In Hungary, allies of Viktor Orban buy the country’s main tabloid as elections approach

The Prime Minister’s camp now holds more than 80% of the media landscape.

Viktor Orban’s offensive against the media continues. The Hungarian Prime Minister, trailing the opposition in the polls, is strengthening his hold on the press, five months before the legislative elections, scheduled for April 2026. The sovereignist leader has already decapitated the public broadcasting sector to bring it into line and taken control of nearly 500 private media. And one of his followers has just acquired the largest Hungarian daily, Blikk, which belonged to the Swiss group Ringier. A newspaper widely read in the country for its coverage of current events and for its reports on the corruption of the ruling clan.

By buying Hungary’s most popular newspaper, Viktor Orban’s camp is adding a piece of choice to its empire. “Glance is read each month by three million Internet users. Buying Blikk allows you to reach millions of Hungarians, in a country of 10 million inhabitants!” notes journalist Véronika Munk.

She has a feeling of déjà vu. Five years ago, the online newspaper Index for which she worked, a media critical of the government, was bought by a pro-Orban businessman. From Hint is no longer the same newspaper. “What is striking is what is missing! There are no longer any investigative articles or in-depth analyzes on corruption”underlines the journalist.

Viktor Orban’s media empire mainly distributes propaganda. Very pro-Russian propaganda, as described by Gabor Polyak, professor at the University of Budapest: “The pro-government media keeps repeating that Ukrainian politicians are corrupt, that they forcefully conscript people into the army… As if the villain of the story was Ukraine!”

Viktor Orban’s camp now holds more than 80% of the media landscape, a unique situation in Europe.