Keeping up with the news in Hungary

One of the main reasons I moved to Hungary was to limit my access to insane world events.
I still however get some news from yahoo.
I tend to think that most media is biased and try to look for alternative sources for updates or just let it all go by without a care.
My husband informs me if there is anything I should know.
I am happy living in my bubble.
In my personal experience, "Ignorance  is bliss" rings true.
Have CNN on our cable here in HU. Never watch it and do not miss it. It was  on repeat mode every hour or so.
The news media is owned by only a few and the only news we hear is what "they "have let us know.
Almost like the old days in Hungary where people had to read between the lines .
This topic will get me into more trouble so enough said. Already I have experienced that my US first amendment rights do not work here.

Priscilla wrote:

browse local newspapers, listen to local radio stations or watch local TV shows.

Unless one speaks Hungarian, there are not really any non-Hungarian options for radio or TV. I use to tune into some central European short wave broadcasts in English, but my radio broke, so have not kept up on those.

Some regional English papers in Budapest et. al, but not really high quality journalism.

Some "external" Internet sites, but mostly appear to be US libertarian (thinking or outright) owned. So have their own bias.

In short, all media here I would say are biased in one direction or another. Difficult to find objective reporting.

Priscilla wrote:

What are the major media in Hungary?

Either nationally owned (24 hours of pro-government reporting), or outlets owned by local oligarchs, or as mentioned above. Most are biased. So not much of a local choice

Priscilla wrote:

Which one do you use on a regular basis?

http://portfolio.hu/en, but only because I am interested in local finance issues.

Priscilla wrote:

How do you keep up with international issues (newspapers, radio, TV, Internet)?

Internet. I find international news more objective. But they miss all the daily details that happen in Hungary that really affect everyone here.

Priscilla wrote:

Thank you in advance!

Of course. Alway happy to give my views.

For international news on tv

CNN is British so everything is in English not as bad as usa cnn

BBC News pretty good although i miss watching Ask the PM funny in FL it came on but here closer to UK it does not

EuroNews pretty good and also in English

Local |Hungarian news is not in English, but then a few days ago there was a totally in English Hungarian News on one of the channels here! Been here 7mos and never noticed that until a few days ago it was one of the lower channels. So that was nice to see!

On the internet i go to same sites i did back in USA, RT News, DW News, Daily Mail, Der Spiegal, Guardian, never went to usa sites as they act like no place on earth exists outside usa and also most usa news is of poor quality and the writing seems to be done by very low paid workers.

Most Hungarian news sites i have read online seem to be very localized and refer to reforms and things that only relate to Huns

I get my news by gossiping with Mrs Fluffy who in turn gets her news from Facebook.

Entertaining if not always correct.

Ok, I'm lying. I also read The Economist.

fluffy2560 wrote:

I get my news by gossiping with Mrs Fluffy who in turn gets her news from Facebook.

Gossip about butter knives is particularly dangerous. Everyone knows how those things spread.....

International news:

I can access radio/tv as I do in the UK, via cable, satellite and internet (VPN).

'Print' media is also available in online versions. A friend subscribes to 'The Guardian Weekly'.

Hungarian News:

The Budapest Times provides summaries and features, and is available in pdf.

There are numerous blogs and Facebook pages. Some, like 'Hungarian Spectrum' provide interesting analysis. 'Hungary Today' is more sympathetic to the current government.

I listen to Radio Kossúth in order to get the gist from a Hungarian perspective, in Hungarian.

I am lazy then, I either just use yahoo news or ask my husband if anything has gone down that I should know of.
Sometimes ignorance is bliss...

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Sometimes ignorance is bliss...

I knew an expat who lived in (I won't say where) and said if he kept informed about local events he was constantly miserable because of all the social injustice, but if he did not read the local papers it was a pretty nice place to live.

Just saying this as a interesting story. Not for me to judge him in either case. I will let others draw their own social conclusions about fight or flight.

klsallee wrote:

... said if he kept informed about local events he was constantly miserable because of all the social injustice, but if he did not read the local papers it was a pretty nice place to live...

I'm with that expat.  Mrs Fluffy filters the nonsense out.  Unfortunately she gets really stressed. 

I've told her not to worry about it but she says, "you're lucky sometimes you don't understand" as obviously she cannot ignore people gossiping in her native tongue in the supermarket queue. 

There's obviously an upside to being a non-speaker.

No news is good news...
My husband also tells me I am lucky to not have to filter through the nonsense.
I get over emotional about social injustice but my feelings have not changed a darn thing in the past 62 years.
I hate to say it but my vote never counted, my feelings never counted and my voice never counted much in changing world events.
All one can do is try and not add to the world's misery but our own personal actions.

fluffy2560 wrote:

Mrs Fluffy filters the nonsense out.

My wife filters nothing to me about local events. But I can always say, "well, let me tell you this story I read about what happened in the USA today".

Sadly, I often "win" on the shaking-your-head-can't-believe-it scale. But then again, I have an edge: there are simply more chances to reach new lows with 300 million people than with just 9 million.

However, I do admit I am struggling to beat some news she told me today.

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

Mrs Fluffy filters the nonsense out.

