Summary of Fuji TV Press Conference Held on Jan. 27; New Fuji TV President Says Company Will ‘Start from Zero’ to Restore Trust

Fuji Television Network, Inc.’s head office in Tokyo
21:00 JST, January 28, 2025
The following is a summary of the press conference held by Fuji Television Network, Inc. on Monday.
Opening remarks
Then Fuji TV Chairman Shuji Kano: I apologize to the woman involved for not taking sufficient care due to our lack of awareness of human rights. I apologize to our viewers, sponsors, advertising agencies, shareholders and all those who cooperated with us in our coverage and on location for the concern and inconvenience we have caused.
Then Fuji TV President Koichi Minato: We deeply apologize for our mishandling of human rights compliance and inviting a situation that could have led to a loss of trust in the broadcasting industry.
Treatment of management team
Kano: The responsibility lies with us, the management, and I am resigning as chairman of Fuji Television Network and Fuji Media Holdings effective today.
Minato: I am acutely aware of my responsibility for bringing about this situation, and I have resigned as president of Fuji Television Network and as an executive managing director of Fuji Media Holdings.
Background
Fuji TV public relations bureau head Yoichi Ueno: We were aware that the incident occurred in June 2023. Only a few people in the company knew about it. Our president was informed in August 2023. No formal investigation was conducted on Mr. [Masahiro] Nakai as we were afraid the incident would become known by many people. Meanwhile, Mr. Nakai contacted us in July 2023, and we understood that he perceived [the incident] differently compared to the woman. We were concerned about fueling speculation, so we had Mr. Nakai continue to appear on our programs. We looked into an employee who was reportedly involved in the incident but were unable to confirm anything that suggested they were actually involved.
Response to the woman
Minato: This is a case in which human rights violations were possibly committed. In response to this, no appropriate information sharing, nor cooperation was done in the company. We did not have Mr. Nakai undergo proper verification, so we let him appear on our programs. We failed to verify how our employees were dining with TV personalities and other related parties. We did not sufficiently handle these types of matters. Hopefully, I can meet with the woman and apologize to her in person.
Minato: We did not cooperate with the compliance promotion office. This is a special case. I regret that we did not handle it differently.
Fuji TV Vice Chairman Ryunosuke Endo: It was a very difficult issue as we were not sure whether we should] make the issue, which is difficult to share from a privacy standpoint, known to others.
On Jan. 17 press conference
Minato: It lacked transparency and accountability as a TV station. Our company, which has been pursuing allegations with cameras pointing at them, cannot escape criticism that we ran away from the cameras. We have undermined the credibility of the media. I made the final decision on the form of that press conference. It was a big mistake.
Future actions
Minato: I will fully cooperate with the investigation by the third-party committee and make every effort to clarify the truth, prevent recurrence and reform the corporate culture.
Fuji TV New President Kenji Shimizu: There is no future for Fuji TV without restoring trust. We will do our utmost with this resolve. We will start from zero.
Endo: Obviously, as a media outlet, we have to air [a program that explains what happened].
Future events in autumn
Endo: There is a movement to refrain from working with Fuji TV. I do not think the [Tokyo odaiba] triennale [2025] can be held as planned. We want to restore trust as soon as possible.
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