Marginalization Techniques of the Governmental Media Targeting Youth Resistance Movements in the Illiberal Political System of Hungary

Abstract

Illiberal, populist political discourse challenges the legitimacy of liberal institutions, civil and political rights, promotes the exclusion of opponents from political participation, and deepens polarization in society. In this context, the present qualitative study explores the governmental media's smear campaigns targeting youth resistance movements in the illiberal regime of Hungary. Governmental, online, written media reports were analyzed with a focus on language questioning the heterogenous and legitimate identity of protesters, and their credibility through marginalization techniques, in the cases of demonstrations for the CEU in 2018 and against governmental measures violating academic autonomy by the model change of the University of Theatre and Film Arts in 2020. I found that out of the marginalization techniques discussed in illiberalism studies, framing theories, and the protest paradigm, the following four are the ones most frequently applied in the negative campaign targeting youth resistance movements: (1) biased usage of authentic sources, (2) emphasis on the unacceptable behavior of protesters, (3) ridiculing the event, and (4) fake narratives on internal and external enemies of the "real" Hungarian people behind their actions. They depict protesters as non-autonomous individuals (1) serving foreign interests or opposition political parties, (2) behaving aggressively or decadently, and (3) not representing legitimate views of citizens. Through these framing techniques applied by government-dependent media, focus is shifted from the relevant public affair to the identity of protesters presented as a homogenous mass of enemy puppets. The present content-analysis demonstrates that they are able not only to marginalize but also to discredit protesters in the eyes of the public reached by governmental media. Findings can be utilized in further research on civil resistance and the protest paradigm in illiberal regimes.