The lost decade of Czech journalism
It's the year 2020, and the last of the Czech newspapers has been wrenched from the hands of the oligarchs who stripped them of their independence and respectability and drove them into the ground financially. The independent media are thriving again. Newspapers are providing unbiased news, and start-ups are no longer the frequent targets of Czech billionaires with global political influence. Even Czech TV has chosen a general director with no ties to any of the Five Families or to production companies making overpriced period dramas. Commentators are stressing how close the country came to a media dictatorship. A debate is waging about a new lustration law that would require anyone entering public office to prove that he or she never worked for one of the media oligarchs. Predictably, some of the biggest critics of the law are the writers and editors who won awards during the lost decade of Czech journalism.
Glossary of difficult words
to wrench something - to pull or twist something suddenly and violently;to thrive - to prosper or flourish;
period drama - a production with costumes, sets and designs used to capture the atmosphere of a particular era;
lustration - (in this context) a screening process for determining past affiliation with a group currently considered unsuitable.