Danish journalism award cancelled after rape allegations

The Danish Victor Prize, awarded by the tabloid Ekstra Bladet, is suspended following rape allegations against former editor-in-chief Victor Andreasen. The prize is usually awarded annually to journalists who have worked in a “bold and anarchistic spirit”.

The prize is named after Victor Andreasen, who was editor-in-chief of the newspaper from 1963 to 1976. It is awarded to journalists, activists and writers with a “bold and anarchistic spirit”. Andreasen died in 2000.

Andreasen was previously married to Danish author Tove Ditlevsen, whose granddaughter Lise Munk Thygesen recently published a book accusing the former editor-in-chief of rape. Thygesen claims the rapes were committed against Andreasen’s then-stepdaughter, Thygesen’s mother.

Ekstra Bladet has now decided to withdraw the award because of the allegations, according to the Danish Journalists’ Association magaine Journalisten.

– There is nothing easy about this decision, and it raises a number of questions. It is extremely difficult, but when you add up the amount of information with this new data, I think it is difficult to ignore the things that have emerged. That is why we have decided to stop the award, Ekstra Bladet’s editor-in-chief Knud Brix told the newspaper.

However, they are not in the process of “toppling statues,” as Brix puts it, but point out that despite the allegations, Andreason was an important person in Danish press history and for Ekstra Bladet.

– To put it bluntly, he saved the paper when it was under pressure, and he was the godfather of modern tabloid journalism, says Brix.

The tabloid plans to create a new prize that will not be named after a person.