NVJ talks about ‘very wrong signal’. Secretary Thomas Bruning said that now it was a ‘symbolic amount’. “But a journalist has to be able to do his job without any consideration. It doesn’t matter if it’s a football match, a political debate or a festival.” NVJ contacted MOJO about this on Friday.

Concert organizers want to use what is called a charity fee to ‘help our charity on all fronts’. This is done in part by calling attention to charities at the festival site. “But also by supporting them financially in this way,” said a spokesperson for Lowlands. According to MOJO, this also happened at other festivals.

NVJ Bruning’s secretary could not immediately cite examples in the Netherlands, but acknowledged trends abroad. “Recently there was rioting in England because the Tories charged journalists £137 to enter their conference.”

The ANP news agency refused payment for Lowlands. “Our (photo) journalists do not pay for resources or access to events,” ANP editor-in-chief Freek Staps said Friday. ANP did not want a financial relationship with the reported organization, “even if they passed the money to a third party. We also notified Lowlands.”

The request to pay a charity fee applies not only to journalists, but also to other guests, such as those from record labels, radio stations, or Lowland partners who receive free admission. People “who are working, like singers, don’t have to pay money,” the spokesperson added. MOJO could not say as of Friday morning how many people were involved.