Klassekampen thought last week they were doing an interview with Norwegian writer Anne Holt about digital habits.

It turned out that the reporter, Hannah Bull Thorvik, had called another woman with the same name as Holt, who also let herself be interviewed.

This resulted in an article in which the Norwegian author was quoted, in an article for which she had certainly not applied.

– Total incompetence

On Monday, “the real Holt” is raging again in a Facebook post, following a post Thorvik posted on his social media.

Thorvik reportedly posted a photo on Facebook and Instagram with the text:

“All Norwegian newspaper readers know that I did a hilarious SHMELL in the Klassekampen on Saturday – and I live surprisingly well with it, even though it stole the whole afternoon from the wedding dinner. Now I have to eat cake. Have a nice weekend!”

It seems that the message and the text that accompanies it made Holt react.

– Anyone can make mistakes, and mistakes should be forgiven, but utter and complete incompetence and lack of the ability to self-criticize is a somewhat different matter, writes Holt.

Dagbladet tries to get in touch with Hannah Bull Thorvik, so far without success.

Anne Holt tells Dagbladet she has no further comments on this.

Asked about an interview

Holt writes in the Facebook post that she saw people expressing “pity and concern” for Thorvik, who interviewed “the other Anne Holt.” The author asks those who feel this to calm down. Because that’s what the reporter does, writes Holt of the reporter’s message.

– That is to say: it takes an overwhelming ease. Shortly after realizing the mistake and presumably receiving a scratch from her editor, she sent me the following message, writes further to Holt and inserts an excerpt from what is supposed to have been a text message to Holt from Thorvik .

Thorvik reportedly requested an interview with the real Holt and justified her response by saying that she thought “readers would appreciate an interview with the real Anne Holt”.

Rundlurte Media-Norway

– A teacher

Klassekampen editor-in-chief Mari Skurdal comments on the statements to Dagbladet:

– They are not very humble in a situation where the newspaper screwed up, says Skurdal to Dagbladet.

The editor says she was made aware of Thorvik’s posts on Saturday and that they should be removed from Instagram.

– Are they deleted because Klassekampen asked them to?

– It was a recommendation from Klassekampen, but I think she realized it too, but obviously too late, says Skurdal.

– It was unprofessional to post something like that. It could have exploded after we fixed it, but now there will be another little trick. Everyone should have been aware of that.

Skurdal says Thorvik is at work today and they will follow up the matter further.

– It’s a bit embarrassing, after talking to all the media, that there’s another round now, but that’s how it went this time, Skurdal said.

On the other hand, Skurdal also understands that Thorvik wanted to express himself.

– She needed to show that she was not completely on her knees after receiving many messages about how she was doing. She sat down at her brother’s wedding dinner and tried to be a bit cool and upbeat saying everything was fine, in a cool way. In a very humble way. It’s unprofessional in a situation like this, and I don’t think she thought it would come out in public, Skurdal says.

– It was unprofessional and not very humble, but there is, after all, something human somewhere in there.

– Fly, jump, smash, kill angry

This isn’t the first time since the interview came out that Holt has taken to Facebook. On Saturday, Holt wrote that she never spoke to Thorvik.

– I have often been angrier than now. But I’ve never, ever been so mad at myself like that. I fly, jump, crush, kill pissed off. Kudos to Mari Skurdal for getting down on her stomach on behalf of her “reporter” and wanting to follow up. He should just be missing, concludes Holt.

Following the publication of the bad Holt’s interview, Klassekampen editor-in-chief Mari Skurdal apologized on Klassekampen’s behalf.

– It’s embarrassing, but we have to fix it to the best of our abilities. We need to get it right and write an appropriate correction in the newspaper on Monday, so no one will believe it was author Anne Holt who spoke to us, Skurdal told Dagbladet on Saturday.

– So this is a reminder for us and other journalists to always make sure you’re talking to the right person.

For the record, Hannah Bull Thorvik was a television and film critic at Dagbladet for a period from 2019 to 2022.

Correction: In an earlier version of this case, it might have appeared that editor-in-chief Mari Skurdal believed the Klassekampen reporter to be incompetent. Skurdal doesn’t think so.

Dagbladet fixes.