Statements of Mart Smits in Out of sight It caused a lot of commotion. The former NOS star's statements in the NTR documentary, which focuses on the work culture at Hilversum, are called, among other things, “crude and creepy”. This is what happened.
Het begon met het artikel dat de Volkskrant in maart 2023 publiceerde over misstanden bij de redactie van NOS Sport. In totaal zouden er bijna tweehonderd klachten zijn ingediend door medewerkers, oud-medewerkers en andere betrokkenen over de werksfeer op de sportredactie. Die gingen niet alleen over pestgedrag en (seksuele) intimidatie, maar ook over discriminatie en verbale agressie.
Kopstukken zoals Tom Egbers en Jack van Gelder zouden zich in meerdere gevallen schuldig hebben gemaakt aan wangedrag. Egbers maakte bekend voorlopig niet op televisie te verschijnen, Van Gelder bleef bij de excuses die hij eerder had aangeboden.
Aïcha Marghadi presenteerde vanaf 2010 enkele jaren het NOS Sportjournaal. Zij was een van de 32 mensen die werden geïnterviewd voor het onthullende artikel van de Volkskrant. Daarin deelt Marghadi haar negatieve ervaringen met Egbers, Van Gelder en Smeets.
Die laatste zou haar vernederd hebben toen zij zich kwam voorstellen. “Ik stak mijn hand uit en stelde me voor. Hij staarde naar mij en mijn hand, pakte die vast, keek naar collega’s om zich heen en zei: ‘Wat moeten we hiermee?'”, vertelde ze.
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Smits says he no longer remembers anything about Margadi
NOS commissioned an independent study into the working culture within the organisation, which was published in November. Research has shown that employees face undesirable behavior and unwanted forms of communication.
Smeets responded on the NPO1 talk show Khaled and Sufi on research results. The former sportscaster stated on the broadcast that he had not acted inappropriately at all. “It's not possible because I'm not like that. It's not in me,” he said. Smits also said he could not remember the incident with Marghadi. “Actually, I don't remember it at all. I don't think I was even there.”
On X, Marghadi responded to Smits' TV appearance. She wrote in a letter that the trio of Smits, Egbers and Van Gelder led “an entire racist, degrading and degrading culture of power.” Marghadi had not planned to respond to the NOS investigation, but now she said she could not remain silent.
“It was after the lunch broadcast, about 1:30 p.m., and the editors were standing there,” she wrote of the incident with Smits. According to her, it was also included in the secret advisor's report and was reported to the editor-in-chief at the time.
“Of course one remembers nothing. This is easy, because who am I?” Marghadi wrote. She called on NOS Sport leaders Smits, Van Gelder and Egbers to stop lying about their alleged role in inappropriate behavior in the workplace.
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The meeting with Marghadi became a topic of discussion again
Smits was recently asked again about the meeting with Marghadi. For the documentary Out of sight Koen Verbraak spoke with several editors and presenters about the work culture at Hilversum. NTR produced the documentary in response to the Van Rijn Commission report into abuses at the NPO, which was presented last week.
When Verbraak asks about Marghadi's experiences, Smits makes it clear that he does not appreciate them. Smits replied: “I can't remember and I can't imagine that was said. I guess it's not a topic for this programme, that's all.” “I'm very polite to women.”
The former sportscaster's response sparked a lot of uproar and anger. On the radio program Speech makers Former Talpa president Paul Romer called Smits' comments “impudent and frightening.” “This was a typical example of the behavior we all talk about,” Romer said. “I found it shocking.”
According to NTR, Smeets has now apologized to the makers of the documentary. “He was shocked by his reaction to Quinn's questions,” the radio station said. Smits himself could not be reached for comment. NTR has announced that it will not make any changes to the broadcast. Portions of the broadcast have now been shared hundreds of thousands of times on social media.
