Gazeta-gate - the elite are really on trial
So much has already been said about the Rywin scandal that one needs to have either fresh information about the games behind the scenes or to look at the matter from a different perspective, to hope for as much as a chance to interest the reader of the Business Journal. It, therefore, may be interesting to consider the perspective of millions of Poles who are fed up with being fed yet more information or comments about the matter every day. Or perhaps, from the point of view of the media, the thousands of journalists who finally got the opportunity to look behind the scenes at the biggest daily in Poland to see Gazeta Wyborcza not all done up on its usual pedestal and preaching, but rather stumbling around making mistakes and having to make excuses or trying to explain its version of events. Not a comfortable position to be in. Instead of doing its customary accusing, Gazeta Wyborcza finds itself under attack.
When people looked behind the scenes, what did they see? Public opinion was clearly critical of the matter. About 67% do not believe that it will finally be explained until the guilty are charged in court. What is the origin of such a high level of distrust for politicians and the media? I think, paradoxically, that the Rywin affair is not such a huge surprise for many people.
One of the most important accusations against the elite is the system of political-business interconnections, which creates the conditions for corruption on a large scale. And the fact that "big names" have been mentioned in connection with Rywin's story only serves to confirm a general conviction about the huge scale of the problem.
Such a social mood and poor opinion ratings for the political class are increasingly dangerous for the stability of the country. They begin to threaten the elementary rules from which we have gradually reconstructed democracy in Poland. A side effect of such thinking - "even they do it" - is the widespread tendency for people to absolve themselves for similar behaviour on a micro scale.
People such as Lew Rywin, who until recently were grand authorities in the media world, supply proof that there are not many trustworthy people in this country any more. How is the state going to work if the political class is so evidently dishonest? How are they going to lead society through more difficult reforms, if this elite remain so utterly greedy and egotistical?
Let's turn to what the journalists themselves, the Fourth Estate, have to say. The origin of the affair last summer was, of course, a draft of the new law concerning the regulation of radio and television, furiously fought against by the private media from the start. And despite all the rhetoric, it is not so much about values, but the leverage of money and power. Plus, of course, politics. Politics and business cross many times in the market of the media, and that is not a Polish invention since it is easy to point to some rather similar problems within the EU. The difference is that other countries have more substantial legal regulations and "safety catches" to protect them from affairs such as this.
But, unfortunately, mistakes made at the birth of the Third Republic have brought their harvest now. After 1989, the media market in Poland shaped itself more or less spontaneously, which was beneficial for those who in those times acquired new political power, together with those in their closest circles. Decisions about who would benefit from the rich legacy of the former PZPR press company, RSW Prasa Ksišżka Ruch, were made by the first Solidarnoć-based governments. No one gave a thought then that legal solutions might form a positive base for the proper regulation of the media market. It is tragic that efficient solutions practised abroad were not implemented here.
It was thought there was no need for any regulations because the free market would do it better. Dreamland in its purest form, but how convenient. Convenient mainly for those owners of the media who, enjoying huge political and economic power, can decide effectively what the rules are in the media.
And there you are. If there are no legal regulations, everyone can have a good time. Opportunities naturally come into one's hands. And not everyone can resist temptation, which is what the Rywin example appears to prove. There is no other field the establishment neglected so effectively where legal frameworks are concerned. Helpless associations of journalists involved in prolonged historical disputes are no real partners either for the authorities or for their employers. And the fact is that no effective forces exist which can represent the interests of media employees before their employers.
The result is a long list of sins of media owners, both foreign and domestic. Professional relations in the drafting of editorials in papers here that are owned by German or Norwegian press giants are strikingly different from those appearing in papers in Germany or Norway, or anywhere else. Balancing at the edge of legality, there are creative legal solutions constructed solely to protect the interests of employers. It leads to the situation where a Polish journalist, with the exception of those employed by a narrow group of titles, is pauperised, subjected and reduced to the role of advertising salesman.
