Final Word from Friday, April 7, 2006
Now that we have your attention and trust, we'd like to sell you a mirage in the desert. That's the way some Czech media operate. They use their dominant position to promote their own interests or those of others. TV Prima ran a documentary on Sazka Arena but didn't bother mentioning that it was made by a Sazka subsidiary. MFD said the best thing TV viewers can do is buy a digital set-top box (so they can watch MFD's sister station, Óčko, no doubt). Euro reported that jailed land speculator Miloš Červenka might lose his hundreds of hectares of Prague property but neglected to mention that Euro's sister company, PPF Banka, is the one with a lien on it. (Euro's competitor, Týden, pointed this out.) The problem for readers who spot such abuses is knowing what is honest reporting and what is self-interested propaganda. Now about that oasis we'd like to show you.... [Czech Republic television MF Dnes Mafra journalism publishing]