Normally, I don't respond to commentators who hide behind a pseudonym. I think people should have the decency to own up to what they have to say, online and offline. I'll make an exception for Mr. or Mrs. "Coeus," if only to set some facts straight.

"Coeus" seems to believe that I claimed to have been the original standard bearer for ABN. That would indeed be preposterous. All of us stand on the shoulders of the ones that went before us. I grew up listening to Philip Bloemendal and Donald de Marcas, and I have worked with Harmen Siezen and Joop van Zijl.

Newsreaders at the Dutch national and international service were selected and hired because they were able to continue to set that standard of ABN for a new generation of listeners. I was one of them.

It is incorrect that Radio Netherlands International (RNI) was only listened to when people were “on vacation in foreign countries.” That was just one of the many services RNI provided.

Every year, an estimated 1.3 million Dutchmen are abroad for some reason other than vacation, and many of them listened to RNI (until the government shut it down in 2012).

The Dutch World Service was on the air 365 days per year with newscasts and other programs for the merchant navy, the military stationed overseas, expats, émigrés, members of the Dutch foreign service, missionaries, development aid workers, and travelers. There were special shows for people in Surinam, the Dutch Antilles, South Africa, and in Indonesia.

Most of our listeners did not switch on the radio to have some background noise. They listened because they wanted to stay informed. I’ve also worked for Dutch National Radio, but never in my career have I received so much fan mail as in the days I worked for Radio Netherlands International. Till this day I am proud to have been part of that organization.

So no lying in any way? Well Paul, on your website you claim: "As a former newsreader and anchor for Dutch radio, I set the standard for what is called “Algemeen Beschaafd Nederlands” or ABN." That is a bizarre claim and you know it. Generations of newsreaders in the decades before you set the standard. Just to name of few giants: Philip Bloemendal, Donald de Marcas, Jaap van Meekren, Fred Emmer, Arend Langenberg, Ad Hazewinkel, Harmen Siezen, Joop van Zijl, Rien Huizing, Hans Blankesteijn, etc. On top of that: you worked at RNW, the (former) Radio Netherlands World Service, where Dutchmen only listened to on vacation in foreign countries. Not the rest of the year, when they were actually in the country. There they listened to all those other newsreaders speaking flawless ABN well before they may have heard you a few times while sitting on a camping in France.

It is not worth it to land a voice-over script when it involves lying. I will go with the truth and continue to work hard at marketing my voice. Hopefully this article inspires others, Paul. Thanks for writing it.

Paul, as per your advice, I read your blog page on website and going to dump my membership in voices.com which is getting me nowhere, and just try to get gigs on my own. Probably won't succeed and have to take up house painting. But it's useless to try competing with the whole world.

Roy, my Double Dutch blog is packed with advice for starting and seasoned voice actors alike. Simply go to my website and click on the blog-tab.

Amanda, an attorney recently ordered me not to use the term "Distinctly Dutch" on one of my websites. His client ran a translation agency and did some voiceover jobs on the side. Apparently, she had trademarked the term. It turned out that she was from Belgium and she spoke with a distinctly Flemish accent.

BP, it's never been easier to create a false online identity. Even well-known press agencies sometimes forget to fact-check, or they don't have the staff to do it.

Happy clients are my best credentials. The fakers will eventually meet their fate.

Paul, you have covered what NOT to do in excellent fashion. How about some suggestions as to what TO do, to get oneself out of the audition herd. Work is getting harder and harder to come by. The pa- to-audition sites are getting more and more crowded, with more competition. What's a VO actor to do?

Paul, you are particularly fired up in this article! Do you have a recent story about how this affected you?

As always Paul, your articles are both entertaining and informative. In today's day and age of the internet, I would imagine it would be even harder to lie about experience, etc. without getting caught. Lying is just plain self defeating. Honesty is always the best policy in all business dealings. I think one problem in today's world, is that people "expect" instant success, so they are willing to lie to make that success happen. It rarely works if ever.