Internet no longer free in Hungary?

Freedom House’s latest report on internet freedom in Hungary shows similar “one-sidedness and methodological shortcomings” seen in recent years, Hungary’s media authority NMHH said on Friday.

The authority said it had carried out an analysis of Freedom House’s Freedom on the Net 2023 report with a view to providing feedback and assisting the objective evaluation of the issues being examined.

It said the report reflected methodological shortcomings and contained inaccuracies. NMHH said Hungary’s unchanged score of 69 of 100 and “partly free” status had once again been based on the evaluation of a single staff member of the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union TASZ, who was also the author of the report on Hungary.

NMHH said that despite the acknowledgments in connection with internet access, net neutrality and opportunities for entry to the telecommunications market, the sources cited in the report were those that were “biased in their criticism” in connection with the state of the media landscape in Hungary. It added that the report presented unsupported subjective opinions while failing to present opposing views.

NMHH also criticised the report for covering events in connection with media diversity that fall outside the period of June 2022-May 2023, such as the temporary closure of the Magyar Nemzet daily in 2018. It said the sources cited were often outdated, such as a 2007 document referenced in connection with internet access among various parts of society.

The report, NMHH added, contained several inaccuracies requiring correction, such as assertions regarding the media authority’s independence.

Read also:

• International reports on Hungary media freedom ‘biased’? – Read more HERE

Government: media must stand its ground in fast-changing world

The media and journalism today have to stand their ground in a fast-changing world, Justice Minister Bence Tuzson said at the third Carpathian Basin Hungarian Media Conference in Visegrad, in northern Hungary, on Friday, adding that this was “an incredible responsibility and task”.

In his speech, Tuzson said it was crucial to be able to distinguish between what is or is not important and what is or is not real and convey it to the audience.

He called for quality communication that reflected reality.

The minister said the aim of the conference was to determine how Hungarians and Hungarian journalists can give the right response to challenges in the fields of the media and the law.

Tuzson said the generational communication gap had perhaps never been as large as it is today.

He said the first time he had been elected MP in 2014 had been to the first parliament that also had a mandate from Hungarians beyond the border. This, he added, presented an obligation to the Hungarian parliament and the government.

“Hungary’s prime minister is no longer prime minister of a country enclosed by borders, but the prime minister of all Hungarians,” Tuzson said. He said this meant that the government had an obligation to implement every measure bearing in mind that it affects all Hungarians.