Journalists resign en masse

BUDAPEST: Dozens of journalists walked out of Hungary’s top independent news site on Friday in protest at the removal of its editor-in-chief, as fears grow of government interference.

Index.hu is Hungary’s most-read news portal and a rare independent voice in a media landscape increasingly controlled by allies of Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

On Wednesday, its editor-in-chief Szabolcs Dull was fired, with management claiming he had leaked internal documents to other media. That prompted three senior editors to resign on Friday, followed by more than 70 journalists -- the overwhelming majority of the newsroom.