The broadcast showed a compilation of videos in which black people beat up white people. This would show the ‘less exposed side of racism’, said presenter Arlette Adriani. “Whites being beaten up by negroes,” concluded co-presenter Raisa Blommestijn. ‘By the way, we see that on a large scale, these kinds of videos that are shared on the internet.’
On Friday afternoon, the NPO condemned the statements made in a statement. ‘NPO values editorial freedom, but there are limits to that when it comes to racist or discriminatory statements,’ said Leeflang. “According to the NPO, that limit has been reached in this broadcast.”
The NPO chairman calls on the Media Authority to speak out against this, as the Media Act prescribes that ‘appropriate measures’ must be taken if the ‘offer of its media services incites violence or hatred towards a group or member of a group’. The NPO received many complaints about the broadcast, says Leeflang. She therefore also asks the Ombudsman to look into this and deal with the matter as a matter of priority.
In a joint statement, the other broadcasters also spoke out on Friday against the ‘false, racist message’ of the item, ‘which we qualify as unjournalistic, unethical and contrary to the core values of the NPO’. The broadcasters find this ‘unworthy of the public broadcasting platform’. The statement was signed by NTR, VPRO, Zwart, AvroTros, PowNed, KRO-NCRV, Human, Max, EO, WNL and BNNVara. The broadcasters say they speak on behalf of ‘all makers’ in Hilversum.
‘Systemic Violation’
Ongehoord Nederland has been under fire since its inception. Last summer already wrote the Council of Culture that admission of the broadcaster to the public system would constitute ‘a risk’. Last July, the NPO fined the broadcaster about 90,000 euros for ‘systematic violation’ of the NPO’s Journalistic Code. It was the first time that a broadcaster was sanctioned for that reason.
The fine followed an investigation by the Ombudsman of the NPO, Margo Smit. It concluded that Ongehoord Nederland was disseminating demonstrably incorrect information. For example, then presenter Ahmed Aarad said that farmers ‘in fact emit the least’. In fact, agriculture accounts for 86 percent of ammonia emissions, which are nitrogen in addition to nitrogen oxides. The Belgian politician Filip Dewinter also got plenty of room when he spread the so-called population theory in a broadcast. He argued that European governments deliberately use immigration to replace the white population.
The last time it was announced that the NPO was considering imposing a fine, chairman Leeflang had to be secured because of threats. These may have come from supporters of ON, media journalists Mark Koster and Ton F. van Dijk stated in their podcast at the time. Koster & Van Dijk.
Not conscious of evil
ON changed the program Unheard of News at the start of the second season of a current affairs section in an ‘opinion and interpretation programme’. Still, broadcaster Arnold Karskens said he was not aware of any harm.
Last April, Leeflang said that the NPO can decide to cancel broadcasts from ON if, after the written warning – which was handed out with the fine – ‘no improvement is made’. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW) is also in a position not to make the prospective membership of ON a full membership or even to remove the broadcaster from the system.