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This article presents findings of a research carried out among pro-refugee individuals in social media in Hungary. During the so-called refugee crisis that emerged in the summer of 2015, anti-immigrant sentiments in the Hungarian public were fueled by a strong governmental campaign. This unusually strong propaganda campaign created a strong hegemonic discourse. Nevertheless, a pro-refugee counterpublic opposing the hegemonic discourse also emerged. The article discusses existing scholarly literature on the phenomenon and how it appears in and is shaped by the digital sphere. The empirical findings focus on two characteristics of the pro-refugee counterpublic. First, we look at the political affiliations of this counterpublic. Second, we ask if the different digital affordances used by the counterpublic and their combinations indicate the formation of a community. The methodological ambition of the article is to present a digital data-driven approach, based on data provided by Facebook, which allows the individual profiling of each user. The connections and schemata of these profiles provide the analytical background of the present research. We aim to illustrate that such a digital approach has a number of advantages over traditional sociological methods, especially in the research of subaltern counterpublics.

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In this article, by analyzing the memory politics of the nativist Hungarian government, it is argued that instead of some Great Narrative about a Golden Age, a political patchwork is in work here. Instead of glorifying one particular historical period, any element used for the constructions of “Greatness” and “Proudness” is used freely. Then I explain the peculiarities of the Hungarian case: that is, Orbán builds a nativist, anti-European, and anti-enlightenment symbolic universe, whereas Hungary is a member of the EU and even heavily subsidized by it. Afterward, using the foundational text of the regime, I explain how central nostalgia, what in this context I call weaponized longing, is for the Orbán regime. Since there is neither specific political Golden Age nor obvious historic victories, the memory of sports successes becomes relevant constructing the memory of greatness. Therefore, in the next part, I illustrate how Orbán uses the sport to articulate and implement a macho worldview and formulate a nativist discourse on a wide variety of seemingly non-sport-related issues from the essence of modernity to gender roles. Then I explain that sport is not just a tool for Orbán, but in fact, a basic model and metaphor for his politics where “Triumph of the Will” is central. Finally, with the juxtaposition of two seminal institutions, the House of Terror and Cult of Puskás, I demonstrate the memory political endeavors of the regime and some of the built-in contradictions that come with these practices. In this nativist patchwork, the seemingly impossible could be achieved; the darkest times could produce the most glorious elements of history.

Certain extremely successful popular culture contents may convey democratic values that can have an impact on the political views of readers and fans. The differences in the values of Harry Potter fans and average Facebook users using social data about public Facebook activity are examined. Even though currently only a minority share the values that the Harry Potter stories embody, they are still an important segment of society that one might not even be aware of if one only follows the state-controlled media and make up a significant majority of the Hungarian media market. Understanding this culturally constructed fan network is thus academically and socially relevant.