Dutch Television Research Articles

‘Anyone Can Put On Clothes, Right?’: Costume Design and Styling as Women’s Work in Dutch Media Production

Over the last thirty years, the frustrations of women working in costume design and styling in the Dutch film and television industry with their poor working conditions and lack of recognition have grown strong enough to now culminate in a form of collective resistance. At the cusp of what might be a turning point, this article locates the key developments that have led to this moment at the intersection of the peculiarities of this national media industry, the way costume design and fashion are culturally rendered shallow and feminine, and the repercussions of gender for this trade. It suggests that the grassroots collectivisation of costuming staff in the Dutch media industry challenges the postfeminist tendency to individualise workers’ problems.

Computational cross-media research: tracing divergences between normative Dutch television and social media discourses on the ‘refugee crisis’ (2013-2018)

This article examines how the ‘refugee crisis’, sparked by the arrival of refugees from the Syrian civil war and other conflicts around the world, was articulated across Dutch television news programs and social media between 2013 and 2018. This crisis has been described as a key catalyst of the radicalization of European political discourse. Crucially, it took shape during a period of profound transformation of the media landscape, in which mass media lost significant ground to social media as authoritative sources of truth and norms. The research focuses on the crucial but underexplored link between television and social media discourse, which is at the heart of contemporary European public debate. Using a combination of digital methods and NLP techniques, the article compares automatic speech recognition (ASR) transcripts of Dutch televised news on the refugee crisis with responses from publics on Facebook and Twitter. This computational cross-media approach enables a longitudinal analysis of how social media users differ in their interpretation of key events characterizing the crisis, as well as what language is acceptable to debate issues around integration, tolerance and identity. A rejection of mainstream news media editorial guidelines by social media users eventually resulted in their consumption of populist right-wing (‘alternative’) news media and active transgression of anti-discriminatory speech norms.

The “Humoralist” as Journalistic Jammer: Zondag met Lubach and the Discursive Construction of Investigative Comedy

ABSTRACT This study contributes to ongoing discussions on the societal role of satire as a platform for public debate. To this end, we analysed the metajournalistic discourse surrounding the Dutch television news satire show Zondag met Lubach to assess how it has been received and discussed in the Dutch media landscape. Through an analysis of 64 media appearances (2014–2020) with the host and staff members of the show, we zoom in on how discursive exchanges between Zondag met Lubach and media professionals reflect and shape understandings of the journalistic. Thereby, we distinguish three phases of identity construction for the show. Our findings reveal how Zondag met Lubach entered the Dutch media landscape as a comedic non-journalistic outsider, but has gradually become legitimated as a quasi-insider to the journalistic field, embodying the nuanced role of investigative comedy. We conclude by discussing how the concept of investigative comedy elicits reflection on the epistemic authority of novel incantations of journalistic storytelling, and how it contributes to the expansion of conventional assumptions among satirists and media professionals about what journalism can or should be.

The Emergence and Persistence of Racialised Stereotypes on Dutch Television

Today, stereotypical and racialised imaginations of Muslims are pervasive on Dutch television. This article traces the history of Dutch television coverage of Muslim immigrants through the lens of the archive of Sound and Vision. It demonstrates that during their symbolic transformation from ‘guest workers’ to ‘ethnic minorities’ to ‘allochtonen’ and ‘Muslims’, television’s visual repertoire of Muslim immigrants has become increasingly racially inscribed. Finally, it argues that the archive of Sound and Vision has played a performative role in the emergence and persistence of racialised stock stereotypes of Muslim immigrants.

Media Representations of Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals on Dutch Television and People\u2019s Stereotypes and Attitudes About LGBs

This study investigates stereotypical portrayals of lesbians, gays, and bisexuals (LGBs) on Dutch television and whether these portrayals relate to people’s attitudes towards LGBs. Previous research shows that television programs in the U.S. contain many stereotypical portrayals of LGBs. These portrayals are both negatively and positively related to people’s attitude towards LGBs. Because the Dutch culture is relatively accepting of LGBs it is interesting to see if they are portrayed differently than in the U.S. A content analysis showed that there are stereotypical representations on Dutch television but there are also people who ‘just happen to be gay’. A survey among 272 participants showed that people who more frequently watch programs with stereotypical portrayals of LGBs do not have a more positive or negative attitude than people who do not. A mediation analysis showed that people who watch more television in general have a more stereotypical view of gay men, which is related to more negative attitudes towards LGBs.

