Budapest, Hungary—UPF-Hungary honored the 40 years of The Washington Times while exploring the topic of “Ethical Media.”
The principles that led the UPF co-founders to establish the daily newspaper in Washington, D.C., in 1982 inspired UPF-Hungary not only to commemorate the newspaper's founding but also to discuss the moral challenges that the media face in the 21st century.
The “mini-conference” of December 3, 2022, was held at the Peace Embassy with the support of the Hungarian chapters of Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP) and Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU), two affiliated organizations.
The conference had 35 participants, seven of whom were Ambassadors for Peace (including four from the media). The Ambassadors for Peace were delighted to be invited to lead a panel discussion on the topics that were closest to their work.
We'd like to thank Thomas McDevitt, the chairman of The Washington Times, and his staff for their support and encouragement in organizing this mini-conference in addition to their many tasks.
The program began with a presentation titled "The Voice of Heaven," in which Marek Skrodzki, a former vice president of UPF-Hungary, highlighted the reasons behind the founding of the newspaper.
In a recorded message, Thomas McDevitt spoke about the mission of The Washington Times. The Ambassadors for Peace were very touched to be greeted by the chair of the newspaper and liked the very professional presentation. In the past some of them even had the chance to visit the newspaper’s editorial offices.
The main speakers included many personal experiences in their talks. Zoltán Dézsy, a film director as well as a journalist, spoke about the role and difficulties of factual journalism; Dr. Gábor Rékai, a longtime radio host and producer, discussed the professional challenges of scientific reporting; and Júlianna Szabados, the editor-in-chief of the Public Economic Chronicle, described her own experiences with balanced journalism. All of them expressed their appreciation of the UPF co-founders’ wisdom and vision.
After the break, three young musicians from the Krónikás Zenede music school (founded by Ambassador for Peace Kamilla Dévay Nagy) gave an excellent performance of Christmas songs.
As part of the conference, there was a commemoration for several Ambassadors for Peace who passed away in recent years: Alajos Chrudinák, András Sugár and Ernő Gábor Ormándlaky. All of them were key figures in the Hungarian media during the regime change.
Next, UPF-Hungary President Erzsébet Tomka Sturmné moderated an interactive discussion of how the media portray the family and how this affects young people. At the end of the discussion she asked the media representatives to support young people by producing empowering newspaper articles and programs on the theme of the family.
We bid farewell to the participants with excerpts from a message that Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon delivered in Tokyo in 1984. All the participants received a printed copy of this speech along with the event program.
The mini-conference was a first step to involve Ambassadors for Peace working in the media. They all gave very positive feedback on the event and are keen to continue working with us.