We protect what is not for sale: 
journalistic independence

Media foundations work together with DPG Media B.V. to protect what is not for sale: the identity and editorial independence of the news titles belonging DPG Media Netherlands. They function as an extra lock on the door.

The media foundations are not commercial investors but mission-driven shareholders of DPG Media B.V. Together with the company, the foundations protect the independence of its news organisations. The Dutch media landscape is thereby uniquely shielded from political and commercial influences.

DPG Media B.V. has six media foundations as shareholders: Stichting De Volkskrant, Stichting Het Nieuwe Parool, Stichting NU.nl, Stichting RTL Nieuws, Stichting ter Bevordering van de Christelijke Pers in Nederland, and SDM.

The newspaper NRC, part of Mediahuis Nederland, also has a media foundation: Stichting Lux et Libertas. This foundation holds a priority share and protects and promotes the journalistic values as laid down in the editorial statute.

Several media foundations have their origins in the Second World War. During the German occupation, members of the resistance founded Stichting Het Parool, to be able to continue the resistance newspaper after the war. The legal structure protected the identity of the newspaper against commercial or political interference.

Later, media foundations were also set up for de Volkskrant and Trouw. Due to the rise of television, de Volkskrant (in 1967) and Trouw (in 1974) merged with Het Parool within the Perscombinatie. The foundations safeguarded the continuity and identity of the newspapers throughout this process.

More recently, RTL Nieuws and NU.nl each received their own supervisory foundation. As in the 1960s, consolidation was necessary to compete with international technology companies, which capture the vast majority of advertising revenues at the expense of journalistic business models. DPG Media B.V., the successor to the Perscombinatie, acquired RTL Netherlands. The six media foundations now work together with the company to safeguard pluralism within the company.

Democracy can only thrive when citizens can trust that information has not been manipulated or designed to mislead. For this, reliable journalism produced by an independent editorial team is essential. The media foundations work together with the publisher to oversee the independence of the news organisations. They play an important role in keeping commercial or undesirable political influences away from their titles.

The media foundations are like an extra lock on the door. Together with DPG Media B.V., the foundations protect the identity and independence of the company's news organisations.

The media foundations oversee compliance with the editorial statutes, which protect not only editorial identity but also editorial independence. The editorial statutes also set out how the editor-in-chief is appointed, what the procedure is for establishing the editorial budget, who is authorised to enter into editorial partnerships or content-sharing arrangements with other news media, and which journalistic code is followed. In this way, they work together with DPG Media and the editorial teams to prevent commercial or political interests from influencing the content of the news.

A priority share grants the media foundations special rights: for instance, several foundations hold veto rights. The sale or closure of any national Dutch DPG Media title can be blocked by SDM. Significant changes to the identity of these titles can also be prevented by the media foundations.

SDM also plays a specific role as shareholder. SDM's shares (14.27 percent) in DPG Media B.V. cannot be transferred without SDM's own consent. Nor can its stake in the company be reduced to below 10 percent. The articles of association of DPG Media B.V. can only be amended with SDM's approval.

As a result, SDM can block a merger, demerger, dissolution or stock market listing of DPG Media B.V. Nor can the company simply be sold. The majority shareholder (DPG Media Group N.V.) is subject to a pre-emption obligation and must first offer its shares to SDM before selling them to any other party.

These special rights ensure that the media foundations will always form a stable and independent voice within the company, regardless of who its owner may be.

Together with DPG Media B.V., the media foundations bear the responsibility of keeping the news organisations independent now and in the future. With six mission-driven foundations as shareholders, the governance of the media company is exceptionally strong and future-oriented — a structure that is remarkable, also by international standards.

The media foundations see themselves as a 'critical friend' of DPG Media B.V. They aim to work constructively with the company, while their independence and mission remain paramount. The foundations discuss various topics with each other and with DPG — including journalistic independence, the identity and positioning of titles, policy on artificial intelligence, data, privacy and social safety. Topics such as diversity and sustainability also come up. They also identify developments in the media sector that affect journalistic practice and the future of the company. Where necessary, they place issues on the agenda at shareholder meetings.

Through the Journalistic Charter, all shareholders of DPG commit, among other things, to pursuing editorial independence and a pluralistic offering. The Charter has been signed by all current directors, supervisory board members and management team members. Their successors and all future shareholders are likewise bound by it.

The individual title foundations safeguard the identity and continuity of their associated newspaper or news title. They do this by engaging in dialogue with the editorial leadership — and sometimes also the editorial board — several times a year about the direction of the newspaper or news title. They are also involved in the appointment process for the editor-in-chief.

As priority shareholders of their associated title, the media foundations hold specific rights, which you can read more about on the individual foundation pages. SDM is an overarching foundation that guards the independence of all national DPG titles and pluralism within the company.

The media foundations are mission-driven shareholders that serve the interests of the news organisations within DPG Media in the Netherlands. The media foundations operate on a not-for-profit basis, have their own articles of association, and board members are chosen by the editorial boards and/or the foundation boards themselves.