Editing Mass media in Poland (section)

==Media freedom and pluralism==
In recent years, according to [[Reporters Without Borders]], in particular since the PiS went to power in 2015 and ended in 2023, media freedom in Poland has been significantly deteriorating.

Several weeks after winning the 2015 parliamentary elections, the PiS passed a media law which gave the government direct control over public broadcasting. It also replaced journalists working in the public radio and TV stations and attempted to throttle several independent print media outlets, such as ''[[Gazeta Wyborcza]]'', ''[[Polityka]]'' and ''[[Newsweek Polska]]'' by restricting public advertising.<ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.krakowpost.com/14419/2017/05/poland-press-freedom-index-reporters-without-borders|title=Poland continues plummet in Press Freedom Index |date=2017-05-01|work=The Krakow Post|access-date=2018-02-16|language=en-US}}</ref> According to [[Freedom House]], this effort is part of a broader attempt to weaken checks and balances, silence independent voices and control the public sphere.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://freedomhouse.org/article/new-report-pluralism-under-attack-assault-press-freedom-poland|title=New Report: Pluralism under Attack — The Assault on Press Freedom in Poland|website=freedomhouse.org|language=en|access-date=2018-02-16}}</ref> PiS's control on the executive branch and the executive can undermine the independence of the judiciary and its aggressive attitude towards the Constitutional Tribunal has prompted accusations that it is undermining the rule of law in Poland.<ref name=":5" /> In January 2016, the European Commission launched a procedure in order to impose the respect of the rule of law in the country.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://rsf.org/en/poland|title=Poland: Media freedom and pluralism in jeopardy |website=RSF|language=fr-FR|access-date=2018-02-16}}</ref>

[[Reporters Without Borders]] in its 2019 assessment of Poland stated that the public media "have been transformed into government propaganda mouthpieces."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://rsf.org/en/poland|title=Poland|website=Reporters Without Borders|date=2019}}</ref> Poland is rated "Partly Free" in Freedom House's 2017 "Freedom of the Press" report.<ref name=":0" /> It is ranked 62 out of 180 countries in the 2020 World Press Freedom index by Reporters Without Borders, down from 18th in 2015.<ref name=rsf2019>{{cite web|url=https://rsf.org/en/ranking/2019|title=2019 World Press Freedom Index|website=Reporters with Borders}}</ref>

===Public television and radio broadcasters===
[[File:Minęła 20.JPG|left|thumb|[[TVP Info]] live broadcast]]
After winning parliamentary elections in October 2015, the PiS party replaced the management positions at the public television and radio broadcasters. This effort was not limited to public broadcasters since the party leadership tried to control also private media outlets for instance by advancing a proposal to restrict reporters’ access to the parliament.<ref name=":5" />

In December 2015 the so-called "small media law" prepared by PiS was sent to the Polish parliament. The proposal, which was conceived as a temporary measure before the adoption of a more comprehensive media law, provided for the termination of the mandates of the current members of the national television and radio broadcasters’ management and supervisory boards and their replacement through the direct appointment by the treasury minister. The law created great turmoil in public media: the directors of several public channels left their position in protest. Public protests occurred across Poland as well as abroad in the environment connected the community of Poles living abroad.<ref name=":5" />
[[File:Sygnały Dnia PR1 (1).JPG|thumb|[[Polskie Radio Program I|Polish Radio Channel 1]] broadcast studio]]
The staffing changes were not limited to the managing positions. According to the Association of Journalists, 225 journalists left the public media during 2016, due to either layoffs or resignations.<ref name=":5" /> The new law and its effects were widely criticized also abroad: the [[European Federation of Journalists]], the [[European Broadcasting Union]], the [[Association of European Journalists]], [[Reporters Without Borders]], the [[Committee to Protect Journalists]] and [[Index on Censorship]] denounced this decision. In January 2016, the [[European Commission]] discussed the "small media law" in the frame of its assessment of the situation in Poland under the [[Rule of Law Framework]].<ref name=":5" />

In December 2016, the Constitutional Tribunal declared parts of the "small media law" unconstitutional, calling for the need to constitutional rules on the KRRiT which should have played a decisive role in appointing its management and supervisory boards.<ref name=":5" />
[[File:Grubson i Jarecki w Czwórce.jpg|left|thumb|A music concert organized at [[Polskie Radio Program IV|Polish Radio Channel 4]] in 2017]]
In the first months of 2016 the PiS's government worked on a "big media law", a more comprehensive reform of the media system. In April 2016, a draft Law on National Media was presented to the Parliament. The draft wanted to transform the public radio and television broadcasters into "national media", thus shifting away from the model of editorially independent public service. The bill obliged the public media to disseminate the views of the prime minister, the president, and the speakers of the parliament and stated that the public media should preserve national traditions, patriotic and Christian values and strengthen the national community. The [[Council of Europe]] criticized the draft, describing it a move towards a "State broadcasters".<ref>{{Cite journal|date=6 June 2016|title=Opinion of Council of Europe experts on the three draft acts regarding Polish public service media|url=https://rm.coe.int/168065e9eb|journal=Council of Europe}}</ref> The law was not adopted: the government decided to pursue a less ambitious approach and proposed the Parliament a "bridge law" to go into force at the expiration of the "small media law". The "bridge law" was approved in June 2016: the law stated that a newly established National Media Council have to be responsible for the appointment of the management and supervisory boards of the public media. The arrangement established by the law effectively guarantees the rule party a key role in appointing the members of the national Media Council.<ref name=":5" />  The law also does not forbid the new council's members from belonging to  political party.<ref name=":5" />