Poles to protest bill that would silence US-owned TV network

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WARSAW – Nationwide demonstrations are planned crossed Poland Tuesday against a measure wide viewed arsenic a effort by the country’s ruling nationalist enactment to soundlessness an independent, U.S.-owned tv broadcaster captious of the government.

At involvement successful the bill's transition is Poland's estimation for media state and arsenic a spot for overseas companies to bash business. If it passes it is besides apt to strain relations with the country's strategical ally, the United States.

Technically, the measure would forestall non-European owners from having controlling stakes successful Polish media companies.

In practice, it would propulsion the U.S. institution Discovery Inc. to merchantability its controlling involvement successful the broadcaster TVN, which operates galore channels — astir notably TVN24, an all-news station. TVN besides has a flagship evening quality programme connected its main transmission that is watched by millions daily.

The ruling party, Law and Justice, has agelong sought to nationalize the media sector, citing nationalist security, and says the instrumentality would bring Poland into enactment with different European countries, including France and Germany, which bounds overseas ownership successful the media sector. Party lawmakers person precocious argued it is needed to support Polish media from being taken implicit by Russian, Chinese oregon Arab capital.

“We request to support Poland against the introduction of assorted entities from countries that are hostile to us,” said Marek Suski, the caput of a radical of Law and Justice lawmakers who introduced the measure past month.

Its passage, however, remains unclear since a inferior spouse successful the right-wing ruling conjugation views the measure arsenic an onslaught connected pluralism, though it could prime up votes from far-right absorption lawmakers.

TVN24 is the starring root of autarkic broadcast quality for galore Poles. The presumption celebrated the 20th day of its motorboat connected Monday with a definite fanfare underlining concerns implicit its fate.

Demonstrations successful enactment of the TVN broadcaster are planned successful 78 cities and towns Tuesday evening, the time earlier parliament is owed to statement the bill. The protests are organized by the Committee for the Defense of Democracy, nether the slogan “free media, escaped people, escaped Poland," and supported by respective property state and quality rights groups.

Discovery had already felt endangered arsenic the National Broadcasting Council, a Polish authorities body, has truthful acold failed to renew the broadcast licence of TVN24, which expires successful precocious September.

The bill’s destiny is being watched arsenic a cardinal trial of media state and ideology much broadly nether a authorities that is accused of chipping distant astatine antiauthoritarian norms.

Critics fearfulness it would beryllium a ample measurement bringing Poland person to the media scenery successful Hungary, wherever authoritarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has gained near-total power implicit the media arsenic backstage outlets person either folded oregon travel nether the power of his allies.

Since Law and Justice took powerfulness successful 2015, it has already turned tax-funded nationalist TV into a enactment mouthpiece. Lately it has been seeking greater power implicit backstage media, with the state lipid company buying a ample backstage media radical past year.

TVN represents the largest ever U.S. concern successful Poland. The institution was bought for $2 cardinal by different U.S. company, Scripps Networks Interactive, which was aboriginal acquired by Discovery.

The planned authorities is straining ties betwixt Poland and the United States, a cardinal state that Warsaw depends upon for information astatine a clip of Russian resurgence.

Last week a bipartisan Congressional radical expressed its expanding interest “about the ongoing attacks connected the escaped press, autarkic judiciary and the regularisation of instrumentality successful Poland.”

A radical of erstwhile Polish overseas and defence ministers wrote an unfastened missive to the Polish authorities past week expressing fears the projected authorities could weaken ties with the U.S., which has troops stationed successful Poland and sells Poland subject equipment.

The ex-ministers called connected the authorities to “stop hostile actions against American investors and to respect the basal values shared by the Western countries that are affable to Poland — democracy, the regularisation of instrumentality and state of speech.”

Jean-Briac Perrette, president and CEO of Discovery International, called the planned ballot connected the measure concerning, informing that escaped media is astatine involvement and that “an unpredictable regulatory model should beryllium precise concerning for each imaginable investors successful the market.”

The improvement comes arsenic Discovery is acceptable to merge adjacent twelvemonth into a mega-company with AT&T’s WarnerMedia.

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