Disinformation under the guise of democracy : lessons from Hungary

Abstract

Over the past decade, the Hungarian media system has become one of the most frequently cited illustrations of politically controlled, captured media systems. The starting point for this chapter is that the repression of media freedom and the establishment of political control over the media system cannot be understood without the broader constitutional, economic, and social context that has eroded the instruments available to counter attacks on media freedom. The Fidesz government has used unlimited public funds to create a media system that is the perfect vehicle for the spread of state disinformation. State disinformation is of such a scale and effectiveness that the term “firehose of falsehood”, used to describe Russian propaganda, is perfectly applicable. In the last part of this paper, we will present one of the emblematic instruments of this disinformation flood, the institution of the so-called national consultation.