The European Commission has frozen respective twelve billion euro for Hungary. The NATO line is the same: the Alliance has late made an unprecedented decision to ignore the Hungarian veto. Moreover, (US and W.B.) Orban was suggested to leave NATO voluntarily, which he does not intend to do.
The question is why?
After all, he is in the embrace of Putin and Russia so there is nothing to fear.
How anti-Ukrainian and anti-Western propaganda works in Hungary
Hungarian leader Viktor Orban straight or via friendly companies and foundations controls the vast majority of Hungarian media. any of them have a peculiar position, like Magyar Nemzet, which is called “orban's favourite newspaper”. photograph by Hungarian Prime Minister on Facebook
In May 2022, in the regular forum of the CPAC planet Conservative Union held in Budapest, Orban shared a recipe for the success of his own regime, placing it at 12 points.
The 4th position on this list is the request to have their own media, and the 5th is to exposure opponents utilizing these media.
The Hungarian Prime Minister knows what he is talking about: For the last 13 years, which has continuously ruled Hungary, Orban carefully builds his media empire—a monster that destroys all enemies of his regime.
Often this empire fights fiercely against enemies who are not them, and "heroically" overcomes problems that don't truly be – deliberately inventing them for specified a fight.
Ukraine has now become 1 of the public enemies of the Hungarian government.
Prior to the 2022 parliamentary elections, Orban and his squad had very cleverly re-orientated their run from "sowing" to voters of various social benefits on war topics, or alternatively anti-war and isolationist.
While many another European governments competed that they were competing for who would best aid Ukraine, Budapest chose the other niche. The propaganda device worked full steam to spread and prove the thesis that Hungary should stick with the giving from this war and not advocate on either side.
Perhaps the most shameful thesis promoted by the Orban government is the thesis that providing Ukraine with weapons to defend against Russian aggression will only prolong the war, so it should be stopped and peace talks started immediately.
And the most cynical thing is that Orban calls himself Hungary is the main victim of this war and not Ukraine, of course, arguing that its country and its interests are the most crucial to him.
These and many another Hungarian propaganda may seem absurd, but repeated repeatedly and from all Hungarian sources work. Many people sincerely believe in fictional reality. And even if the government wanted to, it can't just give up.
Undoubtedly, Hungarian propaganda from Viktor Orban's time has already entered the textbooks of political discipline and PR. The question now remains whether Viktor Orbán inactive controls this propaganda or, on the contrary, has become his own hostage.
Main Hungarian myths about Ukraine
Z Ukraine may seem to have been talking a lot about our country for a long time.
Not at all. By 2022, Ukraine had barely been reported in the media at all, with the exception of subjects related to number in Zakarpacie. And generally, in Hungarian society, experts and politicians have no systematic cognition of the largest neighbour.
And the deficiency of cognition creates the best field for myths and manipulation – it is besides about Ukraine. Moreover, both Russia and purely Hungarian political players have contributed to their uprising and incitement.
It is simply a story of an “artificial state” woven allegedly from the historical lands of neighbours and about the “questionable” existence of the Ukrainian people. And the thought that modern Ukraine is simply a fallen state, that it will shortly fall apart and stick only with the “external leadership” of the West, primarily the US. In Hungary, too, you will surely hear a assured message that in Ukraine after the revolution the dignity of national minorities is constantly oppressed due to the fact that nationalists (maybe even Nazis) have come to power, who want to assimilate and make them Ukrainians.
And of course, the favourite Russian communicative is that there is simply a "domestic war" in Ukraine.
Even those who sincerely consider themselves opponents of Russia and Putin frequently believe that in Hungary.
These films combine and cross, are modified and so common that many average Hungarians, as well as representatives of the "elitarian" professions, cannot even presume that this is not true.
This is illustrated by the fresh scandal, erstwhile Ukraine was described as a state in the state of civilian war in the Handbook of Geography to the eighth class, torn between Russia, the United States and the European Union. This was brought to the attention by Hungarian journalists, the authorities promised to change the textbook at the time... but everything remained unchanged.
This communicative is frequently personally supported by Viktor Orban, regularly calling Ukraine "no one's land" , "a non-existent country" and claiming that Ukraine will not be able to win the war .
