Flemish radio hosts for the regional public broadcaster Studio Brussel, Eva De Roo and Dries Lenaerts, have apologised for a sketch aired at the start of the year in which Catholic statues, among other things, were smashed to pieces in a fit of rage.
The clip, which dates back to Blue Monday (19 January), is now causing a stir after journalist Colm Flynn from the American Catholic news network Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) News interviewed both hosts, as well as producer Sam De Bruyn, on camera during Radiodays Europe.
During the interview, the Studio Brussel team stressed that all the things that were smashed in the video were already broken, including those of Jesus and Mary.
They also added that Belgium – and certainly the listeners of Studio Brussel – is no longer so Catholic. Flynn then asked whether they would have done the same with an image of the Prophet Muhammad or a symbol of Judaism, to which they replied in unison that this would not happen.
"We were all brought up with the Catholic traditions, so smashing a statue of Jesus is kind of like making fun of ourselves," De Roo said. "But we are not Muslim or Jewish, and smashing something from someone else's religion feels wrong."
She admitted that they had not really thought the video through.
'Misjudged'
According to De Bruyn, these reactions can provide an opportunity for a meaningful discussion on the radio station. "We sometimes do things without thinking, and if someone then lets us know that it was inappropriate, that becomes a topic for us to discuss and clarify," he said.
Now, Flemish public broadcaster VRT, which owns Studio Brussel, said that the radio channel "misjudged" the Blue Monday sketch.
"Eva and Dries offer their apologies. The video was intended as a humorous piece, and they underestimated how sensitive religious symbols can be," said VRT spokesperson Yasmine Van der Borght.
"They understand that this was offensive to some people and would make different choices today," she added. "VRT considers it important that all its staff show respect for every religion. We are not concerned with comparing religions, but with treating everyone’s beliefs with care."
In the meantime, Flemish Media Minister Cieltje Van Achter (N-VA) has since described it as "a particularly painful clip."
"As a minister, I am not going to step into the VRT’s shoes: the broadcaster has editorial autonomy," she said. "But autonomy does not absolve anyone of responsibility or respect. It is good that it is acknowledged at the end that more thought should have been given to this. Think before you act. And yes, it should be possible to laugh at all religions."
