International Journal of Communications Law & Policy

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	Issue 2 (Winter 1998-99)

HISTORY OF THE CZECH PRESS LAW - A MISSING DEFINITION OF PUBLIC INTEREST - THE OBSTACLE TO THE NEW MEDIA LEGISLATION IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC?

By Milan Smid

Download the Paper in PDF Format: IJCLP Web-Doc 13-2-1999

Abstract

Czech media law consists of several Acts pertaining to different press, radio and television activities, most of which were adopted during the past nine years. However, one of them, the Press Law was originally adopted on 25 October 1966, i.e. the Czech media and journalists are still governed by an Act which is more than 30 years old.

Quite recently, on 19 August, the newly elected Czech parliament approved the programme statement of the sixth Czech government formed after the collapse of communist regime in Czechoslovakia in 1989.

The programme statement includes a promise to "ensure drafting of complete media legislation... compatible with EU conditions," among others to adopt the new media law applicable to the press and electronic media (radio, TV).

So Milos Zeman's minority Social Democrat cabinet, the first leftist government in the Czech Republic since 1989, is going to be another government trying to get rid of the only remaining part of the Czech media legislation which originated in the totalitarian past.