The media landscape is characterised by three major trends: the significant concentration of large media groups (Czech New Centre, MAFRA and Economia, etc.) owned by major economic players; the rise of new independent media, which have carved out a place for themselves in this landscape (HlídacíPes, Deník N, etc.), in response to this development; and the strong presence of respected public media (Česká Televize and Český Rozhlas), which, nonetheless, remain at the mercy of possible political pressure.

The pressure exerted on journalists in recent years has been essentially verbal, with some political actors not hesitating to ride the current wave of distrust of the media. In 2023, the MAFRA group was sold by former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, who until then embodied the conflict of interest between the political and the media world.

Free access to information is guaranteed by law. In 2023, the end of the term of former President Miloš Zeman, who was known for his distrust of journalists, also marked the end of a form of obstruction. The current ruling coalition led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala approved a bill aimed at strengthening the independence of public media by overhauling their governance. An amendment to the “Lex Babiš” law has virtually barred senior officials from media ownership and has restricted access to state subsidies.

 In the absence of a system of state subsidies and with the decline in advertising revenue, privately owned media are increasingly financed by the monetisation of content. Small, independent media resort to financing by non-profit organisations and private foundations. Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s government has announced plans to increase the household tax that finances public media, the first increase in more than 15 years.

Unrestrained attacks on journalists from the highest levels of government have fuelled public mistrust of journalists. It is also encouraged by disinformation networks, which have grown since the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Attacks on journalists are mainly verbal. Online insults and threats, which are mostly anonymous, have increased since the Covid-19 pandemic, which intensified the polarisation of opinions. Moreover, some women journalists have been the direct targets of hate-filled comments.