Beatrix Siklósi, chief cultural adviser to the head of Hungary’s public media management body, the MTVA, sparked controversy this week after Hungary’s top economic weekly HVG published a screen shot of Siklósi’s Facebook page, which contained an anti-Roma joke, a post honoring Hungary’s interwar leader responsible for mass deportations of Hungarian Jews, and articles from Hungary’s far-right […]
Archive of posts tagged public media
MTVA chief discusses layoffs, censorship charges
The top manager of Hungary’s public media discussed staff cuts and charges of state censorship in an interview in pro-government newspaper Heti Válasz. István Böröcz, the CEO of the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), said that staff restructuring would be completed by the fall of 2013. As many as 900 public media workers […]
Trade union leaders are also on the public media layoff list
Ten trade union leaders are reportedly on the list of employees to be fired from the public media under the plans of the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), which manages Hungary’s public media. András Lázár, the president of the Unified Media Trade Union criticized the plan, saying it is “far from the style […]
Latest public media layoffs capped at 195
The latest round of layoffs from the public media will be no higher than 195 workers, and the aid fund for those who are dismissed will increase to HUF 31.6 million, under an agreement between the body managing public media and its workers, according to reports.
Amid staff layoffs, public media turns to government-linked private production firms
Outgoing editorial staff of Hungary’s public media say that management is outsourcing production to external contractors to compensate for the lack of internal staff, according to Vasárnapi Hírek. Hungary’s public media management company, the MTVA, has laid off around 1,000 public media staff since 2011, claiming the cuts are necessary to trim bloated budget costs. The paper […]
Top writer claims censorship by public radio
Hungarian writer Peter Esterházy has claimed that public radio station Kossuth Radio censored his monthly arts review to exclude comments encouraging listeners to attend the final productions by National Theater director Róbert Alföldi. The director’s provocative presentations, which have earned him international acclaim, have riled conservatives in Hungary’s center-right Fidesz party since his appointment to head […]
Strikes considered as MTVA plans more public-media layoffs
Public media staff are considering a strike by early January after the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), the body that manages state-owned media, fails to reach an agreement with unions over coming layoffs, according to reports.
New CEO appointed at MTI news agency
István Galambos was appointed the CEO of the Hungarian-owned news agency MTI, and will take over the position on January 1, 2013, according to a December 12 announcement by the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), the body responsible for managing Hungary’s public media.
Demonstration outside MTVA building marks a year
Protest organizer Balázs Nagy Navarro and his fellow demonstrators marked a year of protest outside the headquarters of the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA) at Kunigunda útja in Buda.
Danko Radio to help replace lost regional radio programs
After shutting down its regional production studios, the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), the body in charge of managing public media, has announced an effort to replace the programs with a new radio station, called Danko Radio, which broadcasts to the residents of the Hungarian countryside. The new station, which is to begin […]
Magyar Nemzet urges stronger reaction against anti-Semitism
An article in pro-government daily Magyar Nemzet condemned conservative politicians for not reacting more vehemently against an anti-Semitic speech by a Jobbik MP calling for a list of of Hungarian citizens of Jewish origin—especially of those who sit in Parliament—because they pose a threat to national security.
MTVA refuses to reveal new funding needs
The Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA), the body that manages Hungary’s public media, refused to tell members of Parliament why the amount it would borrow from a consortium of banks was increased from HUF 40 billion to HUF 63 billion, according to reports.
Court: MTVA must disclose spending on cancelled TV series
A Metropolitan Court in Budapest ordered the Media Services and Asset Management Fund (MTVA) to disclose how much it paid for the failed TV series “Marslakók” (“Martians”) after the watchdog group Atlatszo.hu brought the case to court on the basis of the freedom-of-information law.
