Mircea Dinescu

One of the most prominent dissidents in Easter Europe, Mircea Dinescu was born in Slobozia, Romania, where he studied journalism and began his career as a poet.  His work is known to be highly controversial and has been censored on many occasions, including the rejection of his book Moartea citeşte ziarul by the Communist regime in 1988.

Dinescu played an active role in the Romanian Revolution of 1989, and he was fired from România Literară for his position against Ceauşescu. After the fall of Communism he co-founded a Romanian satirical magazine called Academia Catavencu, followed by Plai cu Boi (Land of the Dumb, a satirical Playboy-style magazine), and Aspirina Săracului  (The Poor Man's Aspirin, a weekly satire magazine).

Dinescu remains one of the most vocal critics of Communism and most recently has founded the Romanian newspaper Gândul (The Thought) and hosted a talk show on the Romanian news television network Realitatea TV. In 2003, he was named one of TIMEeurope’s Heroes of Europe.