The government's plan to change the financing of public broadcasting in the Czech Republic, led by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, caused reactions.
Employees of Czech Television (ČT) and Czech Radio (ČRo) launched a one-day work stoppage on Tuesday, November 3, stating that the proposed regulations would leave the broadcasters open to political pressure.
While broadcasts were restricted due to the strike, blacked-out news center images were projected on the public television's 24-hour news broadcast channel. The presenters, wearing black clothes, read the news from pre-prepared texts in an unusual way.
The protests, supported by artists and students, were planned to continue in the afternoon.
The populist government led by billionaire Prime Minister Andrej Babiš aims to change the financing system of public broadcasting, with the support of the far-right SPD and the anti-European Union Motorists party.
The coalition wants to abolish the monthly broadcast fee charged to households of 205 Czech crowns (about $9.43), which is the main source of income for public television and radio.
According to the new regulation, the financing of public broadcasters will be provided directly from the state budget.
While the government argues that the change aims to reduce the financial burden on citizens, employees and the opposition state that the transfer of budget control to the political power will harm the independence of broadcasting.
"IT WILL GIVE THE GOVERNMENT THE TOOLS TO INTERFERE IN BROADCASTS"
Czech Television reporter Jan Molacek, who was on the strike committee, said the regulation would jeopardize the editorial independence of public broadcasters.
"If accepted, this proposal would provide the government coalition with the tools to politically intervene in the content of both public broadcasters," Molacek said.
Stating that it is not completely impossible to change the financing system, Molacek emphasized that this should be done after a comprehensive public debate and with legal guarantees that will prevent political intervention.
Critics say that abolishing the system of direct financing of public broadcasters by viewers and listeners would make the budgets of the broadcasters dependent on the political decisions of the government.
The regulation prepared by the government includes changing the financing method as well as a 15 percent cut in the budgets of public broadcasters.
If the cut is implemented, Czech Television's nominal budget will decrease to 2008 levels and Czech Radio's budget will decrease to 2005 levels.
Public broadcasters argue that the cuts are financially unsustainable and will seriously affect broadcasting operations.
According to research conducted by the Reuters Institute in 2025, Czech Television and Czech Radio are among the most followed and trusted news sources in the country.
COMPARISON TO HUNGARY FROM THE OPPOSITION
Opposition parties likened the government's initiative towards public broadcasting to the media policies implemented in Hungary during the Viktor Orbán administration.
Pointing out that the weight of pro-government media organizations increased in Hungary during the Orbán period, the opposition warned that a similar process could occur in the Czech Republic.
The media policies of Orbán, one of Babiš's allies, have long been the subject of debate in Europe in terms of press freedom and media pluralism.
On the other hand, the government coalition in the Czech Republic has accused both private media organizations and public broadcasters of biased reporting in the past.
The controversial regulation was unexpectedly presented to parliament by the government parties on Friday last month.
The proposal passed the first stage with the vote held in the early hours of Saturday morning, as the opposition argued that the meeting and debate time was limited.
In order for the regulation to become law, it must be re-discussed in parliament.
PRIME MINISTER BABİŠ: WE DO NOT WANT TO CONTROL PUBLIC MEDIA
Prime Minister Andrej Babiš rejected criticism of the government.
Stating that they have fulfilled their promise to change the financing system of public broadcasting in his statement on Monday, Babiš said that their aim is to ease the financial burden of citizens.
Babiš said, "There is no struggle over democracy here. Nobody wants to take over the public media or bring it under state control."
The Prime Minister also stated that changes could be made to the bill during the discussions in the parliament.
However, employees and the opposition warn that tying the financing of public broadcasters to the government's annual budget decisions could pave the way for political interventions in the long term.
