Silencing a large proportion of the press is part of the authoritarian playbook. Don't need to silence all of them, just enough that they can no longer give opposition figures a fair hearing.
They've been listening to the lessons the likes of Orban have been teaching them, he has his 12 points for success, which I think most europeans would consider effectively a strategic plan for authoritarianism.
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“The fourth point is,” he continued, “that we must have the media because we can only show the insanity of the progressive Left if we have the media to help us.” According to PM Orbán, left-wing opinion only appears to be in the majority because the media helps them amplify their voices. The problem is that the modern Western media is aligned with the left-wing view. Those who taught reporters in universities, the prime minister added, already professed progressive Leftist principles.