Dutch television studies and the reinvention of television as a medium in practice

Dutch television studies and the reinvention of television as a medium in practice

A media intervention applying debunking versus non-debunking content to combat vaccine misinformation in elderly in the Netherlands: A digital randomised trial.

BackgroundAs several COVID-19 vaccines are rolled-out globally, it has become important to develop an effective strategy for vaccine acceptance, especially in high-risk groups, such as elderly. Vaccine misconception was declared by WHO as one of the top 10 health issues in 2019. Here we test the effectiveness of applying debunking to combat vaccine misinformation, and reduce vaccine hesitancy.MethodsParticipants were recruited via a daily news show on Dutch Television, targeted to elderly viewers. The study was conducted in 980 elderly citizens during the October 2020 National Influenza Vaccination Campaign. Borrowing from the recent literature in behavioural science and psychology we conducted a two-arm randomized blinded parallel study, in which participants were allocated to exposure to a video containing social norms, vaccine information plus debunking of vaccination myths (intervention group, n = 505) or a video only containing vaccine information plus social norm (control group, n = 475). Participants who viewed either of the video's and completed both a pre- and post-intervention survey on vaccination trust and knowledge, were included in the analysis. The main outcomes of this study were improvement on vaccine knowledge and awareness.FindingsParticipants were recruited from the 13th of October 2020 till the 16th of October 2020 and could immediately participate in the pre-intervention survey. Subsequently, eligible participants were randomly assigned to an interventional video and the follow-up survey, distributed through email on the 18th of October 2020, and available for participation till the 24th of October 2020. We found that exposure to the video with addition of debunking strategies on top of social norm modelling and information resulted in substantially stronger rejection of vaccination misconceptions, including the belief that: (1) vaccinations can cause Autism Spectrum Disorders; (2) vaccinations weaken the immune system; (3) influenza vaccination would hamper the COVID-19 vaccine efficacy. Additionally, we observed that exposure to debunking in the intervention resulted in enhanced trust in government.InterpretationUtilizing debunking in media campaigns on top of vaccine information and social norm modeling is an effective means to combat misinformation and distrust associated with vaccination in elderly, and could help maximize grounds for the acceptance of vaccines, including the COVID-19 vaccines.FundingDutch Influenza Foundation.

Juinen in kaart gebracht

The map of Juinen by Arthur Steegh In 1984, the historical-geographer Arthur Steegh (1946-2005) drew a fictive map that included most landscape types of the Netherlands. The map could be used to simulate the effects of planning procedures on landscapes and was part of a report on the use of landscape data in Environmental Impact Assessments. Steegh situated his map in the municipality of Juinen, which was the – again fictive – location for a popular satirical programme on Dutch television.

What Is Not in the Archive

This article discusses the pedagogy and outcome of a new assignment we introduced in the course ‘Television History Online’ at Utrecht University. We assigned the students the task to build a canon of a genre of Dutch television and create a video poster on the EUscreen portal consisting of clips that represent part of their canon. In our pedagogy, we argue that it is important to draw students’ attention to what is missing in the archive. Therefore, we offered the students the possibility to replace illegal clips with blue videos and clips of non-digital or lost television programmes with black videos in their video poster. We found evidence for an availability paradox: students let not only their selection of programmes and clips, but also the demarcation of their entire canon, be reliant on the digital, online availability of audiovisual material. At the same time, they explicitly did not want to be restricted by unavailability. In this article we stress the need for more open data and the importance of training digital literacy skills.

A matter of identity: Anil Ramdas and his autobiographical novel Badal (2011)

On 16 February, 2017, Anil Ramdas (1958–2012) was commemorated in Amsterdam, five years after his suicide. This Surinam born author and media personality of Hindustan ancestry, had developed in the course of time into a thought provoking progressive intellectual. The themes he cherished in his essays and in his work for Dutch television were migration and identity, the values of western civilisation and the need for civility. On his return to the Netherlands, in 2003, after a three year stay as a correspondent in India, he became aware that, due to a change in the general cultural atmosphere, tolerance for immigrants had diminished. It made him question his own role as a ‘non-western intellectual’. In February 2011, Ramdas published Badal, a novel of ideas on an autobiographical basis. Most reviews emphasised the autobiographical aspect, including Badal’s alcoholism: Badal had to be identical to Anil Ramdas. In this article, Badal is interpreted as a complex, multi-layered, a-chronological novel, which explores the same themes as Ramdas’ essays, using intertextual references to other novels and especially to songs and films. In the final analysis, it is a novel about the human condition, about loss and the demise of illusions.

