Fast News, Fading Words: On the Quiet Decline of Dutch
By Jesse Huybrechts
Standard Dutch — once a proud linguistic benchmark — used to be careful, precise, and controlled. That ideal has long lost its shine. On the playground, on WhatsApp, on TV — but also in newspapers, news apps, and especially online articles — Dutch is sounding ever more informal, more human… and more careless.
It took a while, but even the media seem to have abandoned the standard. In their hunger for clicks and their rush to sound relatable, journalists have less time — or patience — to fuss over commas. Ironically, the PR industry might be the one to restore some balance. While editorial teams wrestle with speed and style, the so-called “Dark Side” might just bring a little light.
The English Effect
We can’t ignore the influence of English. Dominant in technology, entertainment, and social media, it shapes how we think and write. And that influence runs deeper than vocabulary — even grammar is shifting. VRT NWS recently reported a striking trend: the Dutch article het (“the” for neuter nouns) is slowly disappearing, influenced by English, which doesn’t distinguish between de and het. What used to sound like a clear mistake is now quietly becoming normal. It may seem like a minor detail, but it’s telling. We’re losing the language from within — not through lazy spelling, but through a structural acclimatization to another linguistic system.
Sérieux
Standard Dutch might have sounded stiff, but it gave us structure. Language was a mark of sérieux — of seriousness. Especially in journalism. Today, the opposite reigns: sounding natural, writing like people talk. That certainly brings readers closer, but it also breeds sloppiness.
The driving force behind this shift is the digital newsroom. News has to go online faster, stories are constantly updated, and copy editing is often a luxury. In that kind of environment, linguistic care almost inevitably disappears. The reader still gets the information — but with less form, less style, less precision. Today’s online newspaper doesn’t sound like a speech anymore; it sounds like a voicemail.
Small Mistakes, Big Problem
The downside of that speed is visible — literally. Typos, inconsistencies, and grammatical slips appear more and more often in online articles. Where once three pairs of eyes would check a text, it now goes live within minutes. Nobody seems to stumble over an extra typo anymore, but these are signs — signs that care has given way to haste, as long as the content “gets out there.” Half-finished sentences, missing quotation marks, English words lingering from a rushed press release — small errors that expose a bigger issue: the erosion of language as a mark of quality.
What It Says About Our Media Culture
The rise in sloppiness isn’t proof of incompetence — it’s a symptom of a culture addicted to speed. Newsrooms keep the conveyor belt running, churning out fleeting content. Language no longer gets time to mature. The journalist who once spent an hour refining a sentence now types three news flashes in fifteen minutes. The urge to be first has replaced the need to be right.
And that touches journalism at its core: credibility. A single mistake — a misspelled name, a wrong verb, a misquoted line — can make readers doubt the accuracy of the story itself. Typos aren’t just cosmetic; they undermine trust. It’s no coincidence that De Tijd, a serious financial daily, is now the fastest-growing newspaper in Flanders.
The First Source
Can the tide still turn? Perhaps — and PR might play a role. Not by slowing news strategically, but by giving care the time it deserves again. PR agencies are often journalists’ first source; their texts become the foundation of articles, sometimes literally. A carefully crafted press release — clear, accurate, and substantial — helps journalists work faster and better. It’s not just promotion; it’s linguistic stewardship. The opposite, of course, is also true. Rushed, vague, or sloppy PR texts carry their mistakes straight into the final article. Those who feed the media shape its language. That’s why the PR sector can make a difference — by writing with precision, providing context, and giving journalists the space to write, not just to hurry.
A good press release isn’t a small detail; it’s a gesture of respect — for the medium, the journalist, and the language itself. As a PR agency, we see it as part of our duty to help keep that standard high.
Impoverishment
This linguistic shift reflects a cultural one — a change in what we value. And that’s not progress. It’s a loss of attention, of craftsmanship. The challenge for modern journalism isn’t to sound more human — that’s already happening — but to write more humanly: with care, intention, and precision. The move toward looser, faster, more conversational Dutch isn’t a charming evolution; it’s a linguistic impoverishment. Not because language changes — it should — but because we treat it with less respect.