Did Polish Nationwide Catholic Weekly Newspapers Support Andrzej Duda in the Presidential Campaign in 2020? A Case Study

Abstract

The aim of the article was to determine the degree of political involvement of the most im-portant representatives of the Polish Catholic press, i.e. “Gość Niedzielny”, “Niedziela”, “Idziemy”, and“Przewodnik Katolicki” in the 2020 presidential campaign in Poland. The periodicals took into accountthe important context of the campaign, i.e. the coronavirus pandemic, the lockdown and its socialand political consequences, as well as the problem of polarisation of the Polish political scene. “GośćNiedzielny”, “Niedziela” and “Idziemy” gave clear support to Andrzej Duda. The political involvementof the above press titles should be assessed as going beyond Catholic social science. “PrzewodnikKatolicki” was the only one to point out both the strengths and weaknesses of the incumbent’s pro-gramme and political activity.