The rise of Putinism

The crucial elements of Putinism are nationalism, religion, social conservatism, state capitalism and government domination of the media. They are all, in some way or another, different from and hostile to, modern Western values of individual rights, tolerance, cosmopolitanism and internationalism. It would be a mistake to believe that Putin’s ideology created his popularity — he was popular before — but it sustains his popularity.

Orban has followed in Putin’s footsteps, eroding judicial independence, limiting individual rights, speaking in nationalist terms about ethnic Hungarians and muzzling the press. The methods of control are often more sophisticated than traditional censorship. Hungary recently announced a 40 percent tax on ad revenues that seems to particularly target the country’s only major independent television network, which could result in its bankruptcy.

If you look around the world, there are others who have embraced core elements of Putinism. Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan has veered away from his reformist agenda toward one that is more socially conservative, Islamist and highly nationalistic. He, too, has used clever tricks to cow the media into subservience. Many of Europe’s far-right leaders — France’s Marine Le Pen, Geert Wilders of the Netherlands and even Britain’s Nigel Farage — are openly admiring of Putin and what he stands for.