Love thy ‘populist’

Abstract

This article aims to deepen our understanding of scandals involving both transgression of accepted speech and populist logic by analysing the origins, development, and outcome of a 2018 Czech media controversy. The scandal erupted when a public service radio station was accused of airing pornographic content. It escalated when the accuser added a xenophobic, homophobic and nativist commentary to his complaint. By analysing each party’s arguments, the contested and silenced ideas, and the fantasmatic dimension, I demonstrate how each actor contributed to the escalation of the conflict and facilitated a shift in accepted public conduct. I propose to view such scandals as attempts to break hegemonic silence that reveal the lack of acceptance of a new norm, in this case homosexuality. I conclude that such scandals can support dialogue and reduce the polarization of society if dissenting views are taken into consideration and divisive language avoided by all sides.