Hungarian state television said on Tuesday its news broadcast was temporarily suspended as the government overhauls public service media to make it “independent and credible”.
State television’s main M1 channel posted the announcement on a black screen, displaying the message: “Public service media cannot lie. We apologise for doing this for many years nonetheless.”
Earlier on Tuesday, local media reported that some state TV and radio editors had been dismissed. Reuters could not immediately verify the reports.
The moves are in line with Prime Minister Peter Magyar’s election promise to overhaul state media and stop what he called “propaganda” under former Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
“Public media is now being revamped, so that it can be independent and credible in the future. News broadcast is temporarily suspended. Please stay with us!” the announcement on M1 read.
