A thought-provoking article by Dariusz Kalan, titled “Government Change in Poland: How to Dismantle a Propaganda Machine”, was published in Der Spiegel on February 6th. The article raises important questions about the future of public broadcasting in Poland and its impact on the political landscape. We are happy to announce that the article includes insights from Dr. Paweł Maranowski, sociologist and Vice Rector for Student Affairs at Collegium Civitas.

The article reflects recent changes in Poland, where with the Law and Justice (PiS) no longer in power, there’s a notable shift in the political landscape. Particularly, the role of TVP, Poland’s public television, gains significance in this context. Dr. Paweł Maranowski, emphasizes that TVP’s target audience primarily consists of PiS supporters. He suggests that by exposing scandals from the PiS era and adopting a new narrative in the public media, there’s potential for PiS voters to reassess their positions. However, Dr. Maranowski cautiones that such a transformation would likely be gradual.

“Many of these people are retirees who have little or no internet access, and for whom public broadcasting is the only source of information“, says Dr. Maranowski. “The PiS has benefited from this fact for years. Whether and to what extent the freshly renovated TVP will change the relationship between the aging rural population and the PiS remains to be seen”.