Text by Kristenn Einarsson, Managing Director of WEXFO. This article was originally published in Norwegian by Panorama Nyheter on June 2, 2025.
Democracy and freedom of expression are under pressure across the globe – and even in Norway, there are signs of unrest. These sparks must be extinguished before our entire democracy goes up in flames.
Authoritarian forces are on the rise globally.
According to the respected V-Dem Institute at the University of Gothenburg, the average level of democracy for the world’s citizens has now regressed to that of 1985. We’ve been set back 40 years.
Many have felt this shift for a long time. Several countries across continents have veered away from democratic values. Today, three-quarters of the world’s population live in countries that are not democracies – and the proportion is growing.
V-Dem reports that more and more countries – now 45 – are moving in a more authoritarian direction.
Norway’s strong democracy is no guarantee
In Norway, we’ve been shielded from most of this. Norway tops the 2024 Democracy Index from The Economist Intelligence Unit.
Norway scores highly across all parameters, receiving 10/10 for electoral process and pluralism, political participation, and political culture. Political culture includes democracy as a shared foundation of values.
Freedom of expression is also strong in Norway. In a Norstat survey for the World Expression Forum in May 2025, two out of three respondents said that people in Norway can express their opinions freely and without fear of consequences to a large or very large extent.
The survey also indicates a growing willingness to express oneself. One in three has shared their own opinions online in the past six months – an increase of ten percentage points from a similar survey conducted by the Norwegian Media Authority last year.
We have a strong foundation, but it is not unshakable. Democracy and freedom of expression must be defended every single day. We cannot take them for granted.
As the World Expression Forum gathers freedom of expression advocates from around the world in Lillehammer this week, the message is clear: We must resist.
Multiple sparks require our attention
Several sparks demand our attention.
One concerns young people. Nine out of ten aged 16 to 25 have opinions on societal issues, but only one in four prefers to express them publicly, according to the Norstat survey. Fear of harassment is a major barrier, according to both the survey and a 2021 report from the Youth Freedom of Expression Council commissioned by Norwegian PEN/Fritt Ord. Not surprising – just look at the comment sections online.
Disinformation is another spark. We are exposed daily to misleading content, often designed to manipulate. According to the Norstat survey, nearly everyone (99.6%) assesses the credibility of information, yet one in five admits to having shared something that turned out to be false – among young men, nearly one in three. We are thus contributing to the problem ourselves.
The fight against disinformation is challenging. In the U.S., efforts to combat disinformation have been met with accusations of censorship. Meta has now stopped fact-checking. This may further polarize the climate of debate.
Nina Jankowicz, a disinformation expert, is among the strong voices in the U.S. advocating for action against falsehoods. In an interview with the World Expression Forum, she said: “Responding to disinformation is not ‘censorship’ – it is a necessary defense against those who lie to undermine our democracy and erode trust in our institutions.”
A third serious spark is the growing suspicion toward free media – a trend spreading even in liberal democracies.
The Norwegian Union of Journalists expresses particular concern about developments in the U.S., where editor-led media are denied access and subjected to threats. They warn of a contagion effect, where attacks on free media become legitimized in other countries.
In Norway, NRK documented back in 2019 that one in three hosts and one in four journalists had received threats. Nearly half had experienced harassment.
“Silence is consent”
In all democracies that have come under attack, they are strongest at the beginning of the assault. The longer it lasts, the weaker they become. It is death by a thousand cuts. Silence is consent, warns Nobel laureate Maria Ressa.
We are at a critical juncture in the fight to defend democracy and secure freedom of expression for future generations.
As the World Expression Forum gathers freedom of expression advocates from around the world in Lillehammer this week, the message is clear: We must resist.
This resistance is not without cost. We need strong institutions and organizations that can stand up against the systematic dismantling of democracy.
We have learned from Orbán in Hungary, and especially from Trump in the U.S., how quickly this can happen and the importance of challenging abuses of power – just as we see Harvard doing these days.
The sparks must be extinguished before a full blaze erupts. We still have the chance.
“In all democracies that have come under attack, they are strongest at the beginning of the assault. The longer it lasts, the weaker they become. It is death by a thousand cuts. Silence is consent,” warns Nobel laureate Maria Ressa ahead of this year’s World Expression Forum.
This concerns us all. Stay alert, use your voice, include young people, and stand up for free and independent media and publishing.