Tilburg in Smeris: Local Audiences Engaging with (Familiar) Locations on National Television

When a city that is rarely featured on television is used in a television series, local audiences get enthusiastic. Locations featured on screen have particular cultural values to those living close to these television locations. This article expands on local audiences’ experiences by using a case study of the Dutch television series Smeris . Besides analysing the series and metadata, audience research, including Tweets and interviews, was conducted. While the first season of Smeris is set in Tilburg, the second season is mainly filmed in the capital Amsterdam. The normality of viewing Amsterdam on the screen is contrasted against the novel and special, yet familiar, experience of seeing Tilburg. Precisely because Tilburg is rarely featured on television, local audiences play with this physical place in relation to the place as featured on television. Local audiences may display their pride in this repositioning of Tilburg as a central figure. Locals may engage with the (mistakes within the used) mediated familiar locations. Moreover, residents may mix elements of reality (e.g. news articles) with events from the series. Thus, locals engage with this television series in for them new ways through mixing the places with their imagination.

Hoe homo’s en moslims iets met elkaar kregen

Based on qualitative and quantitative analyses of Dutch newspapers, radio and television programs, this article offers a long-term genealogy of the present-day discourse on Islam and homosexuality in the Netherlands. It argues that this discourse dates from well before 2001 and even before 1989, without being a mere continuation of 19th century Orientalism. A major turning point were the 1970s, when ‘foreign workers’ and ‘homophiles’ were regarded as companions in societal misfortune. From the mid-1980s onwards, however, ‘Muslims and gays’ appeared to be odd bed-fellows. Notwithstanding the political functions and effects of the present-day discourse, ascribing its emergence solely to (nationalist, populist or neoliberal) politicians and ‘the media’ ignores the agency of others, such as Muslim institutions and organizations – including the ‘minority-within-the-minority’ self-organizations that sprung up in the 1990s.

‘These cameras are here for a reason’ – media coming out, symbolic power and the value of ‘participation’: behind the scenes of the Dutch reality programme Uit de Kast

This article addresses the increasing popularity of coming out as mediatized practice, by focusing on the example of the internationally successful Dutch television programme Uit de Kast (‘Out of the Closet’). While the choice of coming out in front of the cameras is often received controversially both by the public and the protagonists’ immediate environment, youngsters keep applying to participate in the programme. To understand the continuous appeal of this form of self-disclosure, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 participants from different seasons about their motivations, experiences and evaluations of taking part in the show. By following their journey into the world of media production, this article highlights the implications of media participation for the process of coming out, as related to questions of empowerment, visibility and agency, and ultimately, to the perceived symbolic value of (participating in) broadcast media in the new media age.

Television sex education panics? An analysis of three public debates in The Netherlands

In 2013, television sex education show Dokter Corrie instigated a heated public debate in the Netherlands. This study places the Dokter Corrie uproar in a broader perspective and identifies the moral dimensions in the reactions to three Dutch television sex education shows: Open en Bloot (1974), Spuiten en Slikken (2005) and Dokter Corrie (2013). A contemporary notion of moral panics and media panics provides a suitable theoretical basis for understanding the multiplicity of voices, the reflexive relationships between interest groups and the deliberate use of media tools in the debates about Dutch television sex education. The qualitative frame analysis and quantitative content analysis led to a detailed account of the three public debates and showed that moral attitudes concerning the problematic conditions of television sex education recurred over time. The resulting four frames each revolve around the claim that sex education needs to be handled carefully. The Indispensable education frame and the Inadequate attempt frame regard television as the right channel for this goal. In contrast, voices within the Degenerating media frame and the Religious anxiety frame claim that television sex education threatens the social sexualisation of children.

