Egy élclapszerkesztő a vádlottak padján
The Editor of a Satirical Magazine on Trial

Summary/Abstract: Out of the several satirical magazines of the era across the political spectrum only the extreme-left, pro-independence Ludas Matyi had been the subject of two consecutive libel suits. Present study aims to examine in what way the editor of the magazine crossed the line, what caught the attention of the press office of the Prime Minister’s Office and resulted in a lawsuit. Besides documentation concerning libel suits contents of the magazine are also showcased, and the specifics of the lawsuits against Ludas Matyi are compared to libel suits against satirical magazines before the Austro-Hungarian Compromise. In the first suit the editor, Károly Mészáros was charged with offenses against religious ethics, and the jurors decided on a significant penalty. The author of the fictive letter resulting in the second lawsuit accused the Ministry of War of financial abuses. The editor was given an even harsher penalty this time. On a third occasion the charge was breach of peace, once again due to the concerns of the Imperial and Royal Minister of War. One of the two poems in question reviled the imperial flag, while the other praised Lajos Kossuth. However, the prosecutor did not find the charges to be substantiated and advised against filing a libel suit. It can be seen in all three cases that the lawsuits were not necessarily initiated by the Hungarian government: it is likely that the first accusation was made by religious actors, while the other two lawsuits were initiated by the Minister of War, therefore these were not domestic political in nature, unlike the libel suits before the Compromise.

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