The Power of Media in Conflict: Israel, Palestine, Iran and the Battle for Public Opinion

On Wednesday afternoon at Arendalsuka, Kos & Kaos, in partnership with the Oslo Freedom Forum, filled Bakgården to maximum capacity for an open and analytical conversation about the role the media play in the conflicts of the Middle East.

The conversation was led by Hanne Skartveit, commentator and editor at VG, together with Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, founder of Realign for Palestine and resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, and Alex Vatanka, founding director of the Iran program at the Middle East Institute. Rather than a formal debate, it was a free-flowing exchange between three people who see the region from very different vantage points.

Alex Vatanka spoke about the war with Iran, the lack of a clear strategy, and why expertise, patience and source criticism matter more than ever. Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib challenged the idea of a single “Palestinian narrative”, describing the price he has paid for speaking out against Hamas and how social media and activism have shaped what audiences hear about Gaza. Hanne Skartveit brought the newsroom’s perspective: verifying images in an age of AI, covering places journalists cannot enter, and competing with influencers and bots for public attention.

A recurring thread was how hard it has become to know whom to trust, and how much is lost when complexity gives way to fast, polarized narratives. Still, the panel ended on hope: in Iranian civil society, in new and inconvenient voices from Gaza, and in journalism willing to take its time.

The session closed with a call to the Norwegian media to make more room for lived experiences from across the region – the voices we too rarely hear.