The Sources of Political Information in Hungary
Ever since 2013, Mérték Media Monitor has been performing recurring surveys to learn about the media consumption and information patterns of the Hungarian public (the results of the previous surveys are available on our website at mertek.eu, under the heading Media Freedom). All our surveys were conducted in collaboration with the Medián Public Opinion and Market Research Institute. Among the distinctive features of the current Hungarian media situation is that the most widely read daily newspapers have disappeared from the market in recent years; the most prominent players in the radio market have been replaced by other stations; and a variety of other media outlets with a major audience reach have experienced changes in ownership as a result of which the editorial guidelines that
govern their work have been fundamentally and comprehensively rewritten. Our recurring surveys also provide us with a picture of how sensitively and quickly the audiences react when the media sources they rely on begin to cover the daily events in a tone and/or manner that is markedly different from their previously established approach. Based on our review, we found that markets change far more swiftly than consumption patterns.
Despite the constantly changing – and in fact volatile and unstable – media environment, our survey provides a vital glimpse of the prevailing situation in the media today. It captures what type of media the various segments of the audience tend to consume; how they view the political orientation of the various media outlets and their credibility; and whether they actively strive to consult news sources which espouse political views that differ from their own. In recent years, we have also focused more intensely on examining the use of social media (Facebook), and over time we have found unequivocally that for many users social media have
emerged as a new arena for the public discussion of politics. The data in our research provide clear evidence that the respondents’ party preferences not only inform their choice of news sources but also have a substantial impact on their overall assessment of media outlets. The supporters of the governing party obviously prefer pro-government media and consider these more credible. At the same time, these respondents also interpret daily events in line with the government’s narrative. This attitude also prevails when they encounter news sources that present news with a narrative that is antithetical to the government’s viewpoint. The polarisation of Hungarian society is also distinctively reflected in the public’s news consumption and news interpretation patterns. The year 2020 has been out of the ordinary in many respects, including news consumption patterns. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a substantial increase in the demand for news, and the measures taken in response to the pandemic have moved into the centre of political and public discourse. On the one hand, our most recent data reflect a surge in the interest in public affairs, which was accompanied at the same time by a rise in the role of online and social media news sources, which are more adept at satisfying the public’s growing appetite for rapid news.
The fundamental question of the coming period is whether these patterns will become fixed and established as the dominant paradigm, or whether once the pandemic subsides, the television-centred news consumption and the concomitant moderate level of interest in public affairs will prevail again. The transformation of Hungary’s leading news site, Index, and the launch of a new news site, Telex, by the former staff of Index who quit in protest of meddling by the management,
appears to indicate a breakthrough in terms of the public’s willingness to pay for news. One of the most dramatic events of 2020 was the joint and simultaneous
resignation of the entire Index team, and it appears that the import of this development is being appreciated even by some segments of the general audience who generally tend to pay less attention to media market developments. Large segments of the public have also taken notice of the Media Council’s decision threatening the future of Hungary’s only major critical radio station, Klubrádió. Telex – which is seeking to replace Index – and Klubrádió were the most successful fundraisers in the period examined. The continuous changes in the Hungarian media system pose a challenge even to those news consumers with the highest level of awareness. It is our hope that the joint research by Mérték and Medián, carried out in collaboration with the Budapest office of the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, can provide some measure of clarity amidst the confusion.
The project was supported by Friedrich Ebert Stiftung.