The Impact of the Explosion of EU News on Voter Choice in the 2014 EU Elections

The European elections in 2014 were the first to be held after a long period in which EU-related news was prominent in the media. They were held after years of daily news about the euro crisis and after months of news about the popular uprising in the Ukraine against president Yanukovych, who had refused to sign the association agreement with the EU. This could have invited political parties to overcome the usual problem of low salience of EU issues by strongly profiling themselves on EU issues. Turnout at the 2014 EU elections, however, remained low, hinting that parties were unable to convert the attention for European issues into enthusiasm for their party at the European elections. This paper asks how vote choice was influenced by party campaigning on EU related issues. A news effects analysis based on a content analysis of Dutch newspapers and television, and on a panel survey among Dutch voters revealed that EU issues functioned as wedge issues: the more strongly parties were associated in the news with the euro crisis and the Ukraine, the less they succeeded in mobilizing voters.

Immigranten vlak na migratie en de verandering in de houding ten aanzien van homoseksualiteit

Summary Immigrants right after migration and the change in attitude towards homosexualityIn this study we investigate the changes in the attitude towards homosexuality among immigrants to the Netherlands in the first years after migration. We test possible explanations for an attitude change related to dynamics in integration in the Netherlands: the extent to which social contact, media use and church attendance are associated to changes in attitudes towards homosexuality. We used the NORFACE funded Dutch panel data ‘Causes and Consequences of Social and Cultural Integration Process among recent immigrants to Europe’ (SCIP). Bulgarian, Polish, Moroccan, Turkish, Antillean and Surinamese immigrants are included in this study. An unexpected finding is that recent immigrants generally became more negative regarding homosexuality during their stay in the Netherlands. There is quite some between- and within-migrant group variation: the Bulgarians have become more positive in contrast to the other migrant groups. Watching Dutch television and a decline in church attendance have a positive effect on the change in attitude towards homosexuality. The increase in church attendance can explain why immigrants, in general, became more negative. No support was found for the expected impact of changes in social contact.

From single male guest worker to Muslim: An archaeology of iterating archival footage on Dutch television

From single male guest worker to Muslim: An archaeology of iterating archival footage on Dutch television

Compiling European Immigration History: The Case of Land of Promise

Today television's reliance on archival footage seems to be intensifying due to the increased accessibility of European broadcast archives and the increased amount of available digitized broadcast material. In this article, the author reflects on television's convention to compile stories from archival material by presenting a case-study of a recently broadcast Dutch television series Land of Promise (2014). This series narrates the history of European post-war immigration, and is constructed from archival material from various European broadcast archives. In this article the author analyses the compilation strategy of Land of Promise, and assesses what kind of European immigration history the series has articulated through the selection and juxtaposition of archival footage.

Compiling European Immigration History

Today television's reliance on archival footage seems to be intensifying due to the increased accessibility of European broadcast archives and the increased amount of available digitized broadcast material. In this article, the author reflects on television's convention to compile stories from archival material by presenting a case-study of a recently broadcast Dutch television series Land of Promise (2014). This series narrates the history of European post-war immigration, and is constructed from archival material from various European broadcast archives. In this article the author analyses the compilation strategy of Land of Promise, and assesses what kind of European immigration history the series has articulated through the selection and juxtaposition of archival footage.

Digital Media Archaeology

In this article, we will contribute to a methodological discussion in the Digital Humanities by uncovering the digital tool AVResearcherXL as a form of Digital Media Archaeology. AVResearcherXL enables to search across, compare and visualise the metadata of Dutch television and radio programmes and a selection of newspaper articles of the Dutch Royal Library. Media archaeology provides a fruitful framework to reflect on the tool as method for Television History Research. First, the tool in itself functions as a new way of media archaeology. The tool, as it is, is double-sided and enables comparison, shedding an unusual, data-driven light on the television, radio and newspaper archives by providing different 'slices of' and 'search lights on' the metadata, thus contributing to a 'variantology of the media.' At the same time, we approach our own reflection on the tool as a form of media archaeology: we will uncover the tool, digging in its architecture and its functionalities, and offer an approach to a meaningful use of the tool. In other words, this very article is a form of ‘doing media archaeology’, in the sense of becoming 'an active archaeologist of knowledge'. Digital media archaeology, therefore, is always two-fold and a matter of interaction of user and tool. In this article, we first dissect the tool as archaeological site, before exploring its usage. Taken together, the article provides methodological strategies to cope with a digital tool such as AVResearcherXL and thus aims to further enhance an understanding of Digital Media Archaeology as an opening to media historical inquiry.