JR Tokai executive steps into NHK breach

Japan's national public broadcaster appointed a new president Saturday, a few days after the man previously expected to get the job stepped aside because of what he said was a smear campaign.

Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK) on Saturday picked Masayuki Matsumoto, the 66-year-old vice chairman of Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai), after a unanimous vote by the board of governors. His three-year term will start Jan. 25.

The same board had initially chosen Yuichiro Anzai, a 64-year-old former president of Keio University, for the position. Anzai accepted the offer in late December, but, amid rumors that he had tried to stipulate conditions for his accreting the position, the board made a dramatic U-turn and pressed him to decline its offer. On Jan. 11, Anzai withdrew, saying he had become target of smears.

The board of governors held a special meeting on the presidential appointment Saturday morning. The six members of its selection subcommittee agreed to start the appointment process from scratch, listing several candidates from within and outside the organization.

Matsumoto is understood to have been selected because of his track record in reforming the JR group of companies, his ability to manage a large organization, and because of his relatively young age.

All 12 members of the board agreed on the choice, after which board chairman Shigehiro Komaru contacted Matsumoto. The board then unanimously approved Matsumoto's appointment after getting his consent, NHK officials said.

Like Matsumoto, outgoing President Shigeo Fukuchi, 76, a former chairman and adviser of Asahi Breweries Ltd., was brought in from outside the public broadcaster.

Matsumoto, who joined the Japanese National Railways, the predecessor of the JR group, in 1967, held key posts in the Shinkansen operations and administrative divisions before becoming president of JR Tokai in 2004. He was appointed vice chairman of the company in April last year.

Among the challenges facing him in his new post is the handling of the transition to terrestrial digital broadcasting on July 24. Construction of transmission stations has been completed, but a large number of TV viewers have not replaced their analog antennas.

Another task will be delivering on an NHK pledge to "refund 10 percent of subscription fees" to viewers in fiscal 2012. While the refund plan is meant to be a fee discount, income from viewer fees remains below target, and Matsumoto will have to come up with a plan to create the necessary funding in NHK's three-year business plan this fall.

要約　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　日本放送局（NHK）は、知事の会議によって、満場一致の後、土曜日に松本雅行66才のJR東海副会長を新会長として指名しました。彼の3年の任期は、1月25日に始まります。だが、一方でNHKは安西祐一郎（慶応義塾大学の前学長）を最初に指名していたにも関わらず彼に辞任するようにと迫った。松本は様々な仕事をNHKから期待されている。

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感想　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　安西さんのニュースでの姿を見てとてもかわいそうになり、この記事を見つけました。