On 12 August 2017, a far-right rally — the organisers of which also included neo-Nazi groups – was held in the US city of Charlottesville, Virginia, which resulted in violent incidents between the far-right demonstrators and counter-demonstrators. U.S. President Donald Trump did not expressly condemn the racist extremists, and instead referred to violence from “both […]
Mérték Média Monitor has been analysing the changes in state advertising spending for years. Our regularly published Soft Censorship report reviews the developments of the foregoing year, but it is also important to take a look at the impact of state advertising on the media market situation from a wider angle, as a long-term process. […]
On 13 July 2017, the Budapest Transport Authority (abbreviated as BKK in Hungarian) launched a new system for the online sale of public transportation tickets. Within hours, users had discovered the bugs and security flaws in the system. In our analysis, we wanted to find out whether the online media were helpful in understanding the […]
On 13 June 2017 the National Assembly adopted the Act on the Transparency of Organisations Receiving Foreign Funds. Our analysis seeks to examine whether the online media were helpful in understanding the issue, whether their coverage of the subject served to inform the public and provided a basis for the formation of sound opinions about […]
Between 2010 and 2014, an ‘illiberal state’ was being built in Hungary. In line with prime minister’s announcement on the subject, from 2014 we have been offered a perspective on how an actual, consolidated illiberal democracy operates. Hungary remains part of the European Union (EU), but its actions contradict the fundamental principles of the EU. […]
It isn’t particularly difficult or far-fetched to see the parallels between the government’s respective efforts at shutting down CEU, squeezing NGOs, and eliminating press freedom. Universities, NGOs and free media embody everything that Fidesz hates and fears. By Gábor Polyák A few weeks ago one of my students asked me if the universities would continue […]
This short analysis focuses on the pictures of Viktor Orbán employed in course of the communication via his Facebook account. Especially in the online realm pictures are important means of conveying (nonverbal) messages, signifying a meaning that would be much harder to put in words and thereby (co)-shaping his public image as a political leader […]
The unexpected closing down of Népszabadság in early October caused big media and public attention within Hungary and has ever since led to the publication of numerous articles, interviews and reports in (independent) Hungarian media and animated thousands of people protesting for press freedom. In addition, the sudden end of Hungary´s major opposition news outlet […]
The publisher Mediaworks has suspended the publication of Népszabadság, Hungary’s leading opposition newspaper and highest circulation broadsheet. Though the measure was officially referred to as a suspension, in reality it probably implies that Népszabadság has been shut down for good. It has been rumoured for a long time now that a key friend of the prime minister, […]
Introduction – Crony capitalism and the media market The methods and trends of the state’s interventions in media policy and the media system after 2010 were both a reflection of and a blueprint for the general workings of the government. When the Media Act was adopted, it provided one of the early glimpses into what […]