Controlling the Narrative: The Hungarian Government’s Use of “Gender” and LGBTIQ+ Topics

Fidesz uses disinformation and culture wars to distract from the serious issues facing the country

2 August 2023

Dorka Takacsy

Marcin Król Fellow

Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz weaponises issues related to LGBTIQ+, women and migrants to a devastating effect. Whenever political scandals or economic woes hit Hungary, the population will be inundated with culture war propaganda to distract them from the day’s pressing issues.

“Gender” and LGBTIQ+ are two topics that the Hungarian government likes to use as fronts to shift the focus of public opinion from issues that could potentially be dangerous to its popularity.

These trends can be traced through the milestones from Fidesz’s return to power in 2010 and examining the political and economic contexts that frame many of the government’s vilifying use of “gender” and LGBTIQ+-related topics in the public discourse as well as the legal attacks on these minority groups and communities.

The expansion and quick contraction of rights

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, there were about 20 years when Hungary was at the forefront of advancements for the LGBTIQ+ people in Central and Eastern Europe.

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Dorka Takacsy

Marcin Król Fellow

Marcin Król Fellow 2022/2023 at Visegrad Insight and a researcher passionate about politics in Russia and the CEE region. She pursues her PhD studies at the Corvinus University of Budapest, contemplating the broader topic of Russian domestic disinformation about the West. She is currently a Research Fellow at the Centre for Euro-Atlantic Integration and Democracy (CEID), focusing on disinformation.

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