Keyword – Orbán regime

Benedek, István:

The Rise of a Hybrid Media System

This paper studies the rise and functioning of Hungary’s anti-pluralist hybrid media system under the Orbán Regime, placing it in the broader context of the country’s transformation into a populist electoral autocracy (PEA). It analyses how institutional changes and media manipulation strategies such as partisan media regulation, biased state advertising, and third-party campaigns have enabled the government to extend its control over the public discourse. By the late 2010s, the regime had achieved overwhelming media dominance, which fostered self-censorship, anticipatory obedience, media capture, asymmetric parallelism, and the erosion of media independence, all under the guise of formal media freedom. This paper also explores the implications of these developments for media polarisation and autocratic resilience, emphasising how government-controlled discourse and partisan audiences undermine informed decision-making and accountability, thereby securing electoral success and sustaining public support for the regime. Finally, it highlights potential challenges to the system’s resilience in the mid-2020s amid emerging international and domestic pressures, which could significantly impact the future of Hungary’s media landscape.

Keywords: autocratic stabilisation, Hungary, hybridisation, media system, Orbán regime, populism