“This Is Open Intimidation of Journalists”: Expert Weighs In on the Removal of Gulyás István From Public Media

“This is open intimidation of journalists!” The headline captures the alarm surrounding the removal of István Gulyás from Hungary’s public media, a case that analyst László Dornfeld described as evidence of arbitrary control.

Speaking about a claim made by a Fidesz politician, Dornfeld said anything could happen in a system where the prime minister can effectively dismiss people through a comment. He portrayed the public broadcaster as a place where the prime minister holds decisive power and where the system’s direction depends on his mood.

Dornfeld also offered a sharply sarcastic description of the broadcaster’s approach to free speech: “Now the real age of freedom of speech has arrived in public media. Everyone can speak freely as long as their opinion matches the prime minister’s. The trouble is that even the prime minister himself does not know what his opinion will be that day.”

The program “Ez itt a kérdés…” had featured guests from different ideological backgrounds, including LMP founder András Schiffer, former SZDSZ leader Gábor Fodor, former liberal politician István Szent-Iványi and former Socialist politician Gyula Hegyi. Its discussions covered foreign policy, vaccine controversies, international arms development and Germany’s domestic politics. The final episode discussed reports that the Kremlin was preparing to escalate the war and that the CIA director may have traveled to Moscow to dissuade Vladimir Putin from a possible attack on a NATO member.

The article presents Gulyás’s case as part of a broader pattern. After András P. Horváth was appointed to lead MTVA, dozens of employees had their work suspended. Among them was award-winning M1 reporter Attila Császár, who was escorted out by security guards after completing the midday news. He received a document saying he was exempt from work until July 19, without an explanation, and would later be informed about what followed. Other suspended staff included Katalin Nagy, editor of the Kossuth Radio program “Good Morning, Hungary!”, and television news presenters Csaba Radnai, Balázs Imre and Boglárka Meszes.

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Now the real age of freedom of speech has arrived in public media. Everyone can speak freely as long as their opinion matches the prime minister’s. The trouble is that even the prime minister himself does not know what his opinion will be that day.