As the Polish parliament prepares to debate the controversial foreign media ownership bill on Wednesday, 78 protests against the bill have been planned for Tuesday evening. The protests are led by …
group, which operates TVN24, widely regarded as the leading source of independent broadcast news for many Poles. Valued at around $2 billion, TVN represents the largest U.S. investment in Poland.
Discovery – which is set to merge with WarnerMedia in a mega-deal expected to close mid-2022 – applied to renew its current ten-year media license for TVN 18 months ago. But it is still waiting on the National Broadcasting Council for approval. The license is set to expire on Sept. 26, 2021. “The politicization of the license renewal for TVN24 to operate is a real concern. So is the vote that will take place in the Polish parliament this week – not just to us as a company, but to the Polish people, to the Polish economy, and to any company investing in Poland,” said“The rule of law and free media is a crucial part of every democracy, and we will continue to strongly defend TVN’s role as the country’s leading independent news provider.
Poland’s ruling party, Law and Justice, has raised national security reasons to pass the bill, with some lawmakers arguing that it is necessary to protect Polish media from Russian, Chinese or Arab investment. “We need to protect Poland against the entry of various entities from countries that are hostile to us,” lawmaker Marek Suski told AP. Lawmakers also point to other European countries where foreign media ownership is limited, including France and Germany.
If passed, the bill may be expected to strain business and political relationships between the U.S. and Poland.
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