Public media as government censors
Col. Otakar Foltýn officially assumes the role today of coordinator of strategic communications for the cabinet and, according to LN, will have a dozen employees under him. One of their jobs will be to defend against disinformation. If the proposed bill for raising the user's fees for Czech TV and Czech Radio passes as proposed by the culture ministry, Foltýn's staff and the other offices charged with combatting disinformation, including BIS counterintelligence, will get additional help from the public media. By law Czech TV and Czech Radio will be required to "contribute to countering disinformation, while respecting freedom of speech." By requiring the public media to assist the government in a task that is otherwise delegated to government agencies, Parliament will be blurring the line between "public" media and "state" media. It would be more transparent if the ruling coalition amended the media law to make Czech TV and Czech Radio directly subordinate to BIS and the cabinet office.
Glossary of difficult words
to counter - to speak or act in opposition to;
to delegate - to entrust (a task or responsibility) to another person, typically one who is less senior than oneself;
to blur - to make or become unclear or less distinct;
subordinate - subject to or under the authority of a superior.