| Kuruc.info | |
| Type: | Holocaust denial Antisemitism Antiziganism Anti-LGBT Far-right politics |
| Language: | Hungarian |
| Author: | Előd Novák József Hering Tamás Esze János Lantos |
| Current Status: | Online |
Kuruc.info is a far-right Hungarian language online portal registered in California, United States,[1] affiliated with politician Előd Novák.[2] The website often harbours extreme anti-semitic sentiments,[3] [4] including frequent Holocaust denial,[5] and frequently publishes anti-Romani and homophobic content.[6]
The first iteration of the website, kettosallampolgarsag.hu, was created to support the 2004 Hungarian dual citizenship referendum.[7] The website then illegally published personal information about publicist Imre Para-Kovács.[8] As the website's focus broadened, and its traffic kept growing even after the referendum had ended, its editors decided to start Kuruc.info on 01 February 2006,[7] named after the "Kuruc", the rebels against the Habsburg monarchy who fought for Hungarian independence between 1671 and 1711.[9] Until 2019, Kuruc.info's staff was anonymous,[2] and the website was registered in the name of a private individual, first in Scottsdale, Arizona,[10] then Healdsburg, California. The website first gained notoriety for its "more SZDSZ, more paedophiles" campaign before the 2006 Hungarian parliamentary election,[11] which was also closely affiliated with the newly formed Jobbik party.[12] In 2006, Kuruc.info also posted photographs, addresses, and phone numbers of judges and prosecutors who had participated in legal proceedings against anti-government protestors.[13] Several of the officials whose details were posted received threatening phone calls and letters.[14] After this, the website still routinely published the personal data of individuals they opposed.[15]
In 2008, the web servers of Kuruc.info were shut down[16] after requests from the Hungarian government.[17] However, the website quickly came back online.[10] In 2012, the Hungarian government requested the American government to shut the website down again without success.[18] Around the same time, it was revealed that the website was registered under the name of Bela Varga, a winemaker from Healdsburg, California[19] who denied his involvement with the website, claiming that he registered it for a friend.[20]
Although Kuruc.info was heavily associated with the Jobbik political party in its early days,[11] it became increasingly critical of the party around 2016, mainly due to Jobbik's drift toward a more centre-right ideology, which was strongly opposed by the website's owner[2] and previous Jobbik vice president Előd Novák[21] This split, as well as the emergence of other right-wing websites such as 888.hu and Pesti Srácok saw the website's popularity decline, dropping from the 34th most popular Hungarian website to 96th in the span of 4 years.[22] [23] After years of denying his involvement with Kuruc.info,[21] Előd Novák revealed his ownership of the website in 2019, as well as the involvement of ex-journalist József Hering, ex-MIÉP politician Tamás Esze, and publicist János Lantos.[2]
Kuruc.info considers itself to be more right-wing than the far-right Hungarian political party known as the Jobbik, distinguishing itself from Barikád, which is regarded as Jobbik's "semi-official online news organ". Kuruc.info nevertheless maintains a relationship with Jobbik through advertisements and payment to personnel.
Categories on the site include "anti-Hungarianism", "Gypsy-crime", "Jewish crime", "migrant crime", "economic news", where there is more discussion of the economic crimes of Jews and communists, and a "humor" section where one can find derogatory jokes about Jews, Romani, and communists. Users engage in commentary about the website's publications and maintain an active site forum.