By Ian Bowen
Imagine a country where the voice of journalists is silenced, government propaganda blares over the airwaves, opposition is squashed by censorship, and a single party dominates the media landscape. No, I am not talking about Oceania or some other dystopian novel. Not the oft-criticized Russian or Chinese states. But the central European nation of Hungary. Hungary is a member of the EU, a NATO nation, and yet for the past decade or so Prime Minister Victor Orbán has steered the country dangerously away from democracy. Orbán is condemned by many for his human rights record, populist messaging, homophobic policies and more, but one of his most important abuses has been his attack on the free press in Hungary. Victor Orbán’s manipulation of information and his party’s domination of the media threatens Hungary’s very democracy.
Orbán exercises power over the independent press to maintain his chokehold on the Hungarian people. His rich allies have bought large stakes in independent media sites to transform them into pro-government mouthpieces for the Prime Minister. In one example four years ago, Miklos Vaszily bought a 50% stake in a company controlling Index(a large independent news site), and although he claimed he would not have any influence on the content, within a few months, 70 journalists quit en masse after the editor was sacked. The journalists said the sacking was “clear interference” in an attempt to get Index to toe the pro-government line. Orbán also uses his own sites to spread disinformation, with thinly-veiled propaganda websites pretending to be real news sites. One of these websites, Remix News, claims to offer “news and commentary from Central Europe,” but in reality just trumpets pro-government stories. The problem is exacerbated, because Remix News is often linked to in posts from the Facebook account of the Hungarian State.
Prime Minister Victor Orbán also passes laws to mold the media into his own political force. Just last December, a bill was pushed through the Hungarian parliament that creates a “Sovereignty Protection Office”. This body will investigate advocacy activities, organizations that use foreign funds to influence voters, and activities aimed at influencing democratic debate. While some in the government claim it is meant to stop Hungarian politicians from receiving foreign funds, others see a dangerously authoritarian tool. The wording of the bill is vague and its broadness make many fear the Sovereignty Protection Office will be used to target journalists who step out of line by those in power. This law has already been condemned by Amnesty International, the International Press Institute, the EU Commissioner for Human Rights, and the US State Department.
In Hungary, there is also legislation in place outlawing any political advertising on television. This applies to all parties, but Orbán is able to get around it with his ‘public service announcements’ that regularly appear on Hungarian Public TV with messages promoting Orbán and his agenda. Opposition parties in Hungary have important ideas that they want to share with the people, but most will never hear their message because of Orbán’s chokehold on the media. Peter Marki-Zay is the leader of a broad opposition coalition, and was Orbán’s main opponent for Prime Minister in the 2022 general election. Yet, Marki-Zay was given just one appearance on Hungary’s largest public television station. And it was for only five minutes, at 8AM on a Wednesday, three weeks before the election.
Victor Orbán is clearly a threat to democracy, and yet Hungary’s unique predicament is largely unknown. In the US, Orbán is known by many Republicans for his strong right-wing policies and many of them actually look at Hungary as a success to be emulated here at home. Some conservative leaders welcome Orbán, and Former President Trump met with and praised the Hungarian Prime Minister this past March. These actions are not politically savvy. They are ignorant and dangerous. Just because Orbán represents a similar side of the left-right political spectrum, does not mean you should support him. Much of what he has done goes against the very ‘freedom havin’, ‘democracy lovin’ ideals that this country was born from and that is more important than any party ideology.
Let me leave you with this. In a world where information is one of the most valuable quantities available, the free press is the cornerstone of any functioning democracy. Yet through Hungary, we are painfully reminded that attacks on these institutions are a constant threat. We need to remain vigilant in defense of the democratic values we all share, lest they start slipping away as quickly as they are under Orbán. If we do not have the freedom to speak our mind, even when it’s unpopular; If we do not have the freedom to know the truth, even when it's inconvenient for some; If we do not have the freedom to protest injustice, even when it challenges our leaders; well then, my friends, we are not free at all.