There are also incredibly cynical false narratives that were intentionally created by the Hungarian authorities already during the full-scale war. For example, among Hungarians there is simply a common opinion that Ukraine, in order to physically destruct the minority, intentionally introduce cultural Hungarians into the armed forces and throw them into the hottest places. The continuation of this cynical lie is the story that In the parking lot in Zakarpacie there are refrigerators with Hungarian bodies due to the fact that there are so many of them that they will not dare immediately decision them to the morgue in Berechov.
And it's not any marginal illusion. These myths are fueled by the highest Hungarian officials, including Orbana and Shijjártó, who occasionally talk of Hungary as victims of the Russian war and request the cessation of the forced conscription of Hungary.
And so that society can believe all lie, including this, in Hungary for many years there has been a sophisticated and multi-level strategy of government propaganda.
How Orban's government created a state propaganda machine
Viktor Orban was not always a master of open manipulation.
In the CPAC revelation referred to at the beginning of the article, conclusions can be drawn from the bitter election failures of his Fidesz organization 20 years ago.
In 2002, "Fidesh" showed an excellent score: he gained over 41% of the vote and the largest faction in parliament – but was incapable to make a majority and lost the position of Prime Minister, which he first received in 1998. Then another defeat, in 2006, besides with over 40% of support.
Hungarian politician blames the media for these 2 failures, among others, due to the fact that according to his version the Hungarian media worked mainly for its competitors.
That's why Fidesz took over the media as shortly as he returned to power in 2010.
On 20 December 2010, Parliament passed a fresh media law, containing very vague and contradictory provisions, setting up a separate institution (NMHH – Nemzeti Média és Hírközlési Hatóság), which would supervise the media and even impose penalties on them. The European Commission and the OSCE immediately raised concerns about censorship and EU presidents Hungary yet stepped down and amended the scandalous law. But later it turned out that Orbán simply decided to “eat the elephant in pieces”.
He primarily dealt with state media.
In 2011, the Hungarian government formed the MTVA fund (Médiaszólzát-támomató és Vagyonkezelő Alap), which integrated all state media. 8 state tv channels – M1-M5, Duna, etc., 7 radio stations run by Kossuth Radio, a number of net portals operated by Hirado and the main news agency of the country of MTI, which became a monopolist and the main origin of state information and thus remained under 1 roof.
In fact, this information agency now besides serves as a press service for all government bodies.
And her work lacks any signs of free media. EuroTruth, which met with the “corespondents” of MTI at events in Ukraine and abroad, can confirm this with certainty.
In order to attract journalists, the deficiency of freedom of speech compensates for unreliable budgets. For example, in 2017, MTVA's yearly budget was around 80 billion forints (about EUR 258,5 million), and in the electoral year 2022 it was about 132 billion forints (about EUR 314 million).
At the same time, this media monster is positioned as an independent public broadcaster, but in fact is simply a spokesperson for the government whose task is to convey affirmative news about the government. adequate to mention that every Friday Viktor Orbán gives free morning “interviews” on Radio Kossuth, which are actually his monologues.
On the another hand, public media in Hungary is simply a restricted area for the opposition. If it is listed in MTVA resources, it is usually negative. Sometimes they laughter about it. More frequently they just ignore it.
During the 2022 election campaign, access to public media was 1 of the main subjects of the opposition, and yet her joint Prime Minister candidate, Peter Marchi-Zay, got as much as 5 minutes live on M1.
The duplicate of the state media monster
While inactive in opposition, Viktor Orban began building a private media empire to support his party. Initially it was done by Lajos Šimička, Viktor Orban's roommate at the dormitory, as well as a political ally and de facto head oligarch Fidesz until 2014. Szymichka owned tv channel Hír, newspapers Magyar Nemzet and Metropol, Lánchid Rádió etc.
Later, TV2, Origo, 888.hu and another media entered the organization holding, but they were straight or indirectly owned by another allies of Orbán, namely a childhood friend and 1 of Lorenzo Mesáros' richest Hungarians, maker consultant Andrew Vin.
After the divided of Šimicka and Orban in 2015, these 3 became formal owners of the Fidesz media empire. The head of the cabinet of the Prime Minister of Hungary Antal Rogan began to direct it, for which he was given the nickname "the propaganda minister".
