Final Word from Tuesday, July 11, 2023

Vice Chair Pavel Matocha of the Czech TV Council told Lidové noviny that Petr Dvořák probably lost his chance to be reelected as CEO of the public station because he fought with the Council, instead of working with it. As an example, Matocha said the Council had found several times that the code of ethics was violated in broadcasts but that Dvořák refused to accept this or to address the issue. There have been numerous theories over the years about why Dvořák refused to address questions of biased reporting at ČT, from his close ties to PPF or Bison & Rose, to the inability of a CEO of the public station to exercise managerial control over the editorial part. Newly elected CEO Jan Souček is vowing to enforce the code of ethics and acknowledges that convincing skeptic viewers that ČT doesn't favor the current government is a long-term task. His arrival won't mean a revolution, he said. Which could mean he underestimates the size of the problem or doesn't really plan to address it either. [ Czech Republic Television public relations PR ]