Zoltan Fekete-Szaloky, Editor-in-Chief of the pro-government portal Index, has resigned – Hungarian media reported. The decision was announced after the portal published an apology and correction on Sunday regarding a false article that appeared before the parliamentary elections.
The article, published on 26 November last year, claimed that Peter Magyar’s Tisza party had prepared a several-hundred-page economic plan that included radical tax increases, a significant expansion of the state’s role, and strengthened redistribution. Index presented these claims as facts, citing alleged documents.
On Sunday, Index admitted that the publication was untrue. The matter was resolved by the Metropolitan Court in Budapest, which ruled that Tisza had no connection to the hundreds of pages of materials presented by the Index editorial team. The court ordered the portal to publish a correction and pay 500,000 forints (approx. €1,370) in legal costs.
Peter Magyar Demands Full Apology
Peter Magyar, leader of the Tisza party and Hungary’s Prime Minister-designate, sharply criticized the way Index published the correction. He noted that it was placed in small print at the bottom of the page, while the original false claims had been prominently featured for many days on the homepage.
“I expect a real correction. In the right place: on the front page. For several days,” wrote the future Hungarian Prime Minister.
Leadership Change at the Portal
The duties of Editor-in-Chief will now be taken over by the current deputy, Norbert Gedei, who served as Editor-in-Chief of the tabloid Blikk from 2016 to 2021. In the portal’s statement, it was emphasized that Zoltan Fekete-Szaloky had played a key role in Index’s editorial activities and development for over six years.
The case of the false article has become one of the symbols of the uneven information battle during the Hungarian election campaign. Peter Magyar’s Tisza party won the elections, and Magyar will soon take office as Prime Minister.
The Index portal, once regarded as one of Hungary’s most credible news outlets, has in recent years been accused of growing ties to Viktor Orbán’s ruling camp.