Fidesz' next triumph in the 2018 election ended the process of creating media monster No. 2. A key opponent of the Orbán organization in these elections was the Jobbik party, which was supported by the already mentioned Šimicka his media empire. After defeat, he got free of the media property, whose keys – Magyar Nemzet and Hír tv – fell into the hands of people close to Fidesz.
Orban's colleagues besides concentrated their influence on other, formerly independent media specified as Origo or Index.
On 28 November 2018, it turned out that around 450 Hungarian media, national and regional, merges into the Közép-Európai Sajtó és Média Alapítvány foundation, or simply KESMA.
And now the most interesting and absurd thing: all of their owners gave their media completely free of charge to the board of directors of the created fund.
Of course, only in the interests of freedom of speech and the independency of these media.
A week ago, on December 5, Viktor Orban signed a government order according to which the creation of KESMA is of state importance and should so not be blocked by the Hungarian antitrust authorities.
It's that simple.
Needless to say, KESMA covered almost all key private media known to be linked to Orban's people.
When 2 monsters aren't enough
In the subsequent 2019 local election, Fidesz organization was preparing for an easy victory. However, after gaining the majority in all regional juries, Fidesz lost in key cities, including Budapest.
According to Fidesz, 1 of the causes of failure is the deficiency of youth work, especially on social networks. Therefore, in the summertime of 2020 Fidesz created another media monster.
It is simply a network of bloggers, commentators and influencers united in a fresh structure called Megafon. By the spring of 2022, erstwhile the next parliamentary elections were held, Megafon's spending on advertising on Facebook exceeded HUF 1 billion (€2.7 million).
Megafon pays to advertise the right news by the right people who, by a unusual coincidence, praise the government, advance "cultural wars" against the left and liberals, preach Christian conservatism, and even defend the construction of a Chinese battery mill in Debreczyn – but then it becomes 1 of the messages of the government and the ruling party.
At the same time with the creation of this Megafon network, Fidesz invested considerable resources in transforming all key members of his organization into influencers on Facebook specified as Peter Sijarto, Judit Varga, Barna Pal Sigmond, who became key figures in the "social media" component of the Orbana propaganda machine. For example, posts of the hated head of the Szijarto MFA frequently become the main origin of news for the Hungarian public, gathering thousands of likes and hundreds of comments.
However, it is not adequate to make infrastructure for media propaganda, it is crucial to keep it constantly filled with content that will conquer the hearts of millions and block critical thinking.
Sam Orban, even without the aid of an army of bots and trolls, is simply a talented speaker. This has been seen since the beginning of his career, erstwhile young Victor was inactive a liberal politician who advocated democracy and freedom. His organization was just as liberal at the time.
The fact that later both Orban and Fidesz, as with the contact of the magic wand, changed their views to the other and from the liberal force turned to conservative, but voters mostly did not take it as a betrayal of their interests is another fact that needs to be learned to realize how the cynical government propaganda device operates in Hungary.
Tales and Myths of Orban
Orbán has been based in a game with an electorate on the sense of Hungarian dignity, but besides on anti-Sovietism. But very rapidly the subject of national unity and overcoming the trauma Trianon entered the rhetoric of Fidesz. However, after defeat in the 2002 and 2006 elections Orban realized it wasn't enough.
In 2008, he began working with American Jewish-origin judaic polytologists Arthur Finkelstein and George Birnbaum. Their advice helped Viktor Orban return to power in 2010 by a constitutional majority, so in all 3 consecutive winning parliamentary campaigns he uses the same proven methods.
What are these methods?
First, to focus not on yourself and your own promises, but on discrediting opponents and demoralizing their voters.
Secondly, find or invent an enemy and demonize it so much that the most lazy electorate will want to come and vote against that enemy (and on Orban, who fights against him).
Thirdly, this enemy must be spersonified, that is, you must fight not only liberals but besides “left liberals led by George Soros”.
Fourth, the polarisation of society should not be feared. On the contrary, polarization plays Orban's hand due to the fact that it strengthens the sense that mythical enemies truly be and the threat that their sides are real.
Fifthly, all of these actions should be systematic and long-term so that Fidesz' triumph is evident even before the authoritative start of the election campaign.
In this scheme, fear and conspiracy become key tools for managing public opinion . Yes, it has any limitations – e.g. belief in conspiracy is more typical of little educated provincial residents. But that's adequate to win the election – and Orban is happy about it. Moreover, in favour of power, there is simply a distorted "half-large" electoral strategy that does not require the support of most Hungarians to take control of Parliament.
