The Israeli Embassy in Oslo condemned the remarks, calling them “unacceptable” and urging the broadcaster to remove the segment.
By Shula Rosen
Norway’s state broadcaster NRK is facing widespread backlash after airing antisemitic jokes on a prime-time satire show that was also marketed to young people.
The remarks appeared on Nytt pa Nytt, a weekly news parody program rated suitable for viewers as young as nine.
During Saturday’s broadcast, host Tuva Johannessen joked that “U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson thinks it’s fine for America to bomb ships full of fentanyl — but if you replace fentanyl with Jews, suddenly it doesn’t sound so okay.”
The comment drew laughter from the panel before Johannessen added another line, suggesting that smuggling Jews from Sweden to Norway “wouldn’t work.”
The broadcast sparked immediate outrage from Jewish organizations and Israeli officials. On Elpeleg, an Israeli educator who monitors antisemitic content in Norway’s media, said the government routinely dismisses such complaints. “The hosts’ cynical humor is twisted,” he said. “This program is officially for children and families — and then people ask why antisemitism is rising here.”
The controversy followed another incident just a week earlier, when a separate NRK radio host aired a crude joke about Jews.
After a public outcry, the Israeli Embassy in Oslo condemned the remarks, calling them “unacceptable” and urging the broadcaster to remove the segment. NRK issued an apology but left the content online.
Elpeleg expressed shock at the broadcaster’s repeated lapses. “It’s 2025, not 1945 — yet we’re hearing Nazi jokes on state television again,” he said. “This is the same institution that collaborated with the Nazis during the occupation, and now it’s back to mocking Jews on air.”
He added that the situation is particularly troubling given Norway’s recent educational reforms promoting Holocaust awareness among students. “They teach 13-year-olds about the genocide,” he said, “yet antisemitic jokes are being normalized on children’s TV. It’s a betrayal of history.”
As of Monday, NRK had not taken disciplinary action against the show’s producers or host, deepening criticism that the network tolerates bigotry under the guise of satire.
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