Several thousand people gathered in Prague on October 25, 2026, to protest a Czech media funding proposal that would replace public television and radio licence fees with direct state budget allocations.

Key Takeaways

  • The proposed reform would cut public broadcasters’ budgets by around 15%.
  • The governing coalition says funding would be protected by law, while critics warn of a threat to editorial independence.

What the Czech media funding bill would change

The lower house of parliament voted on October 24 to fast-track the bill. It must still pass the upper house before becoming law, and the opposition has pledged to challenge the plans in the constitutional court.

The coalition led by Prime Minister Andrej Babis, which includes two far-right parties, says public broadcasters need to make savings. Replacing licence fees with state allocations would change how the broadcasters receive their funding as well as reduce their budgets.

Independence concerns

Demonstrators in Prague’s Old Town Square accused the government of threatening press freedom. The European Broadcasting Union, European Federation of Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and International Press Institute are among the organisations that have criticised the plans.

Babis said on October 24 that no one wanted to interfere with programming or news coverage. He said funding would be guaranteed by law as mandatory expenditure, preventing governments from cutting it arbitrarily based on their views of broadcasts.

President Petr Pavel called public service media fundamental pillars of democracy and warned against hasty, irreversible steps.

Next milestone

A larger demonstration is planned in Prague on November 15, 2026.

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