[BLOG] The Matthijs van Nieuwkerk riot has set the carousel in full motionagain. NPO boss Frans Klein on non-active ‘as long as the investigation intothe abuses is ongoing. But everyone feels that he is of course making the oldDutch plea through a back door. So someone new has to come. Preferably someonewho is comfortable and can hold meetings. And what name is buzzing around assuccessor to Ijzeren Frans? Right, Baantjer Junior. The son of the late PietRömer, Paul. But this isn’t the only name that seems to want to leave theTalpa ship before the fusion storm comes to a head.
You can’t blame either of them, both Römer and Stenders, for looking beyondtheir noses. The mistake many in the media make, including me in the past, isthat you’re fine where you’re sitting. Nice salary, nice colleagues. Until thetoko is suddenly sold, the FM frequencies are lost or that one manager wholiked you leaves himself. You are suddenly in a completely differentsituation. Stenders gradually realizes that his Veronica adventure under theTalpa flag has not turned out quite as he (and probably John de Mol) hadexpected. So he’s looking around again. Of course, this is not all such juicynews as André Hazes, who again wants nothing to do with his mother, so I’mjust reporting it here instead of Yvonne Coldeweijer. It’s not for nothingthat you come here on the media and broadcasting platform of the Netherlands!
Rob Standers Rob seems to have been in the race and in conversation to succeed Giel Beelenin the evening on NPO Radio 2, who will make a world trip in 2023. Didn’t gothrough. Knowing Rob, he has probably already thrown up some balls for anothertime on NPO Radio 2 or 5. Especially now that Radio Veronica is under themagnifying glass at the Radiocommunications Agency, due to the violation ofthe speech rules associated with the FM package. From the new distribution,Talpa Radio may only have three stations on FM instead of the current four.That Radio Veronica will be victimized therefore seems to be a matter of timeand then you better find your safe shelter at the Dutch Public Broadcasting.Sucks for the people he brought to Veronica in those short two years. Kudosfor trying it this way, but this format naturally belongs to the NPO.
Paul Romer The same scenario also applies to Talpa boss Paul Römer. He already feels themood that after the merger with RTL there is only room for one channel boss.Peter van der Vorst is of course much better off technically with his fourchannels than all Talpa worry children, so that calculation is easily made.Römer, who will be turning 60 in a few weeks, was once the boss at NTR. Inthat role, responsible for stopping Sesame Street. After the BOOS riot aboutThe Voice, he was quick to claim that there is no culture of fear at Talpa.Perfectly suited for the role of chief executive at the NPO. A source close tothe fire informed me that he has already been spotted at the public offices.Römer smells (and seizes) his chance because of the Matthijs riot. If thiscontinues, I think that many a broadcaster and media maker will long for thetime of Frans Klein. Because acting as a puppet for John de Mol for years isof course not going to leave you in the cold.