HALTalk with Júlia Sonnevend

(The Event will be in Hungarian).

Politics is a theater where today's politicians often try to play the role of the ordinary person. They create the illusion that we could even sit down and have a beer with them. They do not win elections because of exceptional rhetorical skills but because of their average, relatable, and likable qualities. Sonnevend Júlia calls this everyday magic, used in the press and social media, "charm."

According to Júlia Sonnevend, the future of democracy worldwide will be shaped by charm, as political values are increasingly embodied by personalities constructed in the press and social media.

Her book illustrates the power of charm through the examples of various liberal, illiberal, and authoritarian leaders, including: Jacinda Ardern, Viktor Orbán, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Kim Jong-un and Angela Merkel.

Júlia Sonnevend is a Hungarian media sociologist based in the U.S. and an Associate Professor of Sociology and Communication at The New…