The Media Monitoring Group of Finland has received some disturbing news about how Perussuomalaiset (PS) Minister for Foreign Trade Wille Rydman allegedly sent hostile messages to Alex Rühle, the Nordic correspondent of the Munich-based daily Süddeutsche Zeitung. We offer our 100% support to Rühle and condemn forcibly Rydman, the PS, and the government for intimidating…
Category: Media Monitoring Group of Finland
Media Monitoring Group of Finland*: Yahya Rouissi: The Finnish Media and me
As a Tunisian who has spent the last three years in Finland, I often find myself reflecting on recent events that have influenced my life. The revolution in Tunisia is known for having been “from the people, [but] appropriated by the others.” This phrase resonates with me deeply, as I can relate to the highs and…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland:* Plurality and agency are essential
Asmaa is a black woman born in Finland who studies at the South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences (Xamx). She was adamant about why she does not trust, never mind reads, the Finnish media. She emailed a response: I don’t read Finnish newspapers and none in particular. I find them very taxing to read. Constantly, people who…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland:* A disappointing parliamentary election
STATEMENT Just like in the last four parliamentary elections, narratives such as migrant crime spread by the far-right anti-immigration Finns Party (PS) paid off handsomely. It is not, however, the only reason why the PS was able to win a record 46 seats but was helped by the National Coalition Party, which won the election…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland [1]: The right adjective for the Perussuomalaiset should be populist, Eurosceptic, and far-right
It is surprising how the foreign and local media treat the Perussuomalaiset (PS)*differently, even if The Guardian and El País of Madrid refer to the party as far right. Other adjectives are used, like Eurosceptic, nationalistic, and right-wing populist. In Finland, we rarely, if ever, see such descriptions of the PS. Yle News, for example,…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland: “The media reminds me that I am not wanted here”
I don’t read Finnish newspapers and none in particular. I find them very taxing to read. Constantly, people who look like me are vilified, branded as the devil himself and the root cause of all problems. I have always known the correct term for an event that bothers me, and when I learned it, I…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland:* The PS wants foreigners to pay taxes and get nothing in return
STATEMENT The chairperson of the Finns Party, Riikka Purra, has said on several occasions that her party’s long-term goal is that only Finnish citizens have the right to social welfare. While such a plan is highly discriminatory, even racist, it is unfortunate that journalists don’t ask Purra what she means and what challenges would arise…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland: Finnish media coverage of the “youth gangs” and the security guards scandal
We are a small group called the Media Monitoring Group of Finland, represented by people from different minority backgrounds. Today we published our first report in English and Finnish. Has media coverage of “youth gangs” and the security guards scandal been fair? In our opinion, coverage has been problematic. Please read the report and see…
Media Monitoring Group of Finland*: The Avarn Security scandal reveals a lot about how the media frames minorities
THE STORY WAS UPDATED After reading 77 stories published by Yle (9 stories), Helsingin Sanomat (19), Iltalehti (6), Ilta-Sanomat (30), and MTV (13) about the Avarn Security scandal, only one story alleges racism as a factor in the working culture of security guards. Another story by Ilta-Sanomat, which wrote about excessive force, only mentioned once…