Chapter 6 The Netherlands On media concentration and resilient freelance journalists Hanne Vandenberghe & Leen d’Haenens Introduction The Netherlands is a mid-sized country in Western Europe with a population of 17.4 million people. In 2019, the Netherlands was ranked 17th in the world based on its USD 914 billion gross domestic product, and 13th based on gross domestic product per capita (USD 53,016). At the end of 2017, minister Arie Slob (a member of the Christian Union, a socially conservative, centre-left Christian-democratic party) took over the media portfolio from State Secretary Sander Dekker (a member of the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy). Later, Mr. Slob allocated more money to journalism subsidies thanks to an investigative journalism scheme. Moreover, since 2019, a pilot scheme worth EUR 2.85 million, aimed at professionalising public local media services, was put in place to subsidise the appointment of journalists and support staff (e.g., managing volunteers, training neighbourhood reporters, supervising trainees) and improve the continuity, spread, depth, and quality of the local news infra- structure. Politically the Netherlands is considered a mature parliamentary democracy and a welfare state, although it became less generous on all fronts in 2020 compared with previous decades. Freedom in the World 2021: status “free” (Score: 98/100, down from three years in a row at 99). Although known for its tolerance and political rights completely safe- guarded in the Dutch society, tensions are mounting between its majority population and the Muslim and immigrant population. Therefore, the 1-point loss from 2016 to 2017 can be attributed to rising anti-immigrant and anti-Islamic sentiment as well as Muslims and immigrants experiencing harassment and intimidation. The 2021 report will be posted online when it becomes available (Freedom House, 2021). Liberal Democracy Index 2020: the Netherlands is placed in the Top 10% bracket – rank 10 out of measured countries), which is a bit lower compared to a decade earlier, in 2009, but up from rank 16 in 2019 (Varieties of Democracy Institute, 2020, 2021). Vandenberghe, H., & d’Haenens, L. (2021). The Netherlands: On media concentration and resilient freelance journalists. In J. Trappel, & T. Tomaz (Eds.), The Media for Democracy Monitor 2021: How leading news media survive digital transformation (Vol. 1) (pp. 257–296). Nordicom, 257 University of Gothenburg. https://doi.org/10.48335/9789188855404-6 HANNE VANDENBERGHE & LEEN D’HAENENS Freedom of Expression Index 2018: rank 21 of measured countries, a slight decrease from 19 in 2016 (Varieties of Democracy Institute, 2017, 2019). 2020 World Press Freedom Index: rank 5 of 180 countries, fluctuating between 2 and 5 from 2013–2019 (Reporters Without Borders, 2020). While the Netherlands is a small country whose language is shared by very few others (chief among which being Belgium, with which it shares a border), it can be considered a global media player. For instance, the Endemol Shine Group started as a Dutch production house and is now creating content for all platforms worldwide. Another example is RELX (previously known as Reed Elsevier), the product of a merger between British trade book and magazine publisher Reed and Netherlands-based scientific publisher Elsevier. RELX is a global provider of scientific books and information-based analytics. Elsevier Weekblad is published by RELX and is also the largest weekly in the country. In the three decades that followed the launch of commercial television in Flanders (1989), very few Dutch-speaking Belgians followed Dutch media content, and there has never been a tradition in the other direction. Things are different when it comes to media acquisitions. In the last decade, two Flemish press companies – Mediahuis and DPG Media Group – have become major players in the Dutch market. In 2015, a Dutch subsidiary of Mediahuis took over the Nieuwe Rotterdamse Courant Media Holding (NRC), the publisher of daily newspapers NRC Handelsblad and nrc.next, which cater to the well- educated and wealthy audience. Two years on, in 2017, this expansion drive was still going strong, with Mediahuis taking over the Telegraaf Media Group, the publisher of popular daily De Telegraaf and regional newspapers such as Noordhollands Dagblad. As a result, Telegraaf Media Group was renamed Mediahuis Nederland in 2019. In 2017 as well, Mediahuis acquired the Media Groep Limburg, the publisher of regional newspaper De Limburger. The other Flemish media company, DPG Media Group, had already taken over PCM Publishing in 2009 and rebranded its subsidiary De Persgroep Nederland. As a result, it became a publisher of national (Algemeen Dagblad, de Volkskrant, and Trouw) and regional (such as Het