The Ombudsman of the NPO starts an investigation into Ongehoord Nederland (ON) after complaints about the first three broadcasts of the TV program Unheard of News and a podcast episode.
Ombudsman Margo Smit does not want to say how many complaints she received, but speaks of “a very number”. “Many people who write to me bring up misinformation, disinformation, lack of impartiality, and racism. It has also been said that it is unworthy of public broadcasting.”
Smit will test the broadcasts against the Journalistic Code of the NPO, which was drawn up before she took office in 2017. It states that journalistic programs and productions must be reliable, accurate and careful, independent, impartial and unbiased, and balanced and pluralistic. “I always say: flawless, factual and fair,” says Smit.
Ungehoord Nederland and the new broadcaster Zwart, who were admitted to the broadcasting system on 1 January, have subscribed to the code when they joined. “So it’s not like I’m just making up a benchmark. No, it’s from the makers themselves.” Smit does not know how long the investigation will take, but it can take a maximum of three months.
If it turns out that Ongehoord Nederland does not adhere to the journalistic code, the NPO can “in an extreme case decide to remove the program from the programming”, chairman Frederieke Leeflang said. “Of course, this only happens after consultation with the broadcaster concerned. Once such a decision has been made, there are still options for objection and appeal.”
Asylum seekers
The NPO is awaiting the outcome of the investigation and in the meantime will discuss the complaints, which are also known to the NPO, with the management of Ongehoord Nederland. “It is important to always keep in touch with each other,” says Leeflang.
Some of the complaints relate to the coverage of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The complaints about racism stemmed from a fragment in which asylum seekers were asked how they got their bikes and whether they had bought them “with money”.
The chairman of Ongehoord Nederland, Arnold Karskens, could not yet be reached for a response. He told the AD that it “is nothing at all”.