News battleground becomes horribly personal
Vienna, March 3, 2023
by Edward Steen, Secretary-General
“Unknown persons are threatening Marta Jančkárová in e-mails, couched in extremely aggressive and vulgar language, with physical liquidation, torture, mass rape, and attacks against her family members,” RTVS declared in its statement (to us). The public broadcaster won’t release the content of the e-mails due to their hateful and vulgar character.”
On Monday (06/03) members of the AEJ international board, including President Saia Tsaousidou and myself, will arrive in Bratislava to investigate what seem to be intolerable outrages against our Slovak colleague.
The threatening e-mails and telephone calls were received after an episode of the political talkshow Sobotné Dialógy on 18/02/23 and another broadcast on 25/02/23 when Smer-SD vice-chair Luboš Blaha, a vocal Russophile, was rejected by RTVS when he insisted on appearing on the show instead of his party colleague Marián Kéry to argue the corner against interim Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď.
In reaction to Blaha’s rejection Smer-SD announced it would initiate an extraordinary session of the House Culture and Media Committee over alleged censorship. RTVS has alerted politicians to increased public aggression against journalists.
On 25/02 Smer-SD also threatened RTVS’s director that the party would “go for his throat” in connection with Ľuboš Blaha not being allowed on the programme.
Marta Jančkárová had explained on-air, at the beginning of the show, that Smer-SD had confirmed Kery’s participation on 22/02. “Shortly before the show, however, Smer-SD vice-chair Luboš Blaha showed up at the radio building unannounced.
“The spokesperson, however, hadn’t announced any changes or excused Mr. Kery from the show, which was shot on Friday (24/02) morning due to the itinerary of the interim Defence Ministry. Because of this, we’re applying the empty seat principle.”
- Russian foreign minister Sergej Lavrov was publicly ridiculed in India yesterday (03/03/23) for referring to “the war we are trying to stop and which was launched against us”.
- Tuesday 7 March 2023 sees publication by the CoE’s Platform to Promote the Protection of Journalism and Safety of Journalists of its annual report War in
Europe and the Fight for the Right to Report, written by the Platform’s Partner Organisations, a coalition of 15 press freedom NGOs and journalists’ associations. A press conference will be held at the Premises of the Brussels Press Club, Rue Froissart 95, from 10.30 to 12.00 a.m. CET. You can also join it online via Zoom or follow the livestream from 10.00 CET.