Hilversum thinks it is still too early to talk about a return of Matthijs van Nieuwkerk on television. The fallen presenter spoke this weekend in an interview with NRC for the first time about his transgressive behavior at The world goes on.
Although Van Nieuwkerk says that he is conducting exploratory talks about a possible return to television, broadcasters say that they first want to await the report of the Van Rijn committee before deciding whether that is expedient. The report is expected at the end of this year.
Read the interview here: Matthijs van Nieuwkerk: ‘Why was I such a damn dick at times?’
The committee, chaired by former minister Martin van Rijn, was set up last year to investigate cross-border behavior and the general working atmosphere at public broadcasting. The reason was an article in de Volkskrant about in November The world goes on, in which dozens of former employees talked about the culture of fear in the editorial office and the anger outbursts of Van Nieuwkerk and several editors. The NPO decided to extend the investigation to the entire public broadcaster, after reports had also been received of transgressive behavior on other television programmes.
The commercial players in Hilversum are also reacting cautiously to a possible return of the acclaimed presenter. RTL does not want to respond to questions about Van Nieuwkerk’s future. Medialane, the production company for which Van Nieuwkerk worked at BNNVARA, keeps a low profile.
Into the interview NRC of Saturday (which could already be read online on Friday), Van Nieuwkerk responds extensively to all accusations in it for the first time Volkskrantarticle. Although he does not want to go into specific examples, he does put on the penitent. “Why was I such a goddamn dick at times,” he wonders. “There are people who are really crushed by the shears of the program. And I had a part in that, and more painfully: I had no eye for that.”
Skepticism
The reactions to the interview at the talk shows on Friday evening varied widely. Bee RTL Boulevard journalist Rob Goossens was quite critical. He thought that Van Nieuwkerk showed too little introspection. “It’s such a PR-technical interview. I actually think it is so cunning of Matthijs.” That skepticism was shared by some of Van Nieuwkerk’s victims, columnist Angela de Jong added Humberto. “He must say this, what are we buying for this”, they texted her. Yet De Jong himself was milder. “He showed introspection, that won me over.” She expressed the expectation that he will return to television next year. “I miss him as a program maker.”
Whether the interview is indeed the prelude to the rehabilitation of the fallen presenter remains to be seen. In any case, he has plenty of opportunities in Hilversum to resume his career. Jan Slagter, director of Omroep Max, said immediately after the publication of the Volkskrantarticle that Van Nieuwkerk is welcome with him. Earlier this summer, the EO also informed the ANP news agency through a spokesperson that “with a logical match” the door is open to him.
“I think it’s a good interview, in which he stays close to himself and goes deep into the dust,” says Jan Slagter in a telephone conversation with NRC about Van Nieuwkerk’s interview this weekend. He has spoken to the presenter several times in recent months and was one of the first in Hilversum to plead for his return. “Maybe I was a little too fast. I often am. But when I joined a few months ago Jinek said he should be back on television, I got a lot of support from people on the street. Still, the interview had to come first. Let us now await the report of the Van Rijn Committee. Then we will see further.”
The broadcasters do not want to respond substantively to the interview with Van Nieuwkerk. “We think it is good for all parties involved to continue to reflect on this period together and learn lessons from it,” says a spokesman for BNNVARA, the broadcaster that DWDD sent out. “At BNNVARA we are fully aware that we have to keep working hard to create a safe working environment for everyone. A return of Van Nieuwkerk to BNNVARA is not an option now.”
The NTR also does not want to anticipate a possible return of Van Nieuwkerk as a presenter of the Top 2000 a Go-Go, an annual program of the broadcaster. Following it Volkskrantarticle, the program was presented last year by a replacement. It is still uncertain whether Van Nieuwkerk will return this year. “We are waiting for the report of the van Rijn committee, in line with the policy of the NPO,” said a spokesperson for the broadcaster.