OMM Newsroom
Thousands of people gathered in central Prague on Sunday to protest the Czech government’s plan to scrap the licence fee and fund public media from the state budget, according to BBC World.
Critics say the proposal could allow politicians to restrict media freedom. The coalition government, made up of the populist ANO party and two right-wing Eurosceptic parties, says the change will not affect editorial independence but wants broadcasters to cut costs.
Parliament passed the first draft of the proposal late last month. Thousands of Czechs have joined protests since then.
Czech households currently pay 205 crowns ($9.44, £7.06) a month for “Czech Television” and “Czech Radio”.
The Sunday protest was organised by the Million Moments for Democracy association, which said roughly 400,000 people had attended. It was described as the largest protest since the Czech Republic became independent in 1993.
“I know that our entire Czech Television is a guarantee of truth and objectivity,” pensioner Milana Rudolfova, 72, told Reuters. “If we do not have public television and radio then unfortunately we will not be able to believe anything anymore.”
Some protesters wore pointed hats folded from newspapers, paying tribute to Večerníček, an animated character who has introduced “Czech Television”’s nightly children’s bedtime stories for decades.
Critics have compared the government’s media bill with changes in Hungary under former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who tightly controlled state media while in power.
Prime Minister Andrej Babis was appointed in December 2025 and has faced criticism over his coalition’s attacks on Czech media.
“Political attacks against private and public media have become one of the hallmarks of Andrej Babis’ premiership,” Pavol Szalai, Prague bureau director for press freedom organisation “Reporters Without Borders”, said in June.
