Polish media regulator rejects censorship of Russian propaganda
PR dla Zagranicy
Aleksander Nowacki
05.03.2015 16:51
Poland’s media regulator resisted calls from politicians to crack down Radio Sputnik broadcasts of Russian government propaganda, citing freedom of speech on Thursday.
Jan Dworak, media regulator. Photo: http://commons.wikimedia.org
Radio Hobby, a small station based on the outskirts of Warsaw, has been re-broadcasting Radio Sputnik, a Polish-language affiliate of the Kremlin-controlled Voice of Russia.
Bogdan Borusewicz, the speaker of the upper house of parliament, described the situation as “strange” during the Senate debate on media law. Borusewicz was recently denied entry to Russia for the funeral of assassinated opposition figure, Boris Nemtsov.
The media regulator could theoretically invoke “national interest” to crack down on the Russian propaganda broadcasts, said its head, Jan Dworak. But this would be an “exceptionally strong instrument” and would potentially open a “crack in the system of European values, which is based on the principles of free speech”. (an)
Source: PAP