Final Word from Thursday, April 20, 2023

Owner Jaromír Soukup of TV Barrandov, who built a major media company and once served as deputy education minister, became a laughing stock after he began hosting his own news, debate and entertainment shows in 2017. It was partly his own fault, because he spread himself too thin and even showed off his cooking skills on air. But he is in fact an intelligent and talented businessman and entertainer who made the bigger "mistake" of criticizing Czech TV. He announced five years ago this month that he would step up his attacks on its finances and activities and see where it took him. On Jan. 8 of this year he explained in detail how contracts with outside production companies at ČT are used to steal money. Many in the media who still make fun of Soukup have a past or current connection to the money pipeline. Candidates for CEO of ČT - and esp. incumbent Petr Dvořák - should explain what they plan to do to stop the theft, but the "independent and democratic" media won't even bother to ask. [ Czech Republic Television Médea external ]