Mainstreaming Illiberalism: The Rise of Immigration and LGBTQ+ Rights as Polarizing Issues

Abstract

Chapter 5 zooms in on two polarizing issues—immigration and LGBTQ+ rights—that are central to understanding the rise of illiberalism both in Eastern Europe and globally. We focus on the key actors involved in the process of mainstreaming of immigration and LGBTQ+ rights as key polarizing issues in the four countries—primarily illiberal politicians, but also church leaders and other opinion leaders—and on the extent to which this process was either fostered or hindered by the media. We argue that the role of the media differed depending on how advanced the illiberal public sphere was in a particular country, at a given point in time. When the illiberal public sphere is in an incipient stage, alternative and online outlets play a key role in the promotion of anti-immigrant and homophobic views, while independent mainstream media are still able to instil more liberal attitudes. As the strength of the illiberal public sphere increases, illiberal leaders can count on the support of an ever-wider range of mainstream media outlets, which have capacity to promote illiberal views on a large scale, potentially also leading to shifts in public opinion. At the same time, a well-established illiberal public sphere, which resonates with widespread illiberal attitudes among the citizenry, can also limit the ability of illiberal leaders to steer away from the illiberal agenda. In such a context, the illiberal public sphere becomes a powerful actor in its own right, capable of sustaining illiberalism to some extent independently of elite support.