Norway's state broadcast NRK's December 16 episode of "24-Stjerners Julekalender" ("24-Star Christmas Calendar") featured a game where contestants were challenged to find the potato, prompting the show's host to proclaim that the game was "just like Ireland in 1845, last one to the potato loses."
Eddie Whyte, an Irishman living in Norway, tweeted at the broadcaster after the clip aired to express his outrage, saying that the NRK should regret "joking" about the Irish Famine and pondered if a joke about the Holocaust would be next.
NRK responded to Whyte's tweet saying: "To hear that people got offended by the remarks regarding the great famine of 1845, it was not our intention.
"At the time, we did not react to it, as it pointed to a tragedy which happened so long ago, but we can understand that the matter is perceived quite differently by others.
"We appreciate this being brought to our attention, and for helping us understand the depth of this trauma and how it affects people around the world to this day."
In response, Whyte said there are "no time limits for respecting other people's sufferings."
Vi beklager hvis noen føler seg støtt, det var ikke hensikten. Ettersom kommentaren henspiller på en tragedie som utspilte seg for 180 år siden reagerte ikke vi på utsagnet, men vi har forståelse for at andre kan se det annerledes.
— NRK (@NRKno) December 20, 2022
//Stian, publikumsservice.
Whyte said NRK's response was a "half-apology" and that he's issued a formal complaint which is set to be considered in January.
It is a half-apology and we expect more from the national TV station @nrk_no The complaint to the Broadcasting Authority will be upheld and considered at the first meeting on January 26th https://t.co/7InZYby9QK
— Eddie Whyte (@eddiewhyte) December 23, 2022
Whyte, who is originally from Belfast, has lived in Norway for decades and currently works as a policy adviser for a local government in Sandefjord, located roughly 120km south of Oslo.
He told the Irish Times that "24-Stjerners Julekalender" is probably Norway's most popular Christmas show and said he has also contacted the Norwegian broadcasting authority and the Irish embassy in Norway about the issue.
Whyte said he has also spoken to other Irish people living in Norway about the issue, adding that "a lot of people are outraged by it".
He said someone has suggested an "educational film" explaining the causes and consequences of the Irish Famine.
"I thought that was a good idea because people do need knowledge," Whyte told the Irish Times.
"It’s a part of our history that is very often misrepresented and I don’t want that happening in the country that I have made home, where my children have grown up.
"I want them [NRK] to understand better the people who live here who come from other nations."
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