Japan’s top Fuji TV executives resign over sex scandal | Sexual Assault News

The chairman and president resigned to take responsibility for the widening sexual harassment scandal involving the popular host.

The Japanese TV channel “Fuji Media” reports that its chairman and the head of the TV department will resign immediately in the background of the investigation into the sexual abuse of the famous TV host.

Chairman Shuji Kano and TV president Koichi Minato resigned on Monday, weeks after host Masahiro Nakai was accused of sexual harassment, sparking a public relations storm and a massive outcry from advertisers.

According to reports, Nakai, 52, later paid the woman 90 million yen ($580,000) and the couple signed a non-disclosure agreement.

Although Nakai works for several Japanese television networks, the dinner where the incident occurred was reportedly organized by one of the broadcaster’s executives.

One magazine, Shukan Bunshun, reported that the same manager gathered female TV personalities at a hotel to act as entertainment for Nakai and other celebrities at a separate event.

Dozens of brands, including McDonald’s and Toyota, pulled their ads from the private broadcaster after employees were accused of trying to cover up the scandal.

As the pressure mounted, Kano and Minato announced their decision to split.

“I sincerely apologize to the women concerned for not taking adequate care because they were not aware of human rights,” Kano told reporters.

“I apologize to viewers, advertisers, company members, shareholders … for the tremendous anxiety and distress caused by the series of news stories,” he said.

Earlier this month, Minato admitted that Fuji TV was aware of the scandal before it was reported in the local media.

The company denies allegations that its employees were involved in arranging Nakai’s alleged meeting with the woman at the star’s home.

Former member of the boy group SMAP, which swept the charts in Asia in the 1990s and 2000s, Nakai announced his retirement on Thursday after being dropped from shows on Fuji TV and other channels.

Nakai said, “I take responsibility for everything” and “I sincerely apologize.” He previously issued a statement stating that some of the reports were “different from the facts”.

Fuji Television boasted Japan’s highest viewership ratings in the 1980s and early 1990s for its soap operas, popular comedy and variety shows.

In 1963, it released the first locally produced animation, Astro Boy, and has also produced films, including Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Thieves, which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2018.

The Nakai scandal follows another major industry settlement involving Johnny & Associates, the now-defunct boy band empire to which SMAP belonged.

The now-renamed Johnny & Associates admitted in 2023 that its late founder, Johnny Kitagawa, sexually assaulted teenage boys and young men for decades.