The real picture of those who labour in our media market is low pay and exploitation. It is an image hidden with shame behind a few prosperous titles.
The Rywin affair puts the Polish media as a whole beneath the spotlight, immediately illuminating conflicts of interests. Everybody who treats this affair as an excuse to cook their own stew entered the game. And the worst case scenario is that everybody will win something, but our media and the professional journalists who serve it will be left high and dry.
When people looked behind the scenes, what did they see? Public opinion was clearly critical of the matter. About 67% do not believe that it will finally be explained until the guilty are charged in court. What is the origin of such a high level of distrust for politicians and the media? I think, paradoxically, that the Rywin affair is not such a huge surprise for many people.
One of the most important accusations against the elite is the system of political-business interconnections, which creates the conditions for corruption on a large scale. And the fact that "big names" have been mentioned in connection with Rywin's story only serves to confirm a general conviction about the huge scale of the problem.
Such a social mood and poor opinion ratings for the political class are increasingly dangerous for the stability of the country. They begin to threaten the elementary rules from which we have gradually reconstructed democracy in Poland. A side effect of such thinking - "even they do it" - is the widespread tendency for people to absolve themselves for similar behaviour on a micro scale.
People such as Lew Rywin, who until recently were grand authorities in the media world, supply proof that there are not many trustworthy people in this country any more. How is the state going to work if the political class is so evidently dishonest? How are they going to lead society through more difficult reforms, if this elite remain so utterly greedy and egotistical?
Let's turn to what the journalists themselves, the Fourth Estate, have to say. The origin of the affair last summer was, of course, a draft of the new law concerning the regulation of radio and television, furiously fought against by the private media from the start. And despite all the rhetoric, it is not so much about values, but the leverage of money and power. Plus, of course, politics. Politics and business cross many times in the market of the media, and that is not a Polish invention since it is easy to point to some rather similar problems within the EU. The difference is that other countries have more substantial legal regulations and "safety catches" to protect them from affairs such as this.
But, unfortunately, mistakes made at the birth of the Third Republic have brought their harvest now. After 1989, the media market in Poland shaped itself more or less spontaneously, which was beneficial for those who in those times acquired new political power, together with those in their closest circles. Decisions about who would benefit from the rich legacy of the former PZPR press company, RSW Prasa Ksišżka Ruch, were made by the first Solidarnoć-based governments. No one gave a thought then that legal solutions might form a positive base for the proper regulation of the media market. It is tragic that efficient solutions practised abroad were not implemented here.
It was thought there was no need for any regulations because the free market would do it better. Dreamland in its purest form, but how convenient. Convenient mainly for those owners of the media who, enjoying huge political and economic power, can decide effectively what the rules are in the media.
And there you are. If there are no legal regulations, everyone can have a good time. Opportunities naturally come into one's hands. And not everyone can resist temptation, which is what the Rywin example appears to prove. There is no other field the establishment neglected so effectively where legal frameworks are concerned. Helpless associations of journalists involved in prolonged historical disputes are no real partners either for the authorities or for their employers. And the fact is that no effective forces exist which can represent the interests of media employees before their employers.
The result is a long list of sins of media owners, both foreign and domestic. Professional relations in the drafting of editorials in papers here that are owned by German or Norwegian press giants are strikingly different from those appearing in papers in Germany or Norway, or anywhere else. Balancing at the edge of legality, there are creative legal solutions constructed solely to protect the interests of employers. It leads to the situation where a Polish journalist, with the exception of those employed by a narrow group of titles, is pauperised, subjected and reduced to the role of advertising salesman.
The real picture of those who labour in our media market is low pay and exploitation. It is an image hidden with shame behind a few prosperous titles.
The Rywin affair puts the Polish media as a whole beneath the spotlight, immediately illuminating conflicts of interests. Everybody who treats this affair as an excuse to cook their own stew entered the game. And the worst case scenario is that everybody will win something, but our media and the professional journalists who serve it will be left high and dry.
