Zsolt Bayer (born 26 February 1963) is a Hungarian far-right and ultra-conservative journalist, whose views have been widely described as racist and

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

. He was a co-founder of the ruling

Fidesz Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; hu, Fidesz – Magyar Polgári Szövetség) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán. It was formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young ...

party and close confidant of Prime Minister

Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between 20 ...

. He is the owner of the No. 5 party membership book. Bayer has worked for media outlets such as ''

Magyar Nemzet ''Magyar Nemzet'' ('' en, Hungarian Nation'') is a major Hungarian newspaper published in Hungary, and in 2021 styled itself as "close to the current Hungarian government led by Viktor Orbán." History and profile ''Magyar Nemzet'', a moderate ...

'' and ''

Magyar Hírlap ''Magyar Hírlap'' (meaning ''Hungarian Gazette'' in English) is a former Hungarian daily newspaper that operates exclusively online since July 11, 2022. Owned by conservative entrepreneur Gábor Széles, Magyar Hírlap supports political parti ...

''. In 2016, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit.

Views and incidents

In a 2011 article for ''

'', Bayer referred to Jews as "stinking excrement called something like Cohen". The previous year, he said the Hungarian Academy of Science had been affected by Jewish infiltration. In the Austrian daily ''

Die Presse ''Die Presse'' is a German-language daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vienna, Austria. It is considered a newspaper of record for Austria. History and profile ''Die Presse'' was first printed on 3 July 1848 as a liberal (libertarian)-bourgeoi ...

'', the journalist Karl Pfeifer described Bayer as a "fecal anti-Semite" in an article published during 2011. In 2013, Bayer wrote an opinion piece for ''Magyar Hírlap'' referring to the killings of Marian Cozma and Gergely Sávoly, where

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

were suspected of involvement, and commented that many gypsies are "animals... unfit to live among people" and "potential murderers hoshould not exist." The article generated negative reactions in Hungary and throughout Europe. A Fidesz spokeswoman said that Bayer's views were his own, while Fidesz communications chief

Máté Kocsis Máté Kocsis (born 6 May 1981) is a Hungarian jurist, sports administrator and politician, who served as Mayor of Józsefváros (8th district of Budapest) from 2009 to 2018. He also represents Józsefváros (Budapest Constituency XI then VI) in ...

said critics of Bayer's article were "siding with" Roma murderers. The Hungarian Media Authority fined the journal 250,000 forints and ordered the content removed from the Internet. Bayer said in 2016 that

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

was “either a senile old fool or a scoundrel” for his pro-refugee sentiments. In a November 2020 opinion article in ''

'' titled "Breaking the Taboo", Bayer called black criminals "

nigger In the English language, the word ''nigger'' is an ethnic slur used against black people, especially African Americans. Starting in the late 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been progressively replaced by the euphemism , notably in cases ...

s". The article was later censored by ''Magyar Nemzet''. In December 2020, Bayer said on HírTV that an "old friend and comrade" admitted to him two decades ago that he liked to go to

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

"because young boys were also available", indicating Bayer had knowledge about

sexual abuse of minors Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...

. There is no record showing that Bayer ever reported this to the relevant authorities. In 2022, he promoted pro-Russian views during the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

. He was one of the speakers at the 2022

Conservative Political Action Conference The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC; ) is an annual political conference attended by conservative activists and elected officials from across the United States and beyond. CPAC is hosted by the American Conservative Union (ACU). ...

in Hungary.

Award

In August 2016, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit for his writing by Prime Minister Orbán. By early September, 100 previous recipients of Hungarian state awards, among them president of the

Lantos Foundation Thomas Peter Lantos (born Tamás Péter Lantos; February 1, 1928 – February 11, 2008) was a Holocaust survivor and American politician who served as a U.S. representative from California from 1981 until his death in 2008. A member of the Democr ...

Katrina Swett Yvonne Katrina Swett (née Lantos; born October 8, 1955) is the President of the Lantos Foundation. She is also an American educator and the former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom from 2012 to 2013, and then in 2 ...

, returned them in protest at the decision to honour Bayer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bayer, Zsolt 1963 births Living people Hungarian journalists Right-wing populism in Hungary Fidesz politicians Knight's Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary (civil)