Developments in Poland’s TV industry in the last few months have been disturbing, to say the least.
They reflect a wider political struggle that is currently taking place between the Law and Justice (PiS)-led government and its supporters on the one hand, and a wide range of opponents, some aligned to the previous (PO) government which lost power last autumn, on the other.
In the TV industry, the focus has very much been on the public broadcaster TVP, which underwent something of purge at the beginning of this year, with wholesale changes in management and indeed the departures of several well-known presenters.
These changes led to both national and international protests, the latter led by such bodies as the EBU, with the main concern expressed being that Poland, by treating its public broadcaster in this way, was attacking press freedom and moving towards something akin to a totalitarian state.
The PiS government has countered these arguments by saying that TVP had in fact become too politicised and mixed the reporting of facts with opinion. It had also lost sight of its true public service mission and despite being commercial found itself in serious financial difficulties.
The arguments on both sides were ramped up a few notches earlier this week, when the country’s National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT) published the results of a study into the news output of TVP and its two main rivals Polsat and TVN. It was highly critical of TVP and this, in turn, drew a sharp response from the broadcaster.
All this comes against the backdrop of upcoming legislation that will have far-reaching effects on TVP and undoubtedly also have some knock-on effects on the rest of the Polish TV industry. It will effectively see TVP, along with its radio counterpart and press agency, transformed into what are termed national media. They will focus more on their public service obligations and be less commercial than until now.
A key point is that earlier this week TVP strongly denied a press report claiming that it would stop carrying commercials altogether. It also accused the author of undermining the relationship between itself and its commercial partners in producing such a report.
The legislation should also help TVP’s financial position, with a new form of funding – receiver licence fees, charged through electricity bills – set to be introduced at the beginning of next year.
Unfortunately, we can expect many more twists and turns in what is ultimately a political battle in which TVP has found itself centre stage.
