Sweden Democrats' Mattias Karlsson admits in SVT that the party's former channel Riks went too far in describing Annie Lööf. The statement follows Center Party leader Anna-Karin Hatt's resignation due to threats and hate. Karlsson also criticizes social media's role in the polarized climate.
Sweden Democrats' MP and foreign affairs committee chair Mattias Karlsson commented in the SVT program 30 Minutes on the party's former media channel Riks' harsh tone toward then-Center Party leader Annie Lööf. Karlsson, one of the party's most influential voices, said: "I don't think it's a reasonable way to talk about political opponents, I don't. If I had any influence over the editorial decisions that day at Riks, I would have thought we should have done differently."
The background is the 2022 criticism when the Sweden Democrats produced over 180 clips about Lööf, calling her "Sharia-Annie" among other things and describing her gaze as a "sociopath stare." Karlsson admitted the party contributed to the harsh tone but said it came from all sides. He noted that Lööf had called the SD "suspected Russian collaborators," "traitors," "fascists," and "racists," leading to an escalation due to strong opinion differences. Karlsson was never involved in Riks' editorial decisions, and the channel is now independent.
The statement is prompted by Anna-Karin Hatt's resignation as Center leader due to threats, hate, and the societal climate, which also influenced Lööf's decision to step down after the 2022 election. Karlsson called Hatt's resignation "surprising" and "sad," saying: "No politician should have to feel that way. That one cannot be active in the service of democracy because threats and hate become too much. It's deplorable." According to political scientist Sandra Håkansson at Uppsala University, threats against politicians have increased since the 2010s, though Karlsson said it was "much, much worse" 20 years ago.
Karlsson pointed to social media as a driving force: "Anonymity brings out the worst in people and people self-radicalize through algorithms." He also criticized the Liberals' announcement of not accepting SD ministers, calling it a "fake alternative." A bourgeois government without the SD would be unrealistic, he argued, with options being a right-wing government including the SD or a left-wing one.
