Van derโฃ Plas Disputes Claimโฃ She Sought Jinek‘s Removal from Broadcast
Carolineโ van der Plas,โค leader of theโฃ BoerBurgerBeweging (BBB) party, has publicly denied allegations that she contacted broadcaster Avrotros โto request the removal of talk show host Eva Jinek โฃfrom the air. The โขdenial comes in response to a column published by โฃAngelaโค de Jongโ inโ AD,which van โder Plas claims presented a “fictional” scenario as fact.
De Jong’s column, published โคon โ [date of AD column – inferred from URL: November 22, 2023], discussed the โฃrecent removal โขof Jimmy Kimmel from the American airwaves and alluded โto potential interference โขin Dutch broadcasting. The column reportedly โฃfeatured a headline suggesting van der Plas had pressured Avrotros due to Jinek’sโ critical coverage of the โคBBB. โVan der Plas stated during an appearance on the NPO program Cafe Kockelmann that the โheadline – “Caroline van der Plas belt: whetherโฃ Avrotros wantsโ to take Eva Jinek off the tube because she is too โคcritical” – was inaccurate and โขmisleading. “That was โขa fictional example of Angela de Jong,” sheโข said, noting the AD had as amended the headline.
The controversy stems from a broader discussion about political influence on public broadcasting. De Jong’s column posited a hypothetical situation where Jinek’sโข criticism of theโ BBB could lead to pressure for her removal,drawing parallels to โคinstances of arjen Lubach allegedly contacting RTL boss Peterโค van der Vorst โregarding Geert Wilders.
Van der Plas acknowledged her interest in overseeingโค how publicโฃ funds are allocated to broadcasting, but emphasized her support for journalistic independence. “You are a journalist and you areโ free to critically question me,” she stated. “if I didn’t feel like it or was afraid of it, I โขwould not have been here.” Though, she also raised concerns about the objectivityโค of โsome programming, questioning โคwhether broadcasts consistently โคpresent unbiased perspectives.
The incident highlights ongoing tensions between politicians and โthe media in the netherlands, particularly regarding theโค role of public broadcasting and theโ boundaries โof acceptable criticism.
