(No) Boundaries for Brainwashing? Informational Autocratization and Its Cures in Serbia and Hungary

This essay examines the evolving model of informational autocracy in Serbia and Hungary, emphasizing the role of state-sponsored disinformation in shaping public discourse and political outcomes. By applying the concepts of spin dictatorship and informational manipulation, it highlights how Viktor Orbán’s Hungary serves as both a role model and an enabler for Serbia’s media centralization and democratic backsliding. The paper argues that Hungary’s influence extends beyond Serbia, affecting media pluralism and governance structures across the Western Balkans, often using EU enlargement as leverage through political patronage networks.

The policy relevance of this analysis is significant in the context of European integration and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions), which emphasizes access to information, accountable governance, and democratic resilience. The essay underscores the need for EU institutional responses, such as enforcing the European Media Freedom Act and integrating disinformation monitoring into EU rule-of-law mechanisms and accession criteria. Supporting independent media and civil society initiatives is essential to counter state-sponsored propaganda and safeguard democratic participation in both EU Member States and candidate countries. The essay concludes that strategic adversarial engagement with Hungary and Serbia—balancing cooperation with firm conditionality—should be a key policy approach in mitigating the risks of informational autocratization in Europe.