Friday, December 23, 2011

Anger in Hungary over radio station closure

Several thousand gathered in the Hungarian capital Budapest on Thursday to protest what they see as the forced closure of a commercial radio station known for its critical stance towards the government. Sympathizers for the liberal Budapest radio station Klubradio were joined by a group of hunger-striking state media reporters, at a rally outside the headquarters of state-owned Hungarian Radio.

Klubradio lost out this week in a bid to renew its broadcasting licence, in a tender process adjudicated by a regulatory media council set up last year by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s conservative government. Supporters of the station say it was the only liberal political forum on Hungary’s airwaves. The rights to its FM frequency were awarded instead to a previously unknown firm with just 4,250 dollars of registered capital.
(Source : Media Network Weblog)

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