Final Word from Tuesday, August 12, 2003
When CME announced its arbitration suit against TV Nova, Nova's initial response was defensive. Its evening news report last Thur. was notable for its lack of objectivity. Nova even enlisted the help of Jan Sýkora of Wood & Co., a broker who appears frequently on the station to give analytical comments but who has never so blatantly taken sides. Nova has since dropped the arbitration issue from its coverage, suggesting that it, too, realizes it overreacted. PPF and MEF Holding seemed to fear that the Vladimír Špidla government could join forces with CME against it. They might also fear that the arbitration will shine light on the ownership mess at TV Nova. Jan Vávra of ČNTS/CME noted on the BBC in mid-May that it's not clear who owns CET 21, the license company. A quick review of the commercial registry shows that it isn't PPF or MEF, despite claims that they're in control.