NH Radio is the first radio station in the Netherlands to boycott songs by Michael Jackson, amid the release of the documentary, Leaving Neverland.
The controversial documentary delves into the stories told by Wade Robson and James Safechuck, detailing how Jackson abused and groomed them for years as impressionable young boys. Leaving Neverland will be broadcast on Friday.
Hit songs by the American singer like Black or White, Bad, Thriller or Billie Jean will definitely not be receiving air time on this station for the foreseeable future.
The station is concerned that listeners could hear the songs and make negative associations, due to the storm of news stories about Michael Jackson circulating at the moment. “Then you no longer listen to the music in a neutral way”, the station said. “We want you to be able to listen to the songs in an uninhibited way.”
NH Radio has been in operation for 30 years. The radio station, with its headquarters in Amsterdam, focuses on broadcasting for the province of North Holland, in which Dutch cities like Amsterdam, Haarlem and Hilversum are situated.
The boycott will last for a few weeks and thereafter, NH Radio will decide whether or not to begin playing Michael Jackson’s music again.
A Dutch diehard Michael Jackson fan, Patrick Tieleman, is organising a protest at the NPO broadcasting building in Hilversum on Friday, the day of the documentary’s release.
Tieleman told NH Nieuws that he hopes that he can prevent the documentary being broadcast: “Michael can no longer defend himself, that’s why we have to do it. But I also know the chance is very small. We are mainly going to make a statement.”