A Hungarian TV presenter known for his anti-Semitic and racist remarks has handed back a prestigious state award after an outcry by local journalists and foreign embassies including Israel‘s.
“The [award] is not worth it if it going to damage the country,” Ferenc Szaniszlo said late Wednesday in a special broadcast of his World Panorama programme on the pro-government Echo TV channel.
On March 14 the 53-year-old Szaniszlo was awarded the Mihaly Tancsics prize, one of the highest distinctions for journalists in the country, as part of a state honours list to mark Hungary’s national day.