Content over quotas

The Dutch public broadcaster is often criticised for its "stultifying" entertainment programmes. Wim Bekkers, former director of the public television's viewer behaviour department, argues in NRC Handelsblad for an end to the primacy of viewer quotas: "One is entitled to expect that at least one of the public broadcaster's three television channels will deal in depth with relevant topics, analysing them in a level-headed way, and not give way to the emotion and frenzy of the day. A channel where intelligence is not objectionable, and which is not afraid to deal with real issues. ... The struggle for a higher market share means by definition that reaching audiences takes priority over content. Programmes that don't attract their share of the market are taken off the air, even if they achieve much from the point of view of the broadcaster. The public broadcaster should compete for the best content, not the highest number of viewers."

» more information (external link, Dutch)
More from the press review on the subject » Audiovisual Media, » Netherlands