Journalists urge PM Babiš to respect independent media

More than 20 Czech editors-in-chief have called on Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and other politicians to respect free, independent and critical journalism.

They stressed that independent media are an essential pillar of any democratic society, ensuring public oversight of state power. According to the signatories, every democratic politician must be able to withstand such scrutiny.

The appeal came in response to Babiš’s Saturday social media post, in which he criticized outlets including Seznam Zprávy, Novinky.cz and the daily Právo, saying they had long abandoned objectivity and become political actors. He described their reporting as an “open campaign” against the coalition government and said the outlets were “completely untrustworthy” due to alleged “lies, manipulation and bias.”