ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Hungary's Public TV Goes Dark: 'Public Media Should Not Lie'

other · 2026-07-09

Hungary's recently appointed president has halted the operations of public broadcasters that Viktor Orbán had transformed into instruments of propaganda. The primary television channel aired a statement: 'Public media should not lie. We apologize for our prolonged dishonesty.' Meanwhile, in the United States, ABC stood by The View's classification as a news program amid an FCC inquiry. The Onion revived Infowars to provoke Alex Jones. Patrice Lawrence, the newly appointed children's laureate in the UK, remarked: 'We assert that stories are effective — let’s demonstrate their effectiveness.'

Key facts

  • Hungary's new president suspended public broadcasters.
  • Viktor Orbán spent years converting public media into propaganda.
  • Main TV channel showed message: 'Public media should not lie. We are sorry for doing it for so long.'
  • ABC told FCC that The View's standing as a news show is settled law.
  • The Onion reopened Infowars with strategy to bait Alex Jones.
  • Patrice Lawrence is UK's new children's laureate.
  • Patrice Lawrence said: 'We say stories work — let's show how they work.'
  • Aeon article discusses how imperial China's dynasties wrote self-serving official histories.

Entities

Institutions

  • Aeon
  • The Guardian
  • The New York Times
  • Slate
  • N+1
  • ABC
  • FCC
  • Infowars
  • The Onion

Locations

  • Hungary
  • United States
  • UK

Sources