Hungarian Newspaper Faces Backlash For Using Photos Of Women Without Consent

News18

2 days ago

Last Updated:
Hungary's Newspaper asked readers to share photos of women taken in public places like streets and subways in skirts.
A Hungarian newspaper, Metropol, is facing strong criticism after it asked readers to send photos of women's legs seen through shorts and skirts. Their message, 'The shorter, the better," left many upset because their goal ignores women's privacy. This request led to protests outside the newspaper's office soon after multiple pictures were published. People gathered to demand an apology and resignation from the entire editorial team for their offensive campaign. Reportedly, the photos were taken in public places like streets and subways, without women's consent.
As per the local news portal, HVG, the pro-government newspaper shared pictures of several women with the headline, 'The shorter, the better." Below, they mentioned, 'This statement is certainly true for fashion, if not for life span. But in the case of skirts and dresses worn by girls, it is certainly true with the beginning of summer."
Close to 50 to 60 young people gathered outside the Metropol publisher's offices, Mediaworks, to protest against their campaign. They were angry and held signs with strong messages, saying that women should not be treated as objects and that taking photos without permission is not real journalism. Many shouted slogans to share their frustration and made it clear that they 'are not here to please you."
Protestors even created a Facebook page to organise the protest. On that page, one young woman shared her experience of finding her photo in the newspaper without her knowledge. She wrote, 'Today I went to attend a graduation exam and I would not have thought that when I came out, I had entered the Metropol newspaper, without my consent, a photo I had taken of me was secretly used. I find it upsetting that some people are happy to be humiliated and ridiculed by young women, and in addition, this is supported by one of the most popular government party newspapers in the country, and even encourages its readers to illegally take photos of foreign people on the streets."
'I don't think it's up to anyone else what kind of clothes I wear, what clothes I feel complete and happy. I can understand if someone doesn't like my style, everyone has different tastes but no one has the right to share their opinion about it on any public media platforms," the woman added.
Metropol has a history of publishing upsetting content. Earlier, they targeted homeless people by printing a 'beggar map.' Because of this, the National Media and Communications Authority's Media Council fined them in July 2021. The issue later went to court, where Mediaworks, the company behind the newspaper, argued that their content wasn't against the law. But the court disagreed. In the end, the media group lost the case and had to pay a fine.