Hungarian newspaper announces death of free press

Mon, 03 Jan 2011

Budapest - A leading Hungarian newspaper announced the death of the free press on Monday in protest at new media laws which came into force in the country on New Year's Day.

"The freedom of the press in Hungary comes to an end" was the message carried on the front page of Nepszabadsag, Hungary's largest circulation broadsheet.

The headline was printed in all 23 official languages of the European Union, on the first day of official business of Hungary's six-month stint at the helm of the union's rotating presidency.

Criticism abroad of the new media regulations has overshadowed Hungary's assumption of the role.

The left-liberal Nepszabadsag was joined by the left-wing daily Nepszava, which ran a blank front page for a second time in protest over the legislation passed in December by Prime Minister Viktor Orban's conservative government.

Under the new law, a new Media Council has the power to rule on whether not only broadcasters, but also print media and websites, have breached rules on "balanced" and "moral" reporting, among other things.

Opponents of the new legislation are concerned that the chair and all members of the regulatory body, appointed for nine years, were nominees of the governing Fidesz party.

Critics also fear that the imprecise wording of the legislation leaves much room for interpretation and opens up the possibility of using the law to gag publications, particularly through the threat of heavy fines.

Several European Union member states have joined numerous international, non-governmental organizations in expressing serious concerns over the media law.

Prime Minister Orban and Fidesz, which commands a two-thirds majority in Hungary's national assembly, have dismissed suggestions of authoritarianism.

Government spokeswoman Anna Nagy said on New Year's Eve that international concerns over the new legislation are merely the results of a "misunderstanding" that will be cleared up over the course of Hungary's presidency.

The European Commission and its president Jose Manuel Barroso are due in Budapest on Friday for initial discussions with the government over Hungary's presidency.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/360506,announces-death-free-press.html.