'Still a lot of work to prove point in court'

THURSDAY, 23 FEBRUARY 2023, 14:01 - lajoya
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OTHER Humo and journalist Jan Hauspie would not (yet) comment on Anderlecht's summon against the journalist, but Pol Deltour, national secretary of the Flemish Association of Journalists, did. He regrets that Anderlecht is going to court and not to the Press Council.


In a reaction to Het Laatste Nieuws, Deltour says he "strongly regrets" Anderlecht's action. He finds the reasoning cited by Anderlecht in yesterday's press release rather weak. "About what the mistakes are, the club says nothing," Deltour said. He finds it far too vague for Anderlecht to simply state that the journalist did not do his job. "Judging from the press release, the club still seems to have a lot of work to do to prove its point in court."


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Deltour also regrets that Anderlecht is going to court and not to the Press Council. That is an independent body to which individuals or organizations can turn if they believe they have not been treated correctly by a journalist or medium. The Council then passes judgment on whether this is effectively so.

For Deltour, Anderlecht's action fits into a climate in which football clubs, Anderlecht and a few others in particular, are taking an increasingly tough stance towards journalists. "It has already happened, for example, that certain journalists are denied access to Anderlecht after articles or reports that did not please the club," he says. Deltour hopes that journalism and the football world will one day work to clear up these issues and get back to good cooperation.