4. Reise zum Ostpol
Gehen oder bleiben? Das Dilemma der Medien- und Kulturszene im heutigen Ungarn
Leave or Stay? The Dilemma of the Media and Culture Scene in Today’s Hungary
Dear n-ost folk, dear friends,
While we are busy dealing with the crisis in the Ucraine and tackling Vladimir Putin’s Realpolitik, Viktor Orbán is tightening his grip on Hungarian society. This week, police have raided the headquarters of various Budapest based NGOs, showing that the prime minister meant business when he proposed Russia as a success model.
More and more Hungarians who have been active in the media and culture scene are facing the classical dilemma: Stay or Leave? The deep economic crisis at Europe’s peripheries and the ongoing cultural wars in Hungary aren’t making things better.
Our 4th Trip to the East Pole will therefore be dedicated to the fate of Hungarian journalists, artists and cultural activists. We want to know what they think about the situation, so we invited two of them to give us their perspective on the dilemma.
Attila Mong used to work as a show host with the Hungarian Public Radio, but his protest against Orbán’s media law back in 2010 led to his being fired. After that, he founded atlatszo.hu, one of the leading web portals for investigative journalism in the country. But last year, Attila decided to move to Berlin and pursue other projects. You can find out more about what he does here:
http://attilamong.weebly.com/a
Lorand Balazs Imre, aka Loci, is a young film-maker who is currently working on a documentary series about the recent date Hungarian emmigration. We will be showing the latest episode of this project called „Stay or Leave“, which takes place in London. Next up is Berlin, which is why Loci moved here to do the research and find his protagonists. You can find out more about about the series here:
http://www.menjekmaradjak.hu/e
Attila and Loci will be sharing their thoughts in an open floor discussion at our usual venue, the Club der polnischen Versager in Berlin Mitte. After the debate there will be some Hungarian style finger food, and we invited the Berlin based music performer Endre Vazul Mándli(http://andyvazul.wix.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
So do save the date in your calendars, and drop by on Saturday, September 27th, at 8pm, for some food for thought, for your stomach and for your ears. Feel free to invite friends and other Eastern Europe buffs, bring them along and spread the word. As Attila and Loci are just learning German these days, we will be hosting the ceremonies in English. Yet the familiar and friendly n-ost atmosphere and the fun are definitely guaranteed. See you soon.
Your board members and organisers,
Annette Streicher and Silviu Mihai