;What in the world is this?
 Kunibuchi and Nichirei compliant.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 The fact that the hearing between Kokubu and Nippon TV&#8217;s compliance officer was conducted &#8220;unannounced&#8221; and that recording of the conversation was prohibited was also viewed as problematic. At a regular press conference on December 1, Nippon TV President Hiroyuki Fukuda responded to Kokubu&#8217;s request
 &#8220;We don&#8217;t need to answer each other&#8217;s questions.
 At a regular press conference held on December 1, Nittele president Hiroyuki Fukuda said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t have to answer your question.
 When they learned of Matsuoka&#8217;s true feelings, Nippon TV softened its stance, issuing a statement on December 10.
 NTV sincerely apologizes that our response was not sufficient to accommodate the feelings of the two men. NTV sincerely apologizes, and we would like to explain directly and politely once again, and sincerely accept the feelings of both of you.
 However, Nippon TV&#8217;s response was again questionable.
 According to the December 18 issue of Shukan Shincho, Nippon TV was working behind the scenes to resolve the situation, and on December 9, it dispatched a production executive to Jojima, who was on location for &#8220;Tetsuwan DASH. When I asked him to &#8220;&#8230;&#8230; for an explanation&#8221; regarding Kokubu&#8217;s resignation, he replied, &#8220;I want to concentrate on filming.
 I want to concentrate on the filming.
 According to the magazine, the person in charge of the project, Rojojima, was not available for the meeting. According to the magazine, the visit of the person in charge to the location had been communicated to Jojima the day before, and although he had refused at that point, he forced his way through the direct talks. A reporter in charge of entertainment for a sports paper adds, &#8220;Jojima was the one who asked about Kokubu&#8217;s involvement in the case.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 The reporter in charge of entertainment for a sports paper adds, &#8220;Mr. Jojima did not act as flamboyantly as Mr. Matsuoka with regard to Mr. Kokubu. Nippon TV may have thought that they could &#8220;win over&#8221; Mr. Jojima before the stormy Mr. Matsuoka. However, Mr. Jojima refused on the grounds that it would interfere with filming and that he would not be able to discuss the issue at length. It seems that it would make sense to discuss the issue with Mr. Matsuoka in the same room until both parties are satisfied.
 Given the precedent set by Fuji Television, which was plunged into a crisis over the issue of former TV personality Masahiro Nakai, it is not surprising that Nippon TV is nervous about a possible breach of compliance. It is not wrong for a company to promptly set up a governance evaluation committee composed of third-party lawyers and to consistently refuse to disclose information about victims of harassment.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" The frustration is evident in &quot;NTV&#39;s rebuttal.&quot;"></div>
<div class="expapp-yahoo-paragraph-break"></div>
<figure id="attachment_450973" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-450973" style="width: 3533px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="bdf2643f"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2025/12/cffb85fad1e5bf82b1ec002fe5bd763f-3.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-450973" class="wp-caption-text">NTV is shaken by the compliance issue with Kokubu (left). Although a polite response to Jojima (middle) and Matsuoka is required, &#8230;&#8230;</figcaption></figure>
<h2> Nippon TV plans to continue to provide a forum for explanation. &#8230;&#8230;</h2>
 What Jojima and Matsuoka are caught up in is the &#8220;feelings&#8221; part. But how can they be so easily dismissed? It seems that there is an &#8220;uneasiness&#8221; about the care of Kokubu after he left the show, as if they could not handle the situation more cordially.
 Nippon TV probably wanted to reconcile with Matsuoka and Jojima as soon as possible, but some people thought it was &#8220;too rude&#8221; to visit Jojima on location in the first place. During that time, filming would be halted, causing inconvenience to those around them. The nature of the issue is such that it is not something that can be handled &#8220;just for the sake of filming.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 Criticisms of Nippon TV&#8217;s response poured in on the Internet as well. Even from within the station
 Some people within the station said, &#8220;TOKIO is a person who has done a lot of good. They could have done more.
 One Nittele official told this website, &#8220;I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s a good idea. One Nippon TV official told this site,
 We are calling on Jojima-san and Matsuoka-san to continue to provide a place for explanations. We are sure that this will happen sooner or later. There is an opinion that not only the compliance staff and executives but also President Fukuda should be present at that time. We must show our sincerity to them.
 He said, &#8220;We have to show sincerity to the other party.
 Therefore, this website asked NTV whether it is true that Jojima refused to accept NTV&#8217;s direct apology?　Jojima and Matsuoka also appeared in &#8220;The! DASH! DASH! DASH!　I have just sent a letter of inquiry to the following address,
 We sent them a letter of inquiry, stating, &#8220;We regret that the article you pointed out (Editor&#8217;s Note: Shukan Shincho&#8217;s article on Shigeru Jojima&#8217;s &#8220;direct talks to the location&#8221;) contains a lot of factual errors. We are not disclosing details of the production of the program or discussions with the performers due to confidentiality obligations and to maintain a relationship of trust, so we cannot reveal details. We would like to ask you to refrain from reporting news that is not based on the facts. DASH! DASH! DASH!&#8221; is not scheduled to be terminated.
 DASH! Furthermore, he added, &#8220;Please do not excerpt our comments above,
 DASH!&#8221; &#8220;We ask that you publish our comments in their entirety, not excerpts from them.
 This is a rare &#8220;proviso&#8221; that shows the frustration on the part of NTV.
<div data-friday-ad-slot="AD_inArticle"></div>
 I hope they can find a &#8220;settlement&#8221; as soon as possible. &#8230;&#8230;

 Shinji Hasuo

 NTV's publicized compliance issue with Taichi Kokubun is far from over. Nippon TV has reportedly offered a direct apology to former TOKIO leader Shigeru Johjima. ......

Nippon TV “angrily refutes” the report that Shigeru Jojima “apologized directly to the location” for the Taichi Kokubun issue.

Access Ranking