Home Seminars Events Media Landscape Newsroom Media News Resources About EJC

Search the website

Media Landscape - Hungary

INTRODUCTION

image

Hungary is a landlocked Central European country with a population of around 10 million. The main language of the country is Hungarian. Culturally, the country is comprised of a colourful mix of majority Hungarians (Magyars) and Roma, Jewish, German, Croat, Serb, Romanian, Slovak, Bulgarian minorities. Under Soviet occupation after World War II, the country was part of the communist bloc until the peaceful, negotiated political transition in 1990. Since the first free elections in 1990, Hungarian democracy has been stable, with all governments serving their full four-year terms and the economy picking up after the restructuration along market principles. Hungary’s accession to the European Union in 2004 confirmed the process of democratisation. At the same time, civil society, like in post communist countries elsewhere, is recognised to be weak. Citizen participation remains relatively low, with average turnout at the last two elections 64.4 percent, and membership in political, professional, and voluntary organisations lower than in the EU.

As in all post-communist countries, the media in Hungary is defined by the heritage of decades of communist rule and the influence of market mechanisms introduced in the country after 1990. The ownership structure of the media was radically transformed from the communist times when all media were state-controlled. The media’s role in society was also reconceptualised according to democratic norms. Yet the historical heritage of the communist regime continues to create points of tension to this day by serving as a reference point in much of the political, economic and ethical debates centred on the media.

Hungary with its population of 10 million is a small market, where the diversity of media cannot be ensured through market mechanisms exclusively. Consequently, the country’s media landscape is characterised by a duality of market principles and different forms of state intervention.


1. WRITTEN PRESS

Newspaper readership remains in the middle tier of European countries. Foreign ownership dominates in the press. Hungary has 10 national and 24 local dailies. All of these newspapers are privately owned, by foreign owners in the majority of cases. Tabloid and magazine segments are growing, quality dailies are in slow decline.

Local newspapers have monopoly positions in the counties, national quality dailies are strongly partisan. According to the Hungarian Publishers’ Association, there are several problems the publishing industry in Hungary is struggling with. The VAT on newspapers and magazines is 15 percent, making it one of the highest in Europe. In terms of circulation, the most popular national newspaper is Metro. Owned by the Swedish Modern Times Group, the Budapest edition of Metro was launched in 1998 with 160,000 copies. Circulation soon went up, and in 2000 the paper went national, having its free copies distributed not only in Budapest but also in major cities across the country. Currently Metro has 340,000 free copies distributed daily in Hungary.

Among political quality dailies, Népszabadság managed to preserve its market leader position among quality dailies with a circulation of just under 160,000 in 2005. The Swiss company Ringier is the majority owner of the paper. The second largest quality daily, Magyar Nemzet, has a circulation of around 73,000. Magyar Nemzet is Hungarian-owned, its editor-in-chief is also the owner of the newspaper.


2. AUDIOVISUAL MEDIA


Television


Hungarians are avid television watchers: 98 percent of Hungarian households have television. According to a 2006 poll, three out of 10 Hungarians claim their lives would not be complete without television. The average time people spend watching television has been growing steadily since the 1990s, and by 2004 people on average spent over 33 hours per week in front of the screen.

Before the collapse of communism, commercial broadcasting did not exist, and the state-controlled Magyar Televízió (MTV - Hungarian Television) enjoyed a monopoly. A decisive step in transforming MTV from a state-controlled monolith to a public service channel was the 1996 Media Law, which opened the way for creating a dual broadcasting system, modelled after Western European traditions. Currently there are three terrestrial television channels: MTV, the public service channel; TV2, whose majority owner is Scandinavian Broadcasting System (SBS); and RTL Klub which is owned by a consortium of CLT, Bertelsmann, Pearson, and the Hungarian national telecom company Magyar Telekom (formerly called Matáv). The two terrestrial commercial channels, RTL Klub and TV2 have come to dominate the television scene since their 1997 launching.

The television market is multi-channel, fragmentation of audiences is occurring. Public broadcaster MTV is threatened by the loss of its audience, bankruptcy and political pressure. The situation of MTV is characterized by recurring threats of bankruptcy and political pressure, as each government so far has treated the channel as an important terrain of extending its political influence. The 2002 modification of the Media Law, which harmonised Hungarian legislation with EU television directives, failed to effect changes in this area because the modifications hardly concerned public service broadcasting.


Radio


The radio scene is similar to that of television. There are three national public service stations (Kossuth, Petőfi, Bartók), and two major national commercial stations, Danubius and Sláger. The owner of Danubius is Advent International, while Sláger’s main owners are the US company Emmis Broadcasting International Broadcasting Corporation and Credit Suisse First Boston Radio Operating BV.

Competition in radio markets is severe. National radios compete for audiences with numerous local stations, ranging from commercial to public service, non-profit and community radios. Age is a characteristic division line in radio audiences, with people under 49 preferring to listen to commercial stations and people over 50 more typically listening to public stations.

The market shares of the two major national commercial radios are about the same, with both Danubius and Sláger listened to by about 25 percent of 15+ audiences. Competition for audiences and advertising revenue among radios can be extremely strong, especially in a crowded market like Budapest where two commercial music radios were forced to close down recently.


3. DIGITAL MEDIA

Digital television is in an experimental phase. It is currently available on one multiplex to customers in Budapest. It is planned to be launched in densely populated areas of Hungary in 2007, and switchover is to be completed by 2012 in sync with EU efforts.

