The Freedom of Expression Foundation Tribute is awarded to journalist and writer Odd Isungset (63) for his investigative journalism on the Nygaard case.

Odd Isungset is one of Norway’s most talented investigative journalists. His greatest single effort involves 25 years of persistent, meticulous investigation on the still unsolved attempted assassination of the publisher William Nygaard in 1993. That work has resulted in two books, Attempted Assassination (2000) and Who shot William Nygaard? (2010), and four TV documentaries: TV2’s Assassination Attempt in Dagaliveien (1997), TV2’s The State of the Realm (2001), TV2’s The Traces of Blood from Dagaliveien (2008), which resulted in the Nygaard case being reopened in 2009, and the NRK documentary Sentenced to Death (2012, with Cecilie Ellingsen).

The National Criminal Investigation Service (Kripos) credited the investigations that Isungset presented in the documentary film from 2008 as the reason why several individuals were recently charged in the case, just two days before the expiry of the 25-year statute of limitations. The charges include not only to attempted murder, but also that the attempted assassination endangered significant societal interests by being aimed directly at freedom of expression.

“With unique persistence, Odd Isungset has engaged in investigative journalism that has been decisive for shedding light on all aspects of the Nygaard case. The attempted assassination of Nygaard was an attack on freedom of expression, but neither the police nor politicians understood the real significance of that fact for several years”, comments Grete Brochmann, Chair of the Fritt Ord Foundation Board.

In 1989, William Nygaard’s publishing house Aschehoug published a Norwegian translation of Salman Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses. Earlier that same year, Ayatollah Khomeini, the supreme leader of the Iranian clerical authority, issued a fatwa (death sentence) against anyone involved in the publication of the book. The publication of the Norwegian translation was therefore subject to strict security measures. Some 3000 Muslims demonstrated against the publication in the streets of Oslo, and two bookshops in Oslo and Bærum were set on fire. In 1991, the Japanese translator of Rushdie’s book was murdered. The Italian translator survived a knife attack.

The Oslo police nevertheless suspected that the assassination attempt on Nygaard in connection with the Rushdie case was a notion created by the media. Isungset proved that evidence and documents had disappeared from the possession of the police during the investigation, which was characterised by formidable mistakes and shortcomings right from the onset.

As head of the documentary divisions at both TV2 and NRK, Odd Isungset has been responsible for a large number of important TV documentaries that have precipitated debates and had political consequences. His work has demonstrated how well-suited a meticulously reconstructed documentary is as a journalistic medium in demanding cases. Several of them have attracted considerable international attention and won prizes, e.g. the TV2 documentary Threatened into Silence (2006, with Per Christian Magnus and Robert Reinlund), about the caricature controversy.

Odd Isungset (63)
Odd Isungset was born in Geilo and educated as a journalist at Volda University College. He was employed by NRK from 1982 to 1992, among other positions, as head of the investigative team for the Dagsnytt news broadcast, and as a foreign correspondent in Copenhagen. He was hired by TV2 when the station began operations 1992 and held the position of managing editor for Document 2, among other jobs. From 1999 to 2010, he was a member of the Press Complaints Commission, and from 2004, he chaired the Commission. In 2012, Isungset moved back to NRK, where, until recently, he was an editor on the Brennpunkt editorial board. He is currently in charge of investigative journalism for NRK’s District Division. Isungset was awarded the SKUP diploma for the book Attempted Assassination in 2000. In 2011, he received a prize for outstanding journalism for the book Who shot William Nygaard?

The Freedom of Expression Foundation Tribute
The Freedom of Expression Foundation Tribute is accompanied by a cash award of NOK 100 000 and a crystal vase. It is awarded by the Fritt Ord Foundation’s Board to show appreciation for constructive actions to promote freedom of speech, often in conjunction with a current event. The Fritt Ord’s Board also awards the Freedom of Expression Foundation Prize.

The award ceremony for Odd Isungset will take place on Friday, 31 October, at 2.00 p.m. in the Fritt Ord Foundation’s premises at Uranienborgveien 2, Oslo.

Contact: Isungset
Odd Isungset, mobile +47 907 27531

Contact: Fritt Ord
Grete Brochmann, mobile +47 992 78730

Executive Director Knut Olav Åmås, mobile +47 908 68139