My wife filters nothing to me about local events. But I can always say, "well, let me tell you this story I read about what happened in the USA today".

Sadly, I often "win" on the shaking-your-head-can't-believe-it scale. But then again, I have an edge: there are simply more chances to reach new lows with 300 million people than with just 9 million.

I dunno, in theory, the filtering should be good enough to make sure special interest is taken care of but not so widely drawn as to eliminate whatever takes your fancy.  In other words remove the background noise.

Google is your "friend" wherever you live as their profiling selections are clearly always correct*.   

With Google filtering, quite clearly you should not be allowed wonder why news about viniculture should include references soul music (i.e. .."I heard it on the grapevine"). Obvious.

klsallee wrote:

However, I do admit I am struggling to beat some news she told me today.

Now, you cannot wave that about and not expect us to ask what the news was?!

*That's a joke by the way.

Now I am very curious about today's news as well!

I use www.hungarianspectrum.org . It is of liberal persuasion and not suitable for supporters of Fidesc or Jobbik.

davidpearce wrote:

I use www.hungarianspectrum.org . It is of liberal persuasion and not suitable for supporters of Fidesc or Jobbik.

I suppose the journalists there will be sending their medals back.

Fidesz/Jobbik reminds me  of the US George Dubya's election.  Shock wasn't that half people voted for the other candidate, it's that half the people actively voted for George Dubya.   

Fast forward to 2016: Trump vs Clinton.  Deja vu.  QED. RSVP.

I know in a country as large as the USA with over 300 million people is Trump and Clinton the best we can do?
Sad, sad,sad...

fluffy2560 wrote:

davidpearce wrote:

I use www.hungarianspectrum.org . It is of liberal persuasion and not suitable for supporters of Fidesc or Jobbik.

I suppose the journalists there will be sending their medals back.

That site is a US based, mostly blog/commentary/analysis site about Hungarian politics, and mostly written by one person. The author does a service by making many issues in Hungary accessible to English speakers, but despite her personal credentials, I for one can not call it an objective source for news. Of course, neither are many other so called "news" outlets, so take that all for what it is worth.

fluffy2560 wrote:

Fidesz/Jobbik reminds me  of the US George Dubya's election.  Shock wasn't that half people voted for the other candidate, it's that half the people actively voted for George Dubya.

Reply found at:

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … =3#3336408

fluffy2560 wrote:

klsallee wrote:

However, I do admit I am struggling to beat some news she told me today.

Now, you cannot wave that about and not expect us to ask what the news was?!

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Now I am very curious about today's news as well!

I looked. I really, really looked. But could not find anything about it in English.

Here is the article in Hungarian:

http://444.hu/2016/08/17/tetotol-talpig … zakertojet

If you can not find a translator, it basically boils down to:

Looks like local coverage of the upcoming elections about refugees in HU.
I am glad I can't vote here, seems confusing one way or the other does anyones vote anywhere every count?
I really don't know, everytime I voted( twice) in the US my guy was never even close to winning.
Again, no news is good news.

That's  not a usable picture for a "most wanted - dead or alive" poster.

I don't see the problem down on the border,  everyone know aliens look like this:



Everyone else is human.

FWIIW: Sorry, I could not get it in English, but my main issue in the article was not about immigrants. It was about a Hungarian government consultant who claims he was abducted by real aliens. Not "non-citizen alien immigrants", but real off planet aliens. And the national government pays this guy for his advise. 

fluffy2560 wrote:

That's  not a usable picture for a "most wanted - dead or alive" poster.

I used a rather famous MEME image. Thought everyone would get it.

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

That's  not a usable picture for a "most wanted - dead or alive" poster.

I used a rather famous MEME image. Thought everyone would get it.

Errr....no....but then again I've got a rotten cold and not on top form today....

However, I Google'd and now I know.  Never noticed him before so not on my radar.

Abducted by space Aliens?
Well, wonder what brand of Palinka that guy is drinking!!
I lived in both New Mexico, not Rosewell but close enough and in Las Vegas, Area 51 not all that far away.
Even brought home some items we bought from Sandia Labs.
I am sure I have been exposed to more rads then a test rat but still so far never saw any space Aliens, plenty of odd, scary people inside some casinos. Come to think of it, they did look a bit grey around the gills, could of been the dim lighting...

For what it is worth:

Hungary media shake-up enters new phase with closure of major leftist daily

klsallee wrote:

For what it is worth:

Hungary media shake-up enters new phase with closure of major leftist daily

Two of Mrs Fluffy's contacts are relatively well known journalists. 

According to the rumour mill, the paper criticised the powers that be over the referendum etc and the owners were threatened. 

Of course, only rumours.

fluffy2560 wrote:

Of course, only rumours.

The paper had registering a fiscal loss for some years now. A more realistic, even if more mundane, "rumor" is that the paper lost its left leaning base because those who are left leaning have given up on Hungary, moved elsewhere in the EU, and thus the paper became no longer fiscally sustainable due to a shrinking reader/advertiser base.

For example, from: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/07/opini … .html?_r=0

But the opposition is deflated; as in Turkey, Russia and Venezuela, there is an overriding resignation that the country will not change, that the best and brightest will continue to flee, seeking a better future.