SAS ends cooperation with Innovation Norway after Sommarøy stunt
SAS drops its role in the PR campaign about Sommarøy in Troms. This after Innovation Norway admit to being behind the campaign.
The story of little Sommarøy in Troms that was to become a «timeless zone in the north» has gone around the world. The idea of crushing clocks and forgetting time did, however, not originate at a public meeting organized by a local entrepreneur. In reality, it was State-owned Innovation Norway that is to blame. It spent NOK 500,000 to promote the fake story of the «timeless» islanders, according to NRK.
“It’s regrettable. But initially, we have always understood that this was a genuine and true story from Sommarøy as our point of departure,” Information Manager of SAS Norway, Knut Morten Johansen, tells NRK.
Halts the campaign
He says that the airline has seen the critical comments and heard Innovation Norway strongly regret that it was not announced who was the initiator of the campaign.
“In light of this, we decide to suspend our part of the campaign – in a common understanding with Innovation Norway,” Johansen explains. He adds that SAS had not yet started with what would have been the role of the airline in the campaign.
The Danish newspaper Politiken also decides to conclude this collaboration with Innovation Norway.
 |
|
|
|
|
Regrets Sommarøy stunt
Innovation Norway regrets the Sommarøy stunt.
“We must be an open, transparent and reliable player, and we, therefore, take this matter very seriously. We are now reviewing our routines regarding this type of campaigns,” CEO of Innovation Norway, Håkon Haugli, writes in a press release.
The case of the timeless zone has spread throughout the world. The news that it was fake, has now done the same – to criticism from several parties.
Forbes claims that Norway’s reputation as a model in the fight against fake news is «dismantled», according to NRK, while Russian Sputnik News, which has been accused of spreading fake news several times itself, calls Innovation Norway a «state-controlled marketing agency»
Related articles
Knut Hamsun – the Father of MindFlow
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
