Yes, admits media expert Maurice Vergeer: The Sinterklaasjournaal will take some getting used to without Dieuwertje Blok. The presenter has not yet sufficiently recovered from her nose amputation. Vergeer: “Dieuwertje fulfilled an important role in the programme. She was seen by the public as an ‘auntie’. Especially for children, she felt like a family member coming to visit them in their homes and telling them what had happened on St Nicholas' steamer.”
The fact that she has now been replaced by Merel Westrik will particularly be noticed by older children and adults. Vergeer: “Because the Sinterklaasjournaal has such a tight format, children are immediately absorbed into the storyline. It feels familiar. Another Piet is sailing to the Netherlands this year. Children are mostly wondering: will our gifts still arrive on time?”
Soft landing
Nevertheless, the programme makers have devoted conscious attention to introducing Merel. Vergeer: “It is called a soft landing. Before the first broadcast, Dieuwertje called Merel to wish her luck. In the first episode, Merel reads out a card with good luck wishes, and she also promises to do her best to replace Dieuwertje. It is a good idea not to ignore this, but instead to name it. That way, Dieuwertje is still ‘there’ for the children. They will probably reiterate it in the final episode to strengthen this feeling.”
Vergeer also approves of the makers’ choice for Merel as a successor. Vergeer: “Children would find it more noticeable if there was suddenly a man sitting at Dieuwertje's desk. Besides, with her curls, Merel does look a bit like a younger version of Dieuwertje.”
Viewers
The first episode of the Sinterklaasjournaal attracted over 1.6 million viewers on Monday 11 November, compared to 1.9 million last year. Vergeer expects viewing figures to increase in the coming weeks: “A difference of 300,000 viewers is not very significant in the beginning. Although, of course, viewing figures should increase a bit. I expect it will happen once Sinterklaas lands in the Netherlands on Saturday. That is when the whole story comes to life more.”
Vergeer: “Some TV personalities are hard to replace because they have become a brand unto themselves. Take Eva Jinek, for example, incidentally also a close friend of Merel's. Viewers switch on the TV to see her. From their living-rooms, they follow closely every question she asks. Guests come and go, but the talk show ‘Eva’ really does revolve around Eva. Should she ever be replaced, the title of the programme would also have to be changed. We also see this to a lesser extent with Yvon Jaspers, who, as the presenter of Boer Zoekt Vrouw, has also become a brand in her own right. Although hers is starting to look more like a B-brand these days.”
This year's Zomergasten was also a little different than usual
This year's Zomergasten was also a little different than usual. The public broadcaster had to find a replacement there too. Adriaan van Dis, also appointed Honorary Doctor of uu77, was unable to present the Zomergasten programme due to health problems. Instead of choosing a man who somewhat resembled him, the programme makers selected a different presenter for each episode, six in total. Vergeer: “I think that was mainly a pragmatic choice. The programme lasts three hours, so it requires a huge amount of preparation. They looked for a presenter to match each interview candidate and organised the series in that way.”