There is a lot of tidying up in Hilversum: both Bert Huisjes and Theo Maassen announce that they are taking a big step back. Their positions have become untenable after intense revelations.
WNL boss Bert Huisjes, also known internally as Angry Bert, is clearing the ship. He says he is ‘temporarily stepping aside’ as editor-in-chief of the broadcaster, but cases like this show that a return is often no longer possible. The revolt against him is so broad that WNL can close the tent if this man ever sets foot in the building again.
Bert’s penitential garment
Bert says that he wants to ‘make room for an independent investigation into facts and circumstances surrounding accusations that concern WNL and my performance’. “Mistakes were made by me and the broadcaster in the construction of WNL, it could and should have been done differently. This has caused people to get into trouble – I deeply regret that.”
While the WNL top was initially still in complete denial, Bert is now putting on the mantle. “The criticism has affected me and I take it seriously.”
Theo is also gone
And Theo Maassen also steps down after revelations about domestic violence. He will stop as presenter of VPRO’s Zomergasten. “It is with pain in my heart that I am withdrawing as presenter of Zomergasten for this season. Particularly painful because there is no professional reason, but false reports from the tabloid press are the cause.”
Why doesn’t he deny the domestic violence? “The reason why I do not comment on gossip about my private life is because my private life is, as the word suggests, private.”
Two tracks
Theo and the VPRO no longer agree. They ended up ‘on different tracks’ in the conversations about how to deal with the image resulting from these messages. “As a result, collaboration was no longer possible this season. I would like to thank all kind and right-thinking people for their support during this remarkable time.”
The VPRO confirms this: “Following reports about an alleged issue in the private sphere, the VPRO has had extensive consultations with Theo Maassen. In these conversations, Theo indicated that he did not want to respond publicly. The VPRO respected this choice, but felt it did not go together with the presentation of Zomergasten.”
Guests first
The guests come first at Zomergasten and this would be too distracting, according to the broadcaster. “At the start of the series, the focus must be entirely on the guests.”
Who will be Theo’s successor? That is not yet clear, but the broadcaster emphasizes that ‘the collaboration with Theo Maassen has always been pleasant and it looks back on a successful edition of Zomergasten in 2023’.