Kim Friele (1935-2021)

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November 23 2021

Kim Friele passed away on Monday, 22 November 2021, at age 86. She devoted large parts of her life to fighting for gay rights in Norway.

“Kim Friele has been the most prominent, greatest champion of equal rights for homosexuals in the past 60 years. That made her an unparalleled pioneer in the world of freedom of expression. She demonstrated precisely how vital free speech is to those who belong to exposed, vulnerable minorities in particular”, remarks Knut Olav Åmås, executive director of Fritt Ord.
Friele was awarded the Fritt Ord Foundation Prize in 1978. She returned it in protest when Nina Karin Monsen received the same award in 2009.

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Fritt Ord's grants for master’s degrees

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Is your master’s project about freedom of expression, social debate or journalism? If so, you can apply for a student grant from the Fritt Ord Foundation.

Call for nominations: Free Media Awards 2025

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In collaboration with the ZEIT STIFTUNG BUCERIUS of Hamburg, the Fritt Ord Foundation has allocated the Free Media Awards annually since 2004 to Eastern European journalists and media that defy every obstacle to tirelessly ensure independent press coverage. Russia’s war against Ukraine and the subsequent wave of disinformation clearly demonstrates the need for independent reporting in the region. Journalist, editorial teams and media companies in and from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine and Hungary who make a contribution to press freedom through their investigative, independent reporting can be nominated for the Free Media Awards.