In the 3 parliamentary elections "Fidesh" had between 45% and 54% of the vote, but at the expense of "the majority" not that the capital received each time more than 2 thirds of the seats in parliament, that is, the constitutional majority. Budapest residents traditionally voted against – but remained minority.
But let us return to the “enemies” of Orban, who are frequently simply not there.
It's a thoughtful tactic. due to the fact that the perfect is the enemy, which can be overcome constantly and which at the same time cannot give up.
Thus Soros and the "plan Soros" appeared in the Hungarian political discourse of the last decade with almost Hungarian business by migrants, a worldwide conspiracy of the left and liberals against Hungary, a fight against external governments and Brussels bureaucracy
Also - conventional themes for utmost conservatives specified as the fight against LGBTQ+ and the conventional family.
To make counterfeiting and manipulations that fuel this “fight” seem more natural, they are frequently carried out under the appearance of government information campaigns, as was the case erstwhile the European Commission was demonised.
But in 2022 Ukraine "tested" this role.
For example, in the fall of 2022, erstwhile Fidesz launched another "national consultation" (this is simply a Hungarian invention – a propaganda run whose costs are officially funded by the government). Hungary was then virtually covered with banners with the image of a falling bomb and the inscription "Brussels Sanctions destruct Us". It is not appropriate to talk about the ethics of specified comparisons at a time erstwhile Russia carried out a massive rocket attack on Ukraine, killing Ukrainians in reality alternatively than metaphorically. But even if we forget about morality, the sanctions imposed against Russia included exceptions for Hungary in its key sectors, and the slogan of this advertisement was simply false.
However, the control of the media space that Orban's crew has in Hungary allows many to convince about the truthfulness of all lie. The communicative of the “hundreds and thousands of bodies of the Zakarpackie Hungarians in refrigerators” and akin confirm this. Moreover, not only voters, but besides a crucial part of Fidesz, and seemingly Orbán himself began to believe it, that is, to see his own myths as an nonsubjective reality that no longer raises any doubt. Even if he yet hits the Hungarian people.
For example, over the past year Viktor Orban has constantly mentioned that he lives in Zakarpacie “About 200 000 Hungarians”Ukraine wants "simulate."
But the fact is completely different.
If at least 100,000 Hungarians lived here by February 24, 2022, this would be good news. And not due to “assimilation”. Hungarians come from Zacarpacia. The reason is poorness and inability to implement in Ukraine that due to the language barrier (the breach of which, notabene, is to service the educational law criticized by Hungary) . In addition, Budapest passported its national minority, beginning the way for Hungary to easy emigrate. It is simply a sad truth: in striving to preserve the Hungarian number in Zakarpacie, Budapest achieves precisely the other with its actions.
TAbout the same relation with the West.
Orban's creation of the European Union's enemy image had a pragmatic objective, thus he worked for his election and, at the same time, blackmailed Brussels to a tiny extent, with benefits, exceptions and preferences for Hungary. In the beginning, even successful. However, over time, the anti-European propaganda of Orbán, which in his country became an ‘alternative reality’, began to hit the interests of Orban himself.
‘The Holy Fight against Brussels’, of which the government cannot always withdraw, even if it wanted to, has already led to the actual isolation of Hungary and the annoyance of their allies, and thus to search ways to legally bypass the continuous blockade and blackmail of Budapest. And in parallel, how to halt Hungary from falling further from the point of view of democracy and the regulation of law, and so The European Commission has frozen respective twelve billion euro for Hungary. The NATO line is the same: the Alliance has late made an unprecedented decision to ignore the Hungarian veto. Moreover, (US and W.B.) Orban was suggested to leave NATO voluntarily, which he does not intend to do.
The question is why?
After all, he is in the embrace of Putin and Russia so there is nothing to fear.
Spiral propaganda is turned on and hard to jump out of, especially erstwhile it gives Orbán even skyrocketing quotes (up to 50% as of May 2023) for 13 years continuously.
These are the quotations, and hence the maintenance of power in Hungary, is an absolute criterion for Orban, and this is bad news for Ukraine, Europe and Hungary themselves.
Author: Dmitro Tuzhanskyi,
Director of the Central Europe strategy Institute
for “European Truth”
Former Ukrainian Ambassador to Hungary