A 2005 government decree outlines broadly the frame of digital switchover, but making the necessary changes in the media law is hindered by political disagreement. The terrestrial commercial television channels are also dragging their feet about digital services. As current market leaders, it would not be in their best interest to switch to digital where smaller channels can better compete with them for viewers. In 2005, TV2 and RTL Klub lobbied the government and the media regulatory authorities successfully for a 5-year renewal of their terrestrial license a year before it expired.


4. NEW MEDIA

Regarding Internet use, the country still ranks below the EU average, gaining the 29th place among 37 European countries in 2005.

Offline media have established online versions. Most of Hungary’s newspapers, weeklies and magazines have online editions, and a selection of Hungarian radios can also be listened to online. In addition to the content of the print editions, newspaper websites also offer services like discussion forums or newspaper archives, but the content of the sites is not significantly different from the print version. There are some exceptions to this trend, however, with e.g. the economic weekly Figyelő launching FigyelőNet, a daily version of the publication that also offers additional news content and services.

Of the Internet-only portals that offer news and other services, two major ones emerged as market leaders within the segment. One is Origo, owned by the former national telecom monopoly Matáv and being the market leader, the other, Index is owned by Hungarian entrepreneurs and enjoys the benefits of having been the first such initiative.


5. NEWS AGENCIES

The oldest, and previously monopoly, national news agency, Magyar Távirati Iroda (MTI) continues to dominate the market of news agencies. It is a state-owned company, managed by a board of trustees which is set up from delegates of the political parties in Parliament.

Other, alternative news agency services continue to be provided by Axel Springer-affiliated Europress photo agency and Havaria Press which was set up by Hungarian journalists and specialises in stories of crime, fire, and accidents. Apart from these, there is also the Roma Press Centre, a small, non-profit news agency dedicated to covering the Roma minority.


6. MEDIA ORGANIZATIONS

The main professional organisation for journalists is MÚOSZ, the national association of journalists. Other, smaller associations were founded as alternatives to MÚOSZ by Catholic journalists (MAKÚSZ) and conservative journalists (MÚK), as well as sports reporters (MSÚSZ).

Newpaper publishers, including proprietors and employers, form the Association of Hungarian Newspaper Publishers (MLE). Online media set up the Association of Hungarian Content Providers (MTE), a body for self-regulation in 2001. The Association of Hungarian Electronic Broadcasters (MEME) incorporates the largest radios and televisions.


7. MEDIA POLICIES

Legal guarantees are in place for the freedom of speech, expression, and the press. Declarations of freedom of the press are included in the Constitution, the 1986 Press Law, and the 1996 Media Law. Freedom of the press includes the freedom to launch media outlets, editorial freedom, and the prohibition of censorship.

Freedom of expression is limited by restrictions on the dissemination of harmful content. Hate speech is regulated in the Penal Code, and the Media Law includes passages about it, thus the National Radio and Television Board (ORTT) can sanction it. In 2005, parliament passed a law on electronic freedom of information, which obliges government bodies and organisations to make relevant information about their work, including the outcomes of legislative and judicial procedures, publicly accessible on the internet.


8. ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEMS

The press and online media do not have separate supervisory organizations. If someone has a complaint against what was published in the press, the person can take the case to court, citing relevant legislation (libel, slander, etc.).

Broadcasting content and ownership in electronic media are regulated by the media law and the main supervisory body overseeing the industry is ORTT. It allocates frequencies and supervises the observation of the media law, including the amount of time taken up by advertising, or the appropriateness of the content of programmes. It also has a commission for dealing with complaints from viewers. The supervisory body has the authority to fine broadcasters, or even to suspend broadcasting.

The members of ORTT are selected from nominees of the parliamentary parties; its president is jointly nominated by the president and the prime minister of Hungary. The Board reports to parliament and its members cannot be called back. The Media Law also imposes restrictions on ownership, but only for audiovisual media, not the press.


9. RECENT MEDIA DEVELOPMENTS

The issue of the independence of public service broadcasting has been a central one in Hungarian media since 1990. Each successive government has applied financial and political pressure on Hungarian Radio and Hungarian Television to secure favourable coverage, which, coupled with weak ethical norms among journalists, has prevented the development of objective, independent news and current affairs programming.

Partisanship is a norm of commercially operated media outlets, the majority of which have clear left- or right-wing profiles. In the absence of a strong, shared professional ethos among journalists, party political news management tends to drive the agendas and interpretations offered in the media. This contributes to the increasingly pervasive sense of deep divisions and splits in Hungarian society along political lines.


10. PRIME SOURCES OF MEDIA INFORMATION

  • http://www.hullamvadasz.hu (in Hungarian) A comprehensive media portal with databases, information, and news concerning the media.
  • http://www.ittk.hu The website of the Information Society and trend Research Institute, this is a good source of reports and analyses on new media developments in Hungary (in English and Hungarian).
  • http://www.emasa.hu (in Hungarian) The online source about Hungarian media for and about journalists, content on this site is produced by MÚOSZ, the national association of journalists.
  • http://www.mediainfo.hu (in Hungarian and English) and http://www.kreativ.hu (in Hungarian) Trade and industry websites for media professionals.
  • http://www.akti.hu/ Website for the Institute for Applied Communication Research, a research body set up to support the work of the radio and television board (ORTT).
  • http://www.mediakutato.hu/ (in Hungarian) Academic journal dedicated to media studies.


11. MEDIA RESOURCES

Newspapers

Audio/Visual Media

Media Institutions

Blogs/Civic Media

Excerpt from EUROPEAN MEDIA GOVERNANCE: THE NATIONAL AND REGIONAL DIMENSIONS, published by Intellect (http://www.intellectbooks.com).

Countries

Comment on Hungary

Have you noticed anything we missed, or do you have any corrections? Please let us know.