More than 60 Czech institutions today called on the leaders of government parties to ensure the independence and financial stability of public media, and launched a petition in support of the declaration, spokesperson Pavla Umlaufova told CTK.
Representatives of the Czech Philharmonic, Memory of Nations, the National Theatres in Prague and Brno, and humanitarian organisation People in Need are calling for the amendment on public television and radio to be adopted as soon as possible. The amendment should increase the licence fees for the public Czech Television by 15 crowns to 150 crowns per month and for Czech Radio by 10 crowns to 55 crowns per month from January.
The organisers of the petition point out that Czech Radio and Czech Television enjoy the highest trust among the media watched in the Czech Republic, according to surveys, as well as being a key source of information in crisis situations, such as the recent floods and the coronavirus pandemic.
They say that the radio and television licence fees, the rise of which is being discussed, ensure independence from political power.
“Stable, predictable funding is one of the important conditions for the existence of free media and artistic creation,” said Jan Burian, director general of the Prague National Theatre.
If the law is not amended, public media organisations risk being forced to change their funding by tying it to the state budget or to restructure under political pressure, both of which will threaten their independence, the signatories said.
The bill is now in the Chamber of Deputies ahead of its second reading, and it is uncertain whether MPs will be able to pass it by the end of the year.
“In a world of misinformation and online space, we need strong independent public media more than ever,” said Simon Panek, director of People in Need. “After the fall of the communist regime 35 years ago, that was one of the things we wanted: independent media outlets that form one of the foundations of a functioning free democratic society,”
Bara Starek, director of the Thanks That We Can association, which is behind the appeal, warned that weakening the public media was a direct threat to a pluralistic society and the democratic foundations of the state.
On 10 November, the Czech Syndicate of Journalists called on political representatives to support the financial independence of the public media. In a statement, the organisation warned that financial stability and independence is crucial for the further functioning of Czech Television and Czech Radio.
On the other hand, the opposition criticises the proposed licence fee increase. ANO, whose leader Andrej Babis controls a large share of the country’s private media, is pushing for public media to receive operational funding from the state budget.
Private radio stations have opposed the rise in the radio fee, but Czech Radio has called their campaign aimed at the legislators unethical.
