Warsaw, Poland: National demonstration planned Tuesday in Poland against the bill is widely seen as an effort by the country’s nationalist government party to silence television broadcasters owned by the government.
Technically, the bill will prevent non-European owners from controlling bets in Polish media companies.
In practice, it will encourage American company Discovery Inc.
To sell controlling shares on TVN, the network with many channels that operates the station all TVN24 news and has a flagship night news program watched by millions of daily.
What is at stake in the Bill Perikop is a reputation for Polish for media freedom and as a place for foreign companies to do business.
This proposal has tried hard with the United States, the main ally.
The ruling party, law and justice of Poland, has long tried to nationalize the media, citing national security, and said the law would bring Poland to other European countries, including France and Germany, which limited foreign ownership in the media sector.
It quotes media risks controlled by hostile strength such as Russia and China.
Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Tuesday that the law was not directed towards anyone but tried to protect the Poland community.
He accused, for example, that foreign entities tried to influence Poland’s public debate about Covid-19 vaccination.
“Through the media that other countries affect our social life,” he said at a press conference.
Demonstration to support TVN is planned in 78 cities and cities for Tuesday night, the previous night before parliament is set to debate the bill.
The bill was introduced last month.
The possibility of passing is high but uncertain because the junior partner in the Poland right-wing coalition government views the bill as an attack on pluralism.
Reporter without limits urged Polish parliamentarians to reject the law.
Allegations of law and justice “targets Polish leading independent TV broadcasers with the pretext of fighting disinformation and defending national security.” Freedom press group said it believed that the actual goal was “to allow the government allies to obtain TVN.” Poland fell this year to 64 of 180 countries in the world press freedom index, the lowest ranking.
It was in 18th place in 2015, the law and justice of the year took power over.
TVN24 is the main source of independent broadcast news for many poles.
This station celebrates the 20th anniversary of its launch on Monday.
Discovery has felt endangered as the National Broadcasting Board, Polish State Agency, so far failed to update broadcast licenses for TVN24, which ended at the end of September.
The fate of the bill was watched as the main test of media freedom and democracy.
The fear of criticism will be a big step to bring Poland closer to the media landscape in Hungary, where the authoritarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has gained control of approaching the media when a private outlet has folded or under the control of its allies.
The powerful party has changed the tax-funded public TV into a party funnel.
Lately it has been seeking greater control of personal media, with state oil companies to buy large private media groups last year.
TVN represents the biggest US investment in Poland.
The company is bought for $ 2 billion by the company U.S.
Others, Scripps Networks Interactive, which are then acquired by Discovery.
Last week the Bipartisan Congress group stated that increased fears “about ongoing attacks on free press, independent justice and legal supremacy in Poland.” Former foreign minister and Defense Poland wrote an open letter to the Polish government last week expressing concerns the proposed law could weaken the bond with the US, which had troops placed in Poland and sold Polish military equipment.
The former ministers asked the government to “stop hostile actions against American investors and to honor the basic values ​​distributed by Western countries that are friendly to Poland – democracy, the rule of law and freedom of speech.” Jean-Briac Perretet, President and CEO of Discovery International, said the sound planned on the bill regarding, warned that “the unpredictable regulatory framework must be very concerned with all potential investors on the market.” Development came as an invention regulated to join next year to become a Mega company with AT & T WarnerMedia.