Journalism is a tough job that forces one to stay on its toes. On Thursday on A-Talk we heard the opinions of four MPs of the Left Alliance, Social Democrats, National Coalition Party (Kokoomus), and the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* if Finland was heading towards a debt crisis and spending cutbacks.
There was nothing new from PS MP VIlle Tavio, who suggested the usual cuts in development aid, which is pictured as “money thrown down the drain,” and billions of euros from “migration,” which he labeled as a security threat.
No pushback, never mind an utter from the host Sakari Sirkkinen. The following comment by Tavio was a sad example of zzz or snooze journalism. Yle is supposed to represent migrants and minorities living in Finland, not permit their demonization.
Said Tavio: “Social welfare based on nationality would revolutionize the [existing] and make the system more dynamic and advantageous for us.”
Again, an eerie silence came from the host, and none of the guests uttered a word.
With parliamentary elections in April, PS Chairperson Riikka Purra reiterated Thursday that social welfare benefits should hinge on nationality.
The claim by Purra and Tavio is a campaign stunt to poison Finland’s xenophobic atmosphere even more. Thanks to Section 6 of our Constitution, it is unconstitutional to enforce discriminatory laws.
Thus if you want to do away with social welfare rights, it would only be possible if it applied to everyone.
The suggestion by Tavio raises a lot of questions. For one, do the PS and Kokoomus plan to change the constitution, which needs a two-thirds majority to pass? What about the international outrage and negative image such a step would cause?
For now, Tavio’s suggestion is nothing more than cheap baloney.
But the fact that the Yle host and his guests said nothing shows how the media reinforces lies from anti-immigration parties like the PS and allows migrants and minorities to be treated as second-class members of society by the media. It is an example of complacent zzz journalism at its worst.
I sent the Migrant Tales Media Monitoring story to the A-Talk host.
