MeToo outrage leaves Japanese broadcaster without a single advertiser

It began as a weekly tabloid scoop: the allegation that a middle-aged former boy band star turned television host had paid support to a woman for her silence over an unspecified crime.

Other articles followed, claiming that this was a case of sexual assault and sparking a wave of public outrage not only towards the former singer but also towards his employer, a major television broadcaster, for how he handled the situation.

On Thursday, the man at the center of the controversy announced his retirement, but the episode had already become a moment of reckoning. An international investor has criticized the company, Tokyo-based Fuji Television, and Japan’s biggest corporate advertisers have lined up to boycott it. Some 75 companies, including Toyota, SoftBank and the local operator of McDonald’s, have withdrawn ads and sponsorships.

Not a single commercial now appears in the station’s programming; Advertising spaces are now filled with free public service announcements. Tens of millions of dollars in revenue are at stake as outraged CEOs have called on Fuji TV to address the issue.

“We will stop advertising in the company until a thorough investigation is carried out, the facts are clarified and appropriate measures are taken,” said Takeshi Minakata, president of beverage maker Kirin. said in a statementwho added that the company was acting “based on our human rights policy.”

Experts say the anger reveals a new intolerance toward sexual misconduct sparked by an earlier scandal. Two years ago, it emerged that the founder of a major talent agency had sexually abused young men for decades. He died in 2019 without facing any charges, and corporate sponsors were accused of having ignored irregularities by the Johnny & Associates agency.

This time, big corporations are eager to show that things have changed.

“The Johnny scandal marked a turning point,” said Ryu Honma, who has written extensively about the advertising and media industries. “Sponsors were blamed for complicity by their inaction.”

The current case came to light in mid-December, when a weekly tabloid called Josei Seven reported that Masahiro Nakai, of the disbanded but still immensely popular group SMAP, had become involved in “serious problems” with a woman.

The article said Nakai, 52, had paid 90 million yen, or nearly $600,000, to the woman, who has not been publicly identified. Later stories from other local media more clearly characterized what happened as a sexual assault.

Earlier this month, Nakai admitted that an “incident” had occurred and that he had paid to resolve it. He said he had not used violence in the encounter, which took place in June 2023, and therefore felt justified in his decision to continue appearing on television. There have been no official investigations into the case.

Relentless criticism and an advertising boycott forced him to reverse that decision. On Thursday, Nakai announced that he would be retiring from entertainment and dissolving his talent agency.

“I don’t think this fulfills all my responsibilities,” said in a statementpromising to “cooperate sincerely” in any investigation. “I apologize once again from my heart to the other party.”

Anger has also grown at Fuji TV, where Nakai was a popular show host. According to the tabloid article, it was a Fuji TV employee who arranged the meeting in 2023 between Mr. Nakai and the woman in the case.

Fuji TV initially issued a vague denial of “reports in some weekly magazines.” But he later said he was creating an internal committee to investigate the allegation involving Nakai, as well as other media reports that he had long rewarded male talent by arranging meet-ups with female broadcasters.

Fuji TV has been criticized for its slowness in addressing the situation more directly, and also for the way in which it finally did so: in a press conference open only to selected media, in which no broadcasts were allowed. live or cameras.

At the press conference held last week, the president of Fuji TV said that his company learned about the episode immediately after it happened, but did not reveal it.

“Our decision at that time was not to make the matter public, but to respect the woman’s desire to return to work and prioritize her physical and mental recovery and the protection of her privacy,” said president Koichi Minato.

The press conference also came after an American shareholder, an investment company called Dalton Investments, sent a letter to the management of Fuji TV harshly criticizing the company’s lack of reaction (let alone a solution) to its problems.

The situation with Mr. Nakai “reflects not only a problem in the entertainment industry generally, but specifically exposes serious failings in its corporate governance,” the letter said. “The lack of consistency and, more importantly, transparency in reporting the facts and the subsequent inexcusable shortcomings in their response deserve serious condemnation.”

The day after the Fuji TV press conference, major Japanese companies began announcing that they were pulling their ads.

On Thursday, Fuji TV’s parent company, Fuji Media Holdings, weighed in. President Osamu Kanemitsu said it was “imperative that we regain the trust of our employees, sponsors and spectators.” He announced that the company’s board had decided in an emergency meeting to establish an independent committee to examine Fuji TV’s response.

“It took time to realize that they can’t look away,” said Honma, the advertising and media critic. “When big customers start leaving, action happens.”