Erstellt am: 14. 3. 2012 - 15:33 Uhr

Rick's revival and Mitt's underwear

Reality Check: Republican race, corruption in Hungary, Manfred Nowak on tracking down torture, the future of news, Turkish journalist released.

I read a Twitter comment this morning that said something like "I thought Sarah Palin was bad, but then came Rick Santorum". But, however far to the right he may be, he's still won the hearts and votes of enough Republicans in Alabama and Mississippi to win the caucuses in those two states. While his views may look outlandish and unpaletable to the majority of Europeans, his message is resonating in the so called "Bible belt".

His victories in these two states nevertheless came as a surprise. What was even more of a surprise, was that Mitt Romney was beaten into third place with Newt Gingrich coming in second. Romney had been hoping to take at least one of these two states. The result is now leading to speculation that were either of the two far right candidates to drop out of the race, the consolidation of the far right vote might present a serious problem for the Romney campaign.

On a lighter note, I learned at our editorial meeting this morning that many Mormons wear special underwear. This set off considerable mirth, not, I hasten to add, out of any disrespect to Mormons, but simply because nearly all Brits (who form the majority of the Reality Check team) find any sort of underwear hilarious. It's one of those cultural things. Anyway, being a journalist of integrity, who meticulously checks the facts, I had to go and cross reference this, and it is, indeed, true.

Tresa Edmunds seems to think this is common knowledge - so perhaps I have just had a sheltered life. The question now is, will the magic underwear protect Mitt Romney from attack from the conservative protestant right?

Priscilla Huff gives us her analysis of the current state of the Republican race.

Corruption in Hungary

Transparency International says that Hungary is losing the battle against corruption, and it's weakening the country's economy and political credibility. Noeli Alexa of Transparency International in Budapest tells Steve Crilley about the problems and their impact on Hungarian life.

Folter: Die Alltäglichkeit des Unfassbaren

The former Special Rapporteur on Torture at the United Nations, Manfred Nowak, has just published a book recounting his work for the UN entitled "Folter: Die Alltäglichkeit des Unfassbaren".

He talks to Riem Higazi about his work and the methodology he employed, and explains why there were some places he refused to go.

The future of newspapers

Print is on the way out in the digital age, but that doesn't mean no more quality news - in fact more high quality information is available now than ever before. Ken Doctor, the author of "Newsonomics" describes his vision of the future of news to Chris Cummins.

Turkish journalist released

Nedim Sener, the controversial Turkish journalist imprisoned for alleged conspiracy, has just been released from an Istanbul jail. Steven Ellis of the International Press Institute tells Riem Higazi about the case and the next steps.

FM4 Reality Check

Monday to Friday from 12.00 to 14.00, and after the show via Podcast or fm4.orf.at/realitycheck.