Independent Media, Strongmen and Foreign Interference: The Case of Hungary
What does it mean to be independent media amid the rise of authoritarian politicians at home and the dangers of foreign interference from abroad? How can an independent outlet sustain itself financially in its home country amid domestic pressure, and who should it take money and support from? Should independent media deal with foreign states, NGOs, or the EU, and how might that change the nature of the accountability that it seeks to press at home?
András Pethő
András Pethő is co-founder, editor and executive director of Direkt36. Previously, he was a senior editor for leading Hungarian news site Origo before it was transformed into the government’s propaganda outlet.
Thomas Fazi
Thomas Fazi is a writer, journalist and activist. He is the author of The Battle for Europe: How an Elite Hijacked a Continent – and How We Can Take It Back and Reclaiming the State: A Progressive Vision of Sovereignty for a Post-Neoliberal World, co-authored with economist Bill Mitchell.
James Harkin
James Harkin is the director of the Centre for Investigative Journalism. He is a journalist who covers social change and political conflict and whose work appears in Vanity Fair, Harper’s, GQ, The Smithsonian, Prospect and The Guardian.
- 30 October 2026 12.00–13.00