BNN or Bart's Neverending Network (formerly ''Bart's News Network'', as a pun on

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

) was a Dutch

public broadcasting Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

association Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

supported by

Netherlands Public Broadcasting (; abbreviated to NPO ; literally "Dutch Public Broadcaster") or Dutch Foundation for Public Broadcasting () is a Dutch public broadcasting organisation that administers public broadcasting services in the Netherlands. The NPO is also the owner ...

. BNN was founded in 1997 by

Bart de Graaff Bart Frederikus de Graaff (;In isolation, ''Frederikus'' is pronounced . 16 April 1967 – 25 May 2002) was an influential Dutch television presenter, comedian and creator, as well as the founder and chairman of the public broadcasting network ...

, Gerard Timmer and Frank Timmer and targeted

teenager Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

s and

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

s. It produced

entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and delight. It can be an idea or a task, but is more likely to be one of the activities or events that have developed over thousa ...

and

information Information is an abstract concept that refers to that which has the power to inform. At the most fundamental level information pertains to the interpretation of that which may be sensed. Any natural process that is not completely random ...

television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, e ...

ming,

radio program A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio networ ...

ming, and

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

s. Some of BNN's programming dealt with controversial subject matter, including most famously, a hoax reality special made to help raise awareness of the shortage of

organ donor Organ donation is the process when a person allows an organ of their own to be removed and transplanted to another person, legally, either by consent while the donor is alive or dead with the assent of the next of kin. Donation may be for re ...

s in the Netherlands.

History

BNN became a public broadcasting association as a part of the

system on 15 August 1997, replacing former member Veronica. While Dutch media in general is known to be liberal in coverage of

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

and

drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...

, even BNN's programming has been considered controversial. Some of BNN's programs have included "Try Before You Die" – where presenters attempted to do things that they think people should do at least once in their life, made headlines when presenter

Sander Lantinga Sander Lantinga (born 27 September 1976 in Biddinghuizen) is a Dutch program maker at BNN, and a radio-DJ at radio station 3FM from 2006 till 2015, in August 2015 he is one of the co host of the Coen en Sander Show on Radio 538. Lantinga drew ...

acted as a streaker during a quarter-finals match at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

between

Maria Sharapova Maria Yuryevna Sharapova ( , ; rus, Мари́я Ю́рьевна Шара́пова, p=mɐˈrʲijə ʂɐˈrapəvə, a=Maria_sharapova.ogg; born 19 April 1987) is a Russian former List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 ...

and

Elena Dementieva Elena Viacheslavovna Dementieva (, ; born 15 October 1981) is a Russian former professional tennis player. She won the singles gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, having previously won the silver medal at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. ...

. In May 2007, five years after the death of Bart de Graaff, who had suffered from kidney failure for almost all of his life, BNN announced ''"

De Grote Donorshow ''De Grote Donorshow'' (''The Great Donor Show'') was a reality television program which was broadcast in the Netherlands on Friday, June 1, 2007, by BNN. The program involved a supposedly terminally ill 37-year-old woman donating a kidney to ...

"'' ''(The Big Donor Show)'', an initiative for promoting the filling in of a codicil for

organ donation Organ donation is the process when a person allows an organ of their own to be removed and transplanted to another person, legally, either by consent while the donor is alive or dead with the assent of the next of kin. Donation may be for re ...

, in which three contestants would strive to be the recipient of a kidney donated by a terminally ill woman. The show aired on 1 June; at the end of the show it was revealed to be a

hoax A hoax is a widely publicized falsehood so fashioned as to invite reflexive, unthinking acceptance by the greatest number of people of the most varied social identities and of the highest possible social pretensions to gull its victims into pu ...

, attempting to draw attention to the low number of organ donors in the country.''Washington Post'', June 1, 2007
/ref>The Scotsman
/ref> BNN merged with the

VARA Vara or VARA may refer to: Geography *Vara (river), in Liguria, Italy * Vara Parish, former municipality in Tartu County, Estonia * Vara, Estonia, village in Peipsiääre Parish, Tartu County, Estonia * Vara Municipality, municipality in western S ...

on 1 January 2014 to form BNN-VARA.

Notable television shows

* ''

Cash Cab Cash Cab may refer to: * ''Cash Cab'' (British game show) * ''Cash Cab'' (American game show) * ''Cash Cab'' (Canadian game show) * ''Cash Cab'' (Japanese game show) * ''Cash Cab'' (Australian game show) {{disambiguation ...

'' (Dutch version) * ''

'' * ''

De Lama's De Lama's (translation: The Llamas) is a Dutch television show made by BNN and first aired on 26 June 2004. It is an adaptation of the Channel 4 show ''Whose Line is it Anyway?''. Patrick Lodiers hosts the show, which contains both well-known ...

'' * ''

Spuiten en Slikken ''Spuiten en Slikken'' () (translated in English as ''Shoot and Swallow'', referring to the different methods of taking drugs, as well as referring to the male orgasm and the act of swallowing semen during sex) was a 2005-2018 Dutch television pr ...

Presenters

(1998–2002) * Bridget Maasland (2000–2005) *

Eric Corton Eric Corton (born 11 January 1969 in Oosterbeek) is a Dutch presenter, actor, author and diskjockey. He is the face of the annual multi-media charity event Serious Request. Career Eric Corton is an educated actor on the Maastricht Academy of Dr ...

(2005–) *

Edo Brunner Edo Brunner (born 11 October 1970, Dubbeldam, Netherlands) is a Dutch actor and presenter. Filmography * ''De Baby en de bakfiets'' (1997) - Willem Slootkant * ''Benidorm'' ( 1999) - Sammy * ''Enigma'' ( 1999) * ''De Zwarte Meteoor'' (2000) * '' ...

(2006) *

Hanna Verboom Hanna Verboom (born 11 May 1983) is a Dutch actress. Career Born in Vilvoorde, Belgium, she spent her early childhood in the African nations of Kenya, Uganda and Sudan. After moving to the Netherlands, Verboom worked as a model and won the " ...

(2004–2006) *

Katja Schuurman Katja Schuurman (born 19 February 1975) is a Dutch actress, singer and television personality. Early life She grew up as the eldest daughter of a Dutch father and a Surinamese mother, born in Curaçao. Her sister Birgit is also a singer and a ...

(2001–2008) * Ramon Stoppelenburg (2005–2006) * Nicolette Kluiver (2006–2014) * Patrick Lodiers (2001–) *

Ruud de Wild Ruud and Rud are surnames of Norwegian origin. Both are also Norwegian place names of numerous farmsteads named Rud or Ruud from Old Norse ''ruð'' meaning clearing. Ruud is also a Dutch masculine given name meaning "famous wolf" although it is also ...

(1998–2004) *

(2005–) *

Wouter van der Goes Wouter van der Goes (born 18 January 1973, Alkmaar) is a Dutch radio DJ. At age twelve, he was tinkering with audio equipment as a hobby. Later, during his free time, he worked with several local radio stations, as well as pirate stations, wh ...

(2004–2006) * Yolanthe Cabau van Kasbergen (2006–) *

Floortje Dessing __NOTOC__ Floortje Dessing (born 31 August 1970 in Heemstede) is a Dutch radio and television presenter, producer and travel writer, best known for her various travel TV shows. Since 1995 Dessing has covered more than 120 countries in TV progra ...

(2010–)

References

External links

BNN
– official website
BNN TV
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

{{Authority control Dutch public broadcasting organisations Netherlands Public Broadcasting Dutch-language television networks Television channels and stations established in 1997