TAG: "English"

Fascist and similar ideological movements have achieved and continue to achieve worldwide success by threatening the fundamental values that are most important to communities and nations. The most likely to provoke a visceral reaction are allegations that threaten the identity of the targeted group. The majority of people react instinctively to verbal attacks on national, gender, racial, religious, family, generational, ideological, existential, political, and thus fundamental identities. As Federico Finchelstein states in his book Fascist Lies, "One of the most important lessons of the history of fascism is that racist lies lead to extreme, politically motivated violence."

In a democratic framework, the source of political legitimacy is the share of votes, which is an imprint of voters' opinions. However, even in an apparently democratic country, the opinion of the vast majority can be significantly different from the opinion that would be formed in an unmanipulated information environment, using the tools of political propaganda. This is why Hungary's Constitution, the Charter of the Union and the UN Charter all recognise the right of citizens to be informed free from manipulation as a fundamental right. If this is not achieved, one of the fundamental conditions for the rule of law is violated. Our measurements cast doubt on the completion of rule of law in Hungary.

The latest election results will provide a perfect argument for the Hungarian government in its negotiation with the EU institutions that the EU funds can’t be blocked by the European Parliament or the Commission, because it they do so, they go against the will of the Hungarian voters. The question rises to what extent was the voters’ will manipulated in 2022. Does the EU have to watch helplessly when in a member state the basic right of voters to unbiased information is breached? Another question comes from whether there will be any consequences in the Union, if a member state’s Media system is constructed in a way that it doesn’t allow the citizens to get a real picture of their situation and about the available political alternatives?

The PPI - Political Propaganda indicator reflects to what extent the opinion of the elector population can be diverted by the tools of political propaganda. The PPI Politicus is 44%, the PPI Public 26%.