Executives of Fuji Television held a press conference on January 27 to talk about the network's response to a sex scandal involving former entertainer Nakai Masahiro.

At the outset, they announced that Fuji TV Chairman Kanoh Shuji and President Minato Koichi will step down to take responsibility for the situation.

Kanoh, who doubles as chairman of Fuji Media Holdings, apologized for not being able to follow up sufficiently on the female victim due to lack of human rights awareness on the company's part.

He also offered apologies for causing concern and inconvenience to viewers, advertisers and shareholders.

Minato explained that Fuji TV did not disclose information about Nakai's troubles with the woman after learning about it because it placed priority on the victim's health recovery and privacy protection.

But he also admitted that he was lacking in awareness of human rights and that resulted in the company's governance not functioning adequately.

Minato said the company's response so far has disappointed the victim and expressed his wish to apologize to her face-to-face if possible.

He also said the initial press conference he held on the matter on January 17 lacked transparency and accountability as it limited participants to some media organizations and excluded TV cameras.

The outgoing president apologized, saying he keenly feels that he did something that wavers trust in mass media.

As for the possible involvement of a Fuji TV employee in the scandal, Minato said the staffer has denied knowledge of the party which reportedly facilitated the meeting between Nakai and the woman.

After looking at the employee's smartphone messages, the company did not find any signs of involvement in the arrangement of the party.

The executives said Nakai also told Fuji TV during its interviews that the employee was not involved.

As the network has been able to confirm that the woman participated in a barbecue at Nakai's home at the invitation of the employee in May, prior to the party in question, the network has decided to have a third-party committee review the matter.

Nakai, a TV personality and former member of the now disbanded boy band SMAP, announced his retirement from the entertainment industry on January 23, two weeks after issuing a written apology that he had troubles with a woman but reached an out-of-court settlement with her.

Concerning awareness of issues related to human rights, Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru said on January 27 that he will closely monitor the moves by the Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association to consider setting up a committee if common issues are found.