"For example, in Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's party, Fidesz, exercises significant control over the regional press, reinforces its own narratives through political networks disguised as civil society organisations, and has an extensive media empire. The upcoming absence of paid online advertising is not a disadvantage but rather an opportunity for the Fidesz party: it restricts one of the opposition's main avenues of action while allowing the government's narratives to spread unchecked, amplify their messaging, and, through proxies, dominate social media platforms."
"The upcoming 2026 Hungarian elections could be a severe test of this dilemma. While the paid political advertising discontinuation theoretically applies to all political actors, it puts the opposition (which relies on independent social media platforms more than anyone else) in a more difficult position. Fidesz will mobilise its organisations disguised as civil society groups with an organic following and its extensive network of newspapers, which may find loopholes to evade the ban."
The EU's Regulation on the Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) will take effect in October 2025 and prompted Meta and Google to stop political and social advertising across Europe. The measure aims for fairer, more transparent political advertising but may disadvantage opponents who rely on paid online reach. Illiberal regimes that control traditional media, state resources, and proxy civil society organisations can exploit the absence of paid ads to amplify government narratives. In Hungary, Fidesz's control over regional press, media networks, and pro-government organisations can spread content organically, mobilise supporters, exploit loopholes, and influence rural public opinion ahead of the 2026 elections.
Read at euronews
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