Journalism and extremism: Øyvind Strømmen deserves kudos for being the only Norwegian journalist with the courage and integrity to critisize his colleagues at the liberal tabloid VG for having offered an open microphone to a very small group of Norwegian salafi-jihadist sympathizers of the genocidaires of IS in the form of a 43 min long video interview with one Ubaydullah [Arslan Maroof] Hussain last weekend. There is every reason to think that this video, in which the disturbed and disturbing Hussain was permitted to pose in his favourite pose as a significant ideologue speaking on behalf of Muslims in Norway - no less! - with hardly a critical question asked - will be used for propagandistic purposes by Hussain & his gang of former petty criminals and drug dealers for years to come. Those of us who have yet to be incorporated into the short term memory club will recall that VG has a very long record in providing a platform for extremist speech in this country, from the 2003 VG interview with the Norwegian neo-Nazi leader Tore Tvedt in 2003 in which he made vile and racist anti-semitic remarks for which he was later convicted by the Norwegian Supreme Court under paragraph 135 (a) in 2007, to the August 2011 exclusive interview with the right-wing extremist and biological racist Peder Are Nøstvold Fjordman Jensen - Norwegian child murdering terrorist Anders B. Breiviks main inspiration - in which Jensen appeared exactly like he would like to see himself, and hardly a critical question asked. Expect VGs editors to mouth their usual platitudes about the importance of free speech, even if this isnt a question of free speech, but mainstream medias ethical responsibility in not providing multimedia platforms for extremist and hate speech, and the desk at VG to avenge themselves on anyone who like Strømmen dare question their lack of minimal ethical standards in this case. nrk.no/ytring/mikrofonstativet-1.11889330
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 07:56:50 +0000
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