Loyal or obedient? About freedom of expression at work

November 12 2013

Volda University College’s Faculty of Media and Journalism and the Fritt Ord Foundation invite the public to a full-day seminar on 15 November 2013 at Fritt Ord’s premises at Uranienborgveien 2 in Oslo

The background for the seminar is the increasingly widespread discussion about the relationship between freedom of expression and loyalty at work. Discussing the issue will be a professor of Law from the US, along with Norwegian academics, trade union representatives and the new the secretary-general of the Association of Norwegian Editors.

The event is free of charge and open to the public.

Programme

10.00 a.m.: Professor Cynthia Estlund, New York University: Free speech rights that work at work

11.00 a.m.: Attorney Jon Wessel-Aas: Loyalty v. freedom of expression in the workplace in Norway

11.45 a.m.: Researcher Bitten Nordrik: When obedience becomes a skill. About freedom of expression and neo-liberal management methods

1.00 p.m.: Secretary General Arne Jensen, The Association of Norwegian Editors: Silent servants meet mudslingers

1.30 p.m.: Stories from real life
Hans Fjære Øvrum, Management/Statoil: Union representatives who scored 2 in ‘courage’
Boye Ullman, Norwegian United Federation of Trade Unions/Coop Gardermoen: The Spanish plumbers who were fired after a TV2 report
Jens Jahren, the Military Officers’ Association: Freedom of expression in the Armed Forces
Gro E. Paulsen, chair of the Norwegian Association of Graduate Teachers: Extolling virtues, reputation building and freedom of expression. Some examples from the education sector.

3.00 p.m.: President Anders Folkestad, Unio

News

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The Fritt Ord Foundation and the ZEIT Stiftung Bucerius hereby announce that the Free Media Awards for 2025 will be presented to media outlets and journalists from Ukraine, Georgia, Hungary, Russia, Belarus and Azerbaijan

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A recently published report reveals biases in who is allowed to participate in the public debate. According to a new report from Retriever commissioned by the Fritt Ord Foundation, men who have Nordic names dominate both as sources and journalists in Norwegian media. Women, younger people and people with foreign names are less likely to be included. This is true both as interviewees and as authors of articles. That being said, greater diversity among journalists results in greater diversity among sources.

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Eirin Larsen (36) and Hadia Tajik (42) bring valuable experience from journalism, technology, politics and jurisprudence to the Fritt Ord Board.

Making the film «Farouk» – on the geologist that secured Norway its oil

July 1 2025

Geologist Farouk Al-Kasim joined the the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate in 1968, shaping Norwegian petroleum resource management for decades afterwards. Now, documentary film director Halkawt Mustafa and producer Janne Hjeltnes are making a film about Al-Kasim’s life and reflections.
“Farouk tells me something in this film that he has not talked about before, because he has always told the version he feels Norway wanted to hear,” recounts Mustafa, who has Iraqi roots himself.

Read the interview with the director and see the list of grants awarded by Fritt Ord in June 2025.