Survey of media coverage from 2011 to 2022 of the terrorist acts committed on 22 July 2011

October 26 2022

For the first time, a systematic analysis has been made of 11 years of media coverage on the acts of terror committed on 22 July 2011.
Nearly 500 000 newspaper articles have been published about the right-wing extremist acts of terror from the time they were committed until the summer of 2022.

Norway’s Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg at the Sundvolden Hotel, near Utøya Island, on 23 July 2011. Photo: Henrik Pryser Libell
Click on the links below to download the full report (in Norwegian) and/or a shorter version of the report (in Norwegian) that was presented at the press conference arranged by Fritt Ord on 26 October 2022.

Media coverage in the aftermath of 22 July 2011
Fritt Ord is filming the presentation on 26 October. Click here to stream the meeting from 10-11.30 a.m.
The report includes all Norwegian media coverage on the acts of terror committed on 22 July 2011, from the summer of 2011 to the summer of 2022.
Many consider the 10th anniversary of the incident in 2021 a watershed in the debate on the heinous acts of terror. Fresh perspectives, insights, research reports and books set a new tone for the media debate. The participation of members of the Workers’ Youth League (AUF) was especially important. An intense, comprehensive debate was coloured by allegations about the place of AUF politicians and right-wing radicals in the media during the period in question, and it used terms such as ‘responsibility of speech’ and ’the Utøya card’..
In late summer 2021, the Fritt Ord Foundation commissioned the media analysis agency Retriever to examine the media coverage of the right-wing extremist acts of terror committed in Oslo and on Utøya Island a decade earlier. The investigation was intended to provide a constructive, fact-based platform for further discussions on the topics mentioned.
The report was funded exclusively by Fritt Ord.

“The report (in Norwegian) ":/attachments/cce1b2d67e930df722f06770aba9dd807251a1be/218-20221026073622244824.pdf

Presentation of the report

News

Fritt Ord's grants for master’s degrees

August 30 2026

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.

The Freedom of Expression Foundation Tribute 2026

August 18 2026

The rap duo Karpe has been awarded the Freedom of Expression Foundation Tribute for giving voice to the experiences of many young people from minority backgrounds. Through the language of rap, they are expanding the space for the expression of identity and belonging.

The 2025/26 Monitor survey

June 17 2026

The Fritt Ord Foundation and the Institute for Social Research (ISF) invite you to the launch of a report and a subsequent discussion on Monday, 8 June 2026, from 9.00 to 11.00 am, at Fritt Ord’s premises at Uranienborgveien 2 in Oslo.

Where do people draw the line when it comes to freedom of expression, and what do they believe to be the greatest threats to an informed debate at a time characterised by unrest, crises and international conflicts? Do they feel there is sufficient diversity of opinion and enough room for divergent viewpoints? And how do people assess access to truthful and relevant information in a media landscape featuring new formats, new voices and artificial intelligence?

Outside the Storm: Launch of Reuters Digital News Report 2026

June 2 2026

The Fritt Ord Foundation, the University of Bergen and the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism in Oxford invite you to a breakfast seminar on Tuesday 16 June 2026 from 08:30–10:00 at Fritt Ord’s premises at Uranienborgveien 2, Oslo.
The event presents the Reuters Digital News Report 2026 – the world’s largest and most important media survey – which launches internationally on the night of 16 June.