It was announced on January 31st that ABC TV announcer Mitsuyo Kubo will be the new assistant for the live information program "Oshiete! News Live: Justice's Friend" (Saturday 9:30 AM, Kansai local). Selected in her first year with the company, she will begin appearing on the February 7th broadcast.
The show features specialists in each field who provide easy-to-understand explanations of how to interpret the complex news that surrounds us, including politics, economics, and international affairs. Azuma Ruka, who has been serving as an assistant until now, will be leaving ABC TV at the end of January, so Kubo has been appointed as her successor.
Regarding her selection, Kubo commented, "When I heard about the role, I was surprised and worried, wondering if I could do it. My previous assistants have all been wonderful seniors, so to be honest, I thought it might be too big a role for me in my first year. But now I fully accept the weight of the responsibility and want to live up to the expectations that have been placed on me. I will study as hard as I can and do my best, so I hope you will continue to support me."
She said she is preparing for the program, which will deal with topics such as politics and international affairs. "I majored in economics in graduate school, and I asked the professors who helped me at the time, without any particular reason, 'I want to study hard again, so please help me!' (laughs). Thankfully, they recommended many useful books, so I am currently reading them one by one, desperately trying to gain knowledge," she said.
His partner, MC Koji Higashino, sent a message saying, "I'm truly grateful! Whether it's your first year or any other year, it's really reassuring to have you as my assistant. I'll be relying on you a lot from now on. Of course, I hope you'll rely on me as well."
Regarding the new system, he said, "I'm really looking forward to being able to do a program with people of my daughter's generation. I want announcer Kubo to speak up and say what she thinks. If the experts are being noisy, she'll say, 'You're too noisy!' or warn them during the live broadcast, 'Don't lick the candy' (laughs). I think the program comes together when the youngest person speaks up, so I want her to create that kind of atmosphere."
