The federal government has announced that it wants to initiate a reconciliation process regarding corona policy. Although the FPÖ has already clearly rejected the project, which is still very vaguely worded, the chance of this happening among the population is also small. The trenches that have been mentioned so often are no longer limited to Corona.
While Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) wants to “reach out” after three years of the Covid pandemic and also “process some kind of trauma”, the FPÖ has already announced that it does not want to participate in the process at all. Party leader Herbert Kickl even speaks of a “mocking trial”.
Corona skeptics are often loyal to Putin
But the problem should not only extend to turbulence between the parties, as Jakob-Moritz Eberl of the Austria Corona Panel Project at the university explains that the fronts have now also hardened massively due to the pandemic. It wasn’t until last fall that the research team took a close look at public sentiment about the war in Ukraine – and found a strong link between vaccination status, party choice, social media use and perceptions of the war in Ukraine.
While the majority of vaccinated people (88 percent) in Ukraine cite Russia as the main culprit of the illegal war, only 62 percent of unvaccinated people do. The latter often also blame the US (66 percent), NATO (61 percent), Ukraine (50 percent) and the EU (43 percent).
Parallel world on Telegram
There are also similar differences in party preferences and social media use: Voters from the ÖVP, SPÖ, the Greens and the NEOS largely agree that Russia (85-93 percent) bears the main responsibility for the war, while only about two-thirds of FPÖ and MFG voters share this view. Telegram users in particular see Russia as the least likely (45 percent) to be a responsible actor. This group is also more open to conspiracy theories in this regard.
Communication “sustainably more difficult”
This polarization challenges social cohesion on very different topics, Eberl explains via Twitter. The agreement on common perspectives is “sustainably more difficult”. But can these people be brought back into the common boat? Probably difficult, because this group not only has similar political views, but also has little faith in established institutions and the media.
Therefore, even the attempt to enter into a joint dialogue at all can become a stumbling block. A pattern emerges for different topics and associated attitudes: This lack of consensus makes it particularly difficult to make decisions that are equally fair to everyone, the scientists said.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
