Fuji Television, the newest TV station in Japan, is in the midst of a rush of female announcers leaving the network.

Newly established Management and Production Department

The two sides of the story are very different.

On March 12, announcers Yoko Ozawa (34) and Ken Katsuno (26) announced their departure via Instagram, and on March 17, Bunshun Online reported the departure of Takeuchi Yuka (37).

Ozawa, who left in June, said

I had a pure desire to create something on my own,” commented Ozawa, who is leaving at the end of March.

Katsuno, who is leaving at the end of March, will take the opportunity of her marriage in January to move her base of living to Kyoto.

Fuji’s announcers Takahiro Nishioka (50), Keiko Tsubakihara (40), and Yumi Nagashima (34) left last March, Risa Kishimoto (26) left in June, and Marino Fujimoto (30) left in December of the same year. Including these three, eight people have left the station in one year.

The reason behind this is said to be the decline in advertising revenue, harmful rumors, and uncertainties about the future of the station, triggered by a series of problems with former TV personality Masahiro Nakai (53).

The focus is only on the station’s announcers, but production staff are also quitting in droves,” said Mr. Nakai. Fuji Television, which once boasted high salaries, has seen a decline in salaries, and immediately after the Nakai scandal, the company banned eating and drinking with people outside the company and even cut back on cab fares. Considering the company’s corporate culture at the time, which was “If it’s not fun, it’s not TV,” this is the exact opposite of what it used to be. There is no end to the number of people who feel a sense of entrapment and quit.

In July of last year, Fuji Television made the Announcement Office independent and upgraded it to the Announcement Bureau, and established the Management and Production Department, which is in charge of coordinating between the announcers and the programs. It seems that the announcers and the staff in charge are working together to create a career vision.

“In the end, however, it is no more than a ‘consultation room. Various circumstances are involved in casting and programming, so it is not always possible to realize requests,” according to a Fuji Television source.

(Fuji TV official).

Fuji has produced a number of popular female TV announcers, including Aya Takashima (47), known as “Ayapan,” Kyoko Uchida (49), Minako Nakano (46), and Ayako Kato (40), all of whom are as popular as idols. However, there is no longer any trace of them.

When we asked Fuji Television to comment on the departure of eight announcers in one year, they replied, “We do not answer questions regarding personnel matters for our employees.

Fuji TV said, “We do not answer questions about personnel matters.

Fuji TV said, “We do not answer questions regarding personnel matters of our employees. How will the announcers be given more opportunities in the future?

We are currently working to expand opportunities for individual announcers while placing importance on their individuality, centered on the Management and Production Department, a new organization within the Announcement Bureau.

He also responded, “We will continue to expand opportunities for individual announcers, while placing importance on their individuality.

On the other hand, TBS has become the new “announcer empire.

The advantage is cost cutting

In the Oricon “18th Favorite Hosts Ranking” announced on February 27, “Lavit! comedy duo “Kirin” Akira Kawashima (47), who serves as MC for “Lavit!” was ranked first, and TBS’s signature announcer Shinichiro Azumi (52) came in second.

Furthermore, in last December’s “Favorite Female Announcer Ranking,” Mako Tamura (30) became the first TBS announcer to win the title again. Other announcers, Kyoko Nango (25) and Meg Ugajin (30), also appeared in 7th and 10th place, respectively.

In the “Favorite Male Announcer Ranking,” Masatoshi Namba (37) and Ayumi Akaogi (44) dominated the top two. Both are announcers who appeared in “Lavit! and, like Kirin Kawashima and Tamura, both appear on “Lavit!

TBS also saw the departure of Sylvia Kato (40) in February of last year, Risa Unai (34) in March, and Yasumi Yoshihara (30) in January of this year, but its strength lies in the fact that new popular announcers are quickly emerging. Announcers are not considered merely an “accessory” to the program, but are sometimes featured as much as a celebrity in variety shows. In a positive sense, we are able to produce programs with a free atmosphere.

says another person involved with a private key station.

For example, when Namba and Akaogi achieved the feat of being ranked as the favorite male TV announcer, they were lifted up by the program staff in “Lovit! they were lifted up by the program staff and congratulated by Kirin Kawashima. The star of the show was not a celebrity but a local announcer, and at the end, Namba, known as a “B’z lover,” sang “ultra soul” with Akaogi.

If the station announcers become popular, there will be no need to rely on high-profile talent, which will lead to cost cutting. It is likely that the bosses are aware of the aptitude of the announcers and have a proper training plan in place.

Lavit! ROCK,” a music festival that started in 2011 and in which Tamura and other announcers perform, has already turned a profit. TBS’s rapid advance seems unstoppable in the face of Fuji’s decline.