- Numerous employees at public radio and television in the Netherlands (NOS) have become victims of serious attacks. This is stated in a report by an investigative commission.
- Accordingly, employees in all areas reported sexual, verbal and physical violence.
- According to the report, managers knew about the incidents but reacted inadequately.
Around 2,000 of the 3,700 employees of the radio and television stations based in Hilversum near Amsterdam took part in the investigation.
About 75 percent of them said they were victims of or witnessed attacks from May 2022 to May 2023. Almost 570 employees took part in a written survey about incidents before 2022.
Bullying, intimidation, racism
“It involves a very large number of employees, the problem is big and deserves serious attention,” said the chairman of the investigative commission, Martin van Rijn.
The report lists numerous examples – such as bullying, intimidation, shouting, discrimination and racism. There was also physical violence.
Women in the sports department were treated like “fair game” or “prey”. Some women who did not respond to sexual demands were bullied or no longer received orders.
Executives looked the other way
Media representatives, broadcasters and politicians reacted with shock. The management of the Dutch Broadcasting Corporation (NOS) explained: “The NOS wants to be a safe and social employer, but we have not succeeded sufficiently in this. That hurts.”
The network’s executives came off badly in the report, titled “See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Done Nothing.” A key sentence says: “At all levels, managers looked the other way too much.”
The reason for the broad investigation were scandals on a popular talk show and in the sports editorial team.