There has been a ruckus around the Cursor website for some time now with news about Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). This is what investigative journalist and whistleblower Bridget Spoor tells us, writing for Cursor. On Tuesday, the student news site went dark after a conflict between the editorial staff, the university board and the editorial board reached a boiling point. According to Spoor, the editorial board regularly intervenes in the content of the articles. In 2021, the editorial board would have stopped another big story from her. “That interference is undesirable.”
Since Tuesday, the journalistic stories can no longer be read on the Cursor site. All articles have been blacked out, with an explanation. The action is a protest by the editors against the ‘restriction of press freedom’.
For whistleblower Bridget Spoor, the dismissal of editor-in-chief Han Konings was the final straw. Cursor’s journalists have been feeling pressured by the university board and the editorial board for months. This council has been appointed by the board to ‘advise’ the publisher and the editor-in-chief.
A revealing article by Bridget Spoor about conflicts of interest at the university caused a stir. The editorial board ‘recommended’ not to publish the story. Editor-in-chief Han Konings yielded to that pressure. Yet he was removed from his position as editor-in-chief on Tuesday. The website has been black since then.
“I work for an independent medium, which is different from a communications or PR department.”
According to the journalist, Cursor’s articles must first pass through the TU/e editorial board before publication. He provides the editor-in-chief and the editors with advice. That is strange, because the editorial statute states that the editorial staff is journalistically independent.
According to the whistleblower, this is not the case in practice. “We are often asked to adjust stories or add or remove certain information. Especially if, for example, something is politically sensitive or the TU/e is not comfortable with it. But I never just change anything.”
She continues. “I work for an independent medium, which is different from a communications or PR department. Different rules apply for that.”
“I now have the opportunity to make a change.”
According to Spoor, the problems with the editorial board and the Executive Board have been going on since 2021. “Even then, an article of mine was rejected. It was a big story about abuse of power within TU/e. The editorial board then came up with non-journalistic arguments. An attempt was also made to remove the editor-in-chief from his position.” That article about abuse of power ultimately never appeared.
The investigative journalist still works for Cursor. She refuses to quit her job, despite opposition. “I now have the opportunity to make a change. A new, broadly supported statute must be created. An independent medium for the university is important. I want to fight for that. It is time for our audience to stand up too.”
Spoor suspects that the website will remain black for the time being, until the editors’ demands are met. The question is whether and how quickly that will happen. There has not yet been a conversation between the Cursor journalists, the university board and the editorial board.
“We invite the editors again to have the conversation.”
According to the Eindhoven University of Technology, there is no censorship in any way. “We regret that this image has arisen within the editorial staff. The editor-in-chief ultimately decides on the publication of articles.” According to TU/e, the board and editorial board have no say in this.
“However, we sometimes have discussions about a small part of Cursor’s articles. That discussion always focuses on the journalistic quality, and for example about audi alteram partem and balanced reporting.”
The university board says it is a shame that the editors have turned the site black. “We invite the editors again to have the conversation.”
The Cursor journalist’s recent unpublished story about conflict of interest does not end up in the shredder. The article will be published somewhere soon. She does not want to say now what revelations she will come up with.
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