Thomas van Groningen, Op1’s political reporter, was fathamed last night during the live broadcast of Today Inside. He was compared to Billie Turf and a ringmaster.
Today Inside never really sat well: Thomas van Groningen used the program to become a well-known journalist and once he was, he took off to Op1. The reason? He wanted to remain credible as a political reporter and apparently he thought he couldn’t do that as a VI face.
‘The Fat One’
Now Thomas is in Op1 night after night. René van der Gijp saw him in the talk show on Tuesday evening, in the same broadcast as Michael van Praag. According to the football analyst, he told a good story. “Only that fat one was going through it every time…”
That fat one? Ah, Wilfred Genee immediately knows who it is about. “Thomas van Groningen.”
Johan Derksen: “Well, that Thomas is becoming an annoying little guy.”
René: “He will get involved in everything!”
Billy Turf
Johan also points to Thomas’ body weight. “There’s a conversation and Billie Turf is talking all over the place.”
Billie Turf is a cartoon character from the 1960s and 1970s nicknamed ‘the world’s fattest student’. So not really 2023-proof. If there is one late afternoon sensitivity reader goes over, all those comic books can go in the trash.
And yet Johan now uses this cartoon character to describe Thomas. So merciless fat shaming. And that, according to psychologists, is harmful, because it can lead to deep-seated psychological problems and serious physical health problems, including obesity, depression, eating disorders and depressive thoughts.
Ringmaster
Özcan Akyol then takes it a step further. He portrays Thomas as a ringmaster. “It is a kind of ringmaster. I sat at the table with him. He’s a very sweet boy, none of that, but he screams everything. He just shouts that you think: okay, something is going to happen or something. But nothing happens and then he is done and he goes away.”
Studio guest Sam Hagens: “He said today that I had to say hello to you. He misses you.”
Good choice?
Wilfred: “Did he make a good choice to choose Op1?”
Johan: “He left us badly, that boy.”
Wilfred: “We made it big, very big. And now we’re with Sam.”
Özcan: “If he chose the money, then he made a good choice, but if he didn’t choose the money, then it’s a worthless choice.”
Not for the money
According to Wilfred, it wasn’t for the money. “He couldn’t earn more.”
Sam: “He didn’t choose the money. That’s what he once said.”
Stupid then, says Özcan. “I think it’s a very bad program.”