The Finnish Freedom of Speech: An Illusion?

As Finland experienced a long and complex history of “oppression” by Russia, it is interesting to explore whether the history is reflected in the way journalists shape the existing ideology and image of Russia. According to the literature the Finnish history of “domination” by Russia and the former Soviet Union, is reflected in the existing journalistic content on Russia. Moreover, over the last five years Finland holds the number one position worldwide on the Press Freedom Index this in contrast to Russia, who is ranking 148th on index. This was different during the Soviet Union era when Finland exerted self-censorship. Considering the history of self-censorship, it is interesting to explore to what extent Finnish journalists are able to maintain their high level of freedom regarding the coverage on Russia. Accordingly, the aim of this research is to examine how journalists position themselves in reference to Russia. In order to examine this, the following main research question was designed: What is the position of Finnish journalists when it comes to reporting on Russia? In exploring the research question, a qualitative interview study was conducted among 18 Finnish journalists from 12 different newspapers that are based in Helsinki. Although Finland has the freest media environment worldwide and Finnish journalists claim to feel free in writing about Russia, the findings of the research show that in some way they are restricted in their reporting on Russia. It appears that Finnish journalists do approach Russian sources in a different way than they approach sources from other countries. They approach the Russian sources more carefully. This is reflected in their writing on Russia. Finnish journalists feel they carry an extra load when writing about Russia. Some journalists even choose to write anonymously to guarantee their privacy to prevent themselves from becoming a victim of the Russia cyber-war (i.e. Russian troll attacks) or the restrictions (i.e. being denied to get a Russian visa). The journalists feel they take a risk by reporting on Russia, as they can become victims of the Russian restrictions. Nevertheless, the cyber-war does not stop Finnish journalists from writing critically about Russia.