Lars Hedegaard Jensen (born September 19, 1942) is a Danish journalist, historian, author, editor, and prominent free speech activist. He is a noted critic of Islam and multiculturalism and a defender of free speech in Scandinavia. He founded the Danish Free Press Society (Trykkefrihedsselskabet) in 2004 to defend free speech against perceived threats from Islamic ideology and political correctness, serving as its chairman until 2014, and co-founded the International Free Press Society in 2009 to promote global free expression. Hedegaard has been a key figure in the counter-jihad movement, authoring books and articles that challenge multiculturalism and advocate for cultural preservation in Europe, receiving recognition from figures like Robert Spencer for his political activism. His career has been marked by controversy: in 2011, he was convicted under Denmark's hate speech laws for comments made in a private interview alleging widespread child abuse and oppression of women in Islamic cultures; the conviction was upheld on appeal in 2012, resulting in a fine. On February 11, 2013, Hedegaard survived an assassination attempt at his Copenhagen home when a masked man shot at him but missed; the case remains unsolved, and he has lived under police protection since. Despite legal and physical threats, he continues his work through affiliations like the Gatestone Institute, remaining an influential voice in networks opposing radical Islam and immigration policies, often sparking polarized reactions with his writings on the incompatibility of Islamic doctrines with Western values.