‘Well-functioning democracy’: Does Norway look closely enough at ‘what goes on behind closed doors’?

For Spotlight, François Picard welcomes Carl Henrik Knutsen, Professor of Political Science at the University of Oslo. For many years, he has studied the fragility and resilience of democratic institutions. The shockwaves caused by the Epstein files have struck a nerve in Norway. One of the Nordic countries regarded as a model of transparency and democratic virtue, Norway is facing a reckoning over informal power networks, diplomatic opacity, and the cost of assuming that “low corruption” equals “no corruption.” From the prominence of figures like Terje Rød-Larsen to the surprising involvement of royalty, this episode exposes not just individual connections but systemic vulnerabilities.