The Media Capture Epidemic - Hungary

Since returning to power in 2010, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has waged a scorched-earth campaign against his country's independent media, seizing control of most outlets and leaving those that remain cowering on the sidelines. Worse, other autocrats have taken notice.

The Hungarian Media Council’s decision last September not to renew the broadcast license of Klubradio, the country’s last remaining opposition radio station, surprised no one. The council did not bother to offer corroboration for its claims that Klubradio repeatedly violated media laws, nor did anyone expect it to. The episode is merely the latest installment in the Hungarian government’s long-running campaign against independent media.

The effect of such centralization of media ownership and control – not been seen since the pre-1989 communist era – has been profound. Last summer, the editor-in-chief of Index, Hungary’s leading news portal, was fired on obviously political grounds, prompting a mass exodus of journalists who resigned in protest.

Though tackling media capture is an uphill battle, there are at least some partial solutions in sight. One is to reform how public media are funded; however, this is perhaps the most difficult approach, because it targets the central mechanism by which autocrats themselves tend to control the media. Another option is to increase reliance on funding from other donors, be they private foundations, entrepreneurs, or philanthropies – many of which already support independent media. Finally, with their disproportionate influence over the current media ecosystem, today’s tech giants could be pressured to elevate, protect, or otherwise privilege independent journalism on their platforms.Without a firm response, the epidemic of media capture will continue to spread. As long as it does, no country will be safe from the threat. -Marius Dragomir