Miklós Szánthó is the Chairman of the Central European Press and Media Foudation (KESMA), which has a portfolio of nearly 500 media products. The news outlets owned by the foundation were acquired or founded by allies of PM Orbán in the years prior to the establishment of the foundation, and were then donated to the foundation in 2018.
The likes of a media holding of such proportions have not been seen in Hungary since it was a socialist republic, and there is no other example in Europe that even comes close to such a quantity of publications wielded by a single entity.
As to what extent the formation of KESMA is in line with the government’s intentions, it was perhaps most candidly revealed by Zoltán Kovács, Secretary of State for International Communication and Relations, in 2019 at Tusványos when he stated that with the help of a Fidesz media holding they managed to get “nearly 50 percent of the Hungarian press to convey the government’s position.”
Mr. Szánthó has always refused to talk to us in the past, but we didn't give up. And this time, he told us more than ever before.
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The translation of this article was made possible by our cooperation with the Heinrich Böll Foundation.