Ever wondered why tabloids like Ilta-Sanomat continue to publish racist stories? When the first Somalis came to Finland in the early 1990s, the tabloid had a field day (see billboards below). Imagine headlines like “Somalis will remain in Finland,” “Somalis tricked (authorities) to get asylum,” and twenty years later, “10,000 illegal refugees will come this…
Tag: Ilta-Sanomat
Finland’s tabloids are the worst when it comes to spreading bigotry and racism
Racism sells. Us and them sell. Spreading and reinforcing prejudices sells. Bigotry and racism sell. Biased journalism sells. These examples sum up pretty well how tabloids like Iltalehti and Ilta-Sanomat make money by reinforcing old hatreds and suspicions of Others. One of their latest stories on the far-right vigilante group, the Soldiers of Odin, is…
From the Oulu sexual assault cases to Finland’s descent into the Islamophobic pit
After the Oulu sexual assault cases came to light at the end of November and rapidly spiralled out of control in the media, is one sad example of Finland’s Islamophobia problem. Not only are politicians from parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* trying to reap the political benefits, but the media, and police, too. All of…
The media of Finland is part of the country’s Islamophobia and racism problem
Journalists and newspapers in Finland, especially tabloids like Iltalehti, Ilta-Sanomat and state broadcaster YLE, are prime examples of not only white Finnish privilege but of white Finnish overkill and rage.
The wise tales of Uncle Toms and the unbalanced reporting by the Finnish media
Tabloid Ilta-Sanomat, which was complicit in the early 1990s of spreading racism wholesale in Finland, hasn’t yet apologized for its reporting about groups like the Somalis. In an interview with a Kurdish Islamophobe, Sheida Sohrabi, Ilta-Sanomat signals that it will never apologize for its shoddy and one-sided reporting.
Tabloids like Ilta-Sanomat should apologize to the migrant and minority community for their racist stories
When I started my career in journalism in Finland in the mid-1980s, I was warned never to use the term huijaa, which means to cheat, scam or deceive. “Don’t ever use this term unless you want to find yourself in court for defamation,” my former colleague from Apu magazine warned.
Perussuomalaiset MP Leena Meri: Hiding coded bigotted statements as jokes
One matter is what happened on Friday to singer Musta Barbaari’s mother and sister when they were stopped by plainclothes police Friday, the other is a bigotted comment by an anti-immigration politician and former police officer concerning the alleged ethnic profiling case. The MP, who is a member of the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party, Leena Meri, said that if the singer doesn’t like living in Finland he’s welcome to go back to where he came from.
How tabloid Ilta-Sanomat spreads and reinforces “us” and “them” in Finland
A Migrant Tales reader* gave us the heads-up today of a story he read on tabloid Ilta-Sanomat, one of the worst of the worst when it comes to spreading prejudice about migrants and visible minorities. A story published Tuesday about a woman who tried to smuggle her Turkish boyfriend to Finland is a case in point….
Abdulah: Healing the wounds inflicted by intolerance and regaining balance
Abdulah, who has appeared in a number of postings on Migrant Tales, hasn’t yet rallied enough courage to speak without the veil of anonymity. Like many who are scorned in Finland because of their ethnic background, regaining one’s balance and healing the wounds inflicted by intolerance can be a long process. “I have learned a…