Thousands protest Czech government's public media overhaul
Thousands rally in Prague after lawmakers advance changes to Czech public media funding, with critics warning the plan could weaken broadcaster independence.
Thousands of people rallied in central Prague on Sunday (October 25) after Czech government lawmakers gave initial approval to an overhaul of public media funding in an overnight vote that critics say could undermine the independence of national broadcasters.
The legislation would abolish household licence fees that currently fund Czech Television and Czech Radio and replace them with financing from the state budget.
Opposition parties, media organisations and press-freedom groups have raised concerns that making the broadcasters dependent on government-controlled funding could expose them to greater political pressure.
Prime Minister Andrej Babis has rejected those claims, arguing that the changes are intended to improve transparency in the way public media are financed.
Overnight vote fuels criticism
The bill was unexpectedly brought forward for its first reading in the lower house on Friday, outside the previously scheduled parliamentary agenda.
Smaller demonstrations began that day as opponents criticised the government for accelerating consideration of the legislation.
Lower-house Speaker Tomio Okamura, from the far-right SPD party, limited the debate before scheduling a vote for 4.36am on Saturday.
The bill passed its initial stage and has now moved to parliamentary committees before a later vote.
By Sunday, protesters had filled Prague’s historic Old Town Square, chanting calls for resignation and expressing anger over both the proposed changes and the way the legislation had been handled.
Protest leader Mikulas Minar accused Babis and Okamura of pushing the measure through without sufficient scrutiny and told the crowd that the government had gone too far.
Organisers said further demonstrations were planned.
Funding could fall by about 15%
The proposal could reduce funding for Czech Television and Czech Radio by about 15%, potentially as early as next year.
Czech Television is the country’s most-watched broadcaster across major age groups, while public media rank among the Czech Republic’s most trusted sources of news, according to a 2025 Reuters Institute survey cited by Reuters.
Opposition parties have compared the proposed changes with media reforms introduced in Hungary under former prime minister Viktor Orban, whose period in office saw a major expansion of pro-government media.
On Friday, the European Broadcasting Union and 15 other organisations, including public broadcasters and Reporters Without Borders, called for broader debate and the removal of provisions they said could threaten the financial sustainability of Czech public media.
Czech President Petr Pavel has also called for greater expert scrutiny of the proposal.
He said the Czech Republic was among the relatively small number of countries in Central and Eastern Europe where public-service and private media systems continued to function well alongside each other.
Source: Reuters
