Hungarys public broadcasters suspend news output in apology for pro-Orbán propaganda
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Hungarys public broadcasters suspend news output in apology for pro-Orbán propaganda
Hungarian public media suspends news with apology for past propaganda
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Hungary’s public broadcasters suspended all news output on Tuesday afternoon, replacing scheduled programming with a black screen and a public apology for years of pro-government propaganda under former prime minister Viktor Orbán. Prime Minister Péter Magyar hailed the move as “a historic day” and said it marked the end of state propaganda on public-service platforms.
The blackout began shortly after Magyar’s government installed interim managers at MTVA, Hungary’s state media group, and dismissed senior staff accused of bias toward Orbán’s Fidesz party. M1, the flagship news channel, displayed a scrolling message in Hungarian and English: “Public media cannot lie. We are sorry we did it for so long.” The apology also stated that the outlets were being transformed to become independent and credible. Radio Kossuth followed suit, replacing news bulletins with cultural programming.
Magyar, who took office in May after his Tisza party won a parliamentary majority in April’s elections, announced the suspension on Facebook. “Tonight propaganda ends on public-service platforms,” he wrote. “They lied day and night, on every frequency. That is over.” The government said the blackout would last until M1 resumes scheduled programming at 8 p.m. local time, though without news content.
The interim leadership named by the government includes Zsófia Mészáros as director of online news services, Balázs Bodacz as head of news production, and György Kerényi as head of Hungarian Radio. Their mandate is to review MTVA’s operations, purge pro-Orbán personnel, and draft a new media law to be submitted this autumn. The law is expected to abolish the controversial Media Council, a Fidesz-appointed body that critics say enabled state control over private outlets.
During Orbán’s 16 years in power, public broadcasters functioned as government mouthpieces. Independent reporting on Magyar’s campaign was effectively blocked; M1 did not invite him to any programmes despite his party’s rising poll numbers. The 2011 “gag law” further tightened state control by creating the Media Council, whose members were loyal to Fidesz. The council’s chair, András Koltay, was dismissed five days ago.
International press freedom monitors had long criticised Hungary’s media environment. Reporters Without Borders ranked Hungary 85th out of 180 countries in its 2025 World Press Freedom Index, citing legal harassment, ownership concentration, and the use of advertising boycotts against critical outlets. The European Commission has repeatedly warned Budapest over breaches of EU media pluralism standards.
Magyar’s government has framed the broadcaster shutdown as the first step toward restoring trust. “We are cleaning house,” a government spokesperson told AFP. Opposition parties, however, accuse the prime minister of politicising the public sector and warned that the interim managers lack safeguards against new forms of control. Fidesz has called the move an “authoritarian power grab” and organised protests outside MTVA headquarters.
By evening, M1 had resumed broadcasting classic Hungarian films, with no indication when regular news bulletins would return. The government insists the blackout is temporary and part of a broader reform aimed at depoliticising state media.
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