Hungarian public broadcaster M1 resumes news via ticker after July shutdown

On July 7, Hungary’s state‑run television channel M1 halted its news programming, replacing the broadcast with a scrolling apology stating that public media “cannot lie” and pledging an overhaul to become independent. The same message appeared on the channel’s website and on the Kossuth Radio service, while the channel aired only music and classic Hungarian films.

The shutdown coincided with the dismissal of the channel’s director and other senior staff, and an estimated 60 employees faced job loss. A partial news service returned on the evening of July 8 at 19:56 – a symbolic reference to the 1956 anti‑Communist uprising – with headlines displayed in a text ticker at the bottom of the screen during film broadcasts. The interim leadership, appointed by the MTVA board, introduced a new news‑strip format and announced further steps toward a fully independent public media system.