Dear Aftenposten! Thank you for the job you do

Aftenposten ble kåret til årets mediehus da medieprisene ble delt ut i Bergen onsdag kveld. John Martin Johansen skrev om saken i dag på Document: – Aftenposten kåret til årets mediehus: – Dette fortjente vi.

Dette fortjener de ja, og da passer det å ta frem et takkebrev frem fra glemselen skrevet til Aftenposten for et par år siden etter 6. januar. Det er like aktuelt i dag. Brevet er skrevet på engelsk.

Avisen tar samfunnsoppgaven sin på alvor og hadde publisert en sak på Aftenposten Junior om hvordan foreldre skal snakke med barna sine etter den verste hendelsen i USA siden landet ble grunnlagt 4. juli 1776:

– Det kan være vanskelig å forklare barn årsakene til dramatikken i USA. Denne artikkelen fra Aftenposten Junior gir svar på spørsmål de yngste kanskje sitter med. Les den gjerne sammen med barna.

Aftenposten gjorde det samme etter valget i 2016 da Donald Trump vant. Hva skulle vi gjort uten dem?

Skjermdump Aftenposten

Dear Aftenposten! Thank you for the job you do!

You have an important role in society, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for consistently following the Vær Varsom Plakaten or the Code of Ethics of the Norwegian Press. You know it by hand, and that is reassuring, especially section 1.4:

It is the right of the press to carry information on what goes on in society and to uncover and disclose matters which ought to be subjected to criticism. It is a press obligation to shed critical light on how the media themselves exercise their role.

I am thankful that you concentrate mainly on the dark side of society in the USA and not Norway, so I, as a citizen of the United States, can be informed of what is happening here. Your integrity and credibility are up there with the New York Times. Thank you.

I was therefore delighted to see that on January 7, 2020, you had an article on your online news site with the title:

– Denne saken fra Aftenposten Junior forklarer de yngste hva som skjer i USA akkurat nå!

Or in English– This article from Aftenposten Junior tells the children about what is happening in the USA right now!

You did the same incredible service to the Norwegian people after Trump won when you told Norwegian parents how to explain to their children that this man won the US election. Never mind that you and the rest of the media in Norway had already instilled fear in the children that he would start World War III.

And your award-winning journalism and front-page news the day after Trump won is second to none, yet we are not sure which Norwegian paper should get the prize for best cover.

Skjermdump Aftenposten

The day after January 6, you write that it can be difficult to explain to children the reasons for the drama in the United States, but you have answers to the young ones’ questions and tell parents to read the article with them. That’s great advice. Propaganda works best when one is exposed to it at an early age.

Skjermdump Aftenposten

I wanted to read the entire article, but I do not have a subscription to Aftenposten. I wish I did, but as a hardcore MAGA supporter, I live from hand to mouth in a mobile home adorned with the Confederate flag, and I cannot cough up enough money.

The last dollars we have left after a 60-hour workweek at Wally World is enough to feed my trailer trash Hitler Youth children and my ignorant, deplorable, proud boy, good-for-nothing husband.

If we’re lucky, we may have enough dough for a pack of Lucky Strike cigarettes and a case of Old Milwaukee beer. But we try to look on the bright side of life, and life ain’t ever been better than this.

But I am not here to talk about myself. It was the children and what they had witnessed in the last week. Our young ones should not be witnesses to insurrection in America or any other country for that matter. If you are covering any other countries’ news, that is.

I am glad the media is caring enough to help parents calm their children down and reassure them everything will be alright, alright, alright. I have noticed the press here in the USA doing the same thing. Our beloved New York Times even has lesson plans and teaching resources. The Gray Lady never disappoints, just like you, Aftenposten:

NYT Lesson Plan: – Teaching Resources to Help Students Make Sense of the Rampage at the Capitol. Dozens of lesson plan ideas, activities, and Times materials for exploring the causes and consequences of this assault on democracy in the United States.

We can always count on the liberal rags to assist us through difficult times when we need them the most.

There is only one thing I wanted to suggest that you consider. First, I am worried and afraid the children might already have questions and PTSD after witnessing the riots in the United States for months last year, with many dramatic and violent scenes from the streets of America. Riots you called mostly peaceful but left death and destruction in their path.

What good is it to teach the children about the rioters at the Capitol when you don’t talk to them about the left-wing extremists Antifa and BLM? Unfortunately, I cannot remember anyone in the Norwegian mainstream media here or in the USA suggesting lesson plans and conversations with the children about those riots.

Therefore, I have included a video that parents and teachers can use in their lectures about the damage of violent protests. It is suited for young, impressionable children. Although it is incredibly sad, it is not nearly as violent and destructive as the scenes we have seen from Portland, New York, Minneapolis, Nashville, Salt Lake City, Louisville, Atlanta, Washington DC, Cleveland, Raleigh, and Washington DC, to name a few.

Instead, the video shows innocent, hard-working, and up-standing Americans with only one goal: to work hard, live life, and feed and protect their family. And it shows how these Americans were victims of a violent mob that left-wing media and politicians supported and cheered on in some cases.

The Capitol in the United States may be the most important building in the USA, but the men and women in the streets of America are what built this country, and they matter more than the swamp creatures in Washington, DC.

Another plus about the video is that it shows an immigrant family that has lived the American dream. That’s right up there with your multicultural agenda for Norway that you, Aftenposten, and the rest of media Norway are cheerleaders for.

The immigrants in the video are hard-working Mexican Americans, which is what our country needs and what Norway and the United States were founded on. Hard work! As John F. Kennedy said in his inaugural address, he inspired children and adults to see the importance of civic action and public service. His historic words:

– Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country,» and challenged every American to contribute in some way to the public good.

Again, Thanks for Nothing, Aftenposten.

Elisabeth Rooney

The Daily Signal: Rioters BURNED This Immigrant Family’s American Dream in Kenosha