Parool, Rotterdams Dagblad, and Utrechts Nieuwsblad) newspapers in the Netherlands. In April 2015, DPG Media took over Wegener Media, becoming the publisher of seven Dutch regional newspapers (such as De Twentsche Courant Tubantia) in five provinces (Noord-Brabant, Zeeland, Gelderland, Overijssel, and Flevoland). In December 2019, DPG Media announced the acquisition of Sanoma Media Netherlands, the largest magazine publisher in the Netherlands. DPG Media also owns the nu.nl online news platform, the largest news site in the country. The Netherlands has a unique public broadcasting system, commonly being characterised as “pillarised” and grounded on the principle of external diver- sity, representing many social and cultural segments, or “pillars” (Christian- protestant, Catholic, and Socialist) (Lijphart, 1975). The foundation of the 258 ~ THE NETHERLANDS ~ ON MEDIA CONCENTRATION AND RESILIENT FREELANCE JOURNALISTS public broadcasting system, both television and radio, is the Dutch Public Broadcaster (NPO), which operates three public networks (NPO1, NPO2, and NPO3). Six member-based television broadcasters are given airtime on these three networks, which are regulated by the Dutch Media Act 2008. These six broadcasters are required to represent and appeal to the diversity of Dutch society in terms of age, lifestyle, geographic and cultural origin, and political orientation. Working alongside these is the task-based Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS), which is under statutory obligation to make news programmes for television, radio, and the Internet. NOS Journaal is the umbrella name for the television and radio news broadcasts. There are, in addition, news pro- grammes aimed at children (Jeugdjournaal), teenagers and young adults (NOS op 3), and the general public (Nieuwsuur [News hour], a daily current affairs television programme co-produced by NOS). NOS is also responsible for two themed digital channels: NPO Nieuws [NPO news], a 24-hour news channel which rebroadcasts the latest NOS Journaal and covers live events, and NPO Politiek [NPO Politics], a live channel featuring coverage of parliamentary sessions, debates, and archival material. According to risk assessments made through the Media Pluralism Monitor of the Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom at the European University Institute in Florence, the risks to media pluralism in the Netherlands are low in terms of basic protection, political independence, and social inclusiveness, and somewhat moderate in terms of market plurality. This is complemented by a strong legal framework that guarantees freedom of expression. Political independence of the media is underpinned by a strong journalistic culture of self-regulation and editorial autonomy along with an independent public ser- vice media governance structure. Social inclusiveness is also seen to be upheld by purposeful policy and considered to be at low risk. While these three areas appear to represent low risk, there is still room for improvement: 1) journalists face hardship because of their employers’ preferences for poorly paid, self- employed journalists, or freelancers; 2) there is lack of legislation to protect journalistic sources; 3) there is no legislation regarding conflicts of interests between media owners and political parties; and 4) some population groups, such as the visually impaired and women, have less access to media. Market plurality, on the other hand, is considered to be at medium risk, mostly because of high degree of media ownership concentration, with two Flemish media companies dominating the press sector, as well as low transparency related to ownership patterns (Rossini, 2017: 6). Covid-19 From mid-March to mid-May or beginning of June 2020, the Rutte III cabinet took measures restricting freedom of movement (a so-called intelligent lock- 259 HANNE VANDENBERGHE & LEEN D’HAENENS down) in the name of public health to prevent the spread of this viral disease. The lockdown included working from home, banning events and meetings involving the physical presence of more than 100 people, closing borders to neighbouring countries, and closing schools (under public pressure, following similar steps being taken by neighbouring countries), childcare centres, cafés, restaurants, and sport clubs. Shops, however, were not shut down. At the beginning, the Covid-19 crisis resulted in an unprecedented hunger for news among the Dutch audience. Daily newspapers (both print and online) saw their sales of subscriptions increase significantly. Consequently, mainstream media organisations were able to reaffirm their authority as reliable sources for facts and opinions, bringing expertise and explanations to the Covid-19 debate. This had not been the case in the past decade. Also, radio