Journalists’ federation condemns Czech public media funding plan

The International Federation of Journalists has condemned a Czech government proposal to fund Czech Television and Czech Radio directly from the state budget. Delegates at the organisation’s congress in Paris warned the plan would increase political control over public media and undermine their independence, the Czech News Agency reported, citing the Czech Journalists’ Syndicate.

The government wants to abolish licence fees from next January and replace them with state funding. Under the proposal, both broadcasters would also receive less money than they currently collect through fees.

The journalists’ federation says the changes conflict with European rules on media freedom and has called on Prime Minister Andrej Babiš to withdraw the proposal. Staff at Czech Television and Czech Radio have already declared strike readiness in protest.