Tusk govt takes Poland state TV off air, PiS criticises 'Impartiality' push

Poland's Culture Ministry announced the suspension of a public news channel on Wednesday (Dec 20), along with the removal of executives from state media, citing the need to restore "impartiality" as a cornerstone of new Prime Minister Donald Tusk's reform agenda.

With this, a war of words has erupted between Tusk's Civic Platform, the largest party in the ruling government, and the Law and Justice (PiS) party, as the new government took decisive action to reform the media landscape in the country that has been touted as a mouthpiece for PiS.

Donald Tusk's return to power after nine years, securing parliamentary support for his government, is seeing a political shift.Tusk's reform plans encountered immediate resistance from the PiS, as dismissals at state television (TVP), radio, and news agency PAP unfolded in the wake of a parliamentary resolution calling for the restoration of public media impartiality.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

PiS strongly criticised the moves, with some politicians appearing at state broadcaster TVP headquarters, prompting police intervention.

Protesters also gathered outside TVP offices in various cities.

Tusk is a former European Council president who served in the position from 2014 to 2019. His pro-European Union coalition replaced the nationalist PiS party, which critics argue had undermined judicial independence and exploited state-owned media for propaganda during its eight-year tenure.

Also Read |Brazil's first lady Janja, Elon Musk lock horns after hacker posts lewd images and insults on X

The state-run 24-hour news channel TVP Info, known for its criticism of Tusk, was taken off air. Reacting to this, Civic Platform said on the social media platform, "The end of TVPiS."

Tusk pledges balanced media

The government pledged to establish stations with a more balanced approach to public service broadcasting.

Supporters of TVP Info argued that shutting it down would diminish pluralism by silencing a conservative voice aligned with PiS's stance on EU migration debates.

Also Read |Trump insists he hasn’t read Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ after backlash on remarks against migrants

Critics, including Tusk's predecessor Mateusz Morawiecki, deemed the management dismissals a takeover and illegal.

Watch |Israel-Hamas war: UNSC again delays vote on resolution calling for more humanitarian aid to Gaza

Amid the turmoil, Poland's President Andrzej Duda called on the government to respect the law and to keep politics aside.

(With inputs from agencies)