'They can exile us, but can't silence us': the young YouTubers taking on Orbán

Hungary's ruling party and its allies have seized control of the mainstream media, but the video platform is giving journalists a voice.

- Lili Rutai reports from Budapest

Prime minister Viktor Orbán, whose regime has destroyed the independent media in Hungary.

(Ludovic Marin/Getty)

"We will be here next week," Ádám Nagy signs off during a Friday morning stream watched by more than 100,000 people. His co-host then leans into the microphone to say: "The question is: will you be here?"

This farewell has become a trademark of Jólvanezígy (the title means "it's OK like that"), a daily vlog in which Nagy and his rotating co-hosts discuss current affairs, youth culture and Hungarian politics.

Over the past 15 years, Viktor Orbán's conservative Fidesz government has destroyed Hungary's independent media. State TV and radio is controlled by Fidesz appointees, while independent newspapers have been shut down or bought up by Orbán allies and turned into government mouthpieces.

Now they own nearly all radio and TV stations, and local outlets in rural areas. These well-funded outlets largely repeat the rightwing party's views on migration and the national issues, and operate coordinated smear campaigns against opponents.

In response, YouTube has become a lifeline for independent journalism, with infotainment channels like Jólvanezígy, mixing political news with witty commentary, becoming huge hits. The most popular independent channel, Márton Gulyás's Partizán, reaches as many people online as TV2, a channel sponsored by state funds.

A charismatic 36-year-old with salt-and-pepper hair, Nagy is far from a newcomer to YouTube. In 2014 he started the channel 6lépés ("six steps"), streaming interviews with people across the country on topics such as dating, esports and male clothing, amassing 50,000 followers.

In 2022, he launched Jólvanezígy, his daily news-focused channel, in the wake of the pandemic. "There was a clear need to talk about politics in a digestible, sometimes humorous way," he said.