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Diversity of Journalisms. Proceedings of ECREA/CICOM Conference, Pamplona, 4-5 July 2011
government and the Opposition, a historical agreement was reached. According to
Roszkowski (2001) it was the first time when a country from the soviet bloc diverted
from the communism to democracy and free market economy. It is worth
emphasizing, because that fact is barely visible in European scientific debate.
Furthermore, the Polish breakthrough was a spark and stimulus for similar historical
occurrences in other Central-East-European (CEE) countries, which was called an
avalanche effect (Dobek-Ostrowska, 2006). It might be also assumed to be a result of
the third wave of democratization (Huntigton, 1991).
Such dramatic socio-political changes led to the transformation of media system in
Poland. Strictly regulated, driven by the political monopoly system it had to be rebuilt.
In 1990 several crucial acts were passed. Some of them were going to transform the
Polish media. At the beginning, regulatory efforts were made in the press sector, in
due course in the electronic media. The most important bill was enacted on 22 nd of
March, 1990. In consequence, 105 newspapers were sold on an auction, 72 titles
were taken over by journalists cooperatives and 8 remained in the Treasury hands
(Schliep, 1996). Two weeks earlier the Seym passed a bill establishing local selfgovernments.
This act enabled communes to set up newspapers. Chorazki (1991)
estimated that thanks to the changes in law and enthusiastic attitude of the new
publishers about 3 thousands of small titles appeared. In the same year censorship
was abolished.
The electronic sector, which is beyond this study, developed later on, and these
changes were based on other regulations. The most important difference was that the
foreign capital could gain 100% shares in publishing companies, while in the
electronic media only one third of the ownership. For over two decades Polish media
system went through a long-lasting and on-going process which still seems to be
unfinished. Rozumilowicz (2002) claimed that the democratization process and media
reform consists of four stages: Pre-transition, primary transition, secondary transition,
and late or mature transition stage. Sharing this view Dobek-Ostrowska and Glowacki
(2008: 12) stated that the last stage has not been reached by any of the CEE
countries because ‘mass media turned out to be too weak to face political actors on
one side and the market on the other. As a result, the media system acts under
pressure from political and economic systems’.
It has to be kept in mind that in the electronic media public broadcasters have a very
strong position, especially in television, whereas the press sector is almost completely
privatized. The diversity of Polish media system is even more complicated as there
are still visible remnants of the former system. Jakubowicz (2007) considered to name
such a complicated situation a negotiated transformation. Not only Polish media
researchers are trying to place and name existing media system. Szynol & Roppen
(2007) were discussing this issue during 18 th Nordic conference for media and
communication research in Helsinki claiming that there was an influence of
Scandinavian corporation which may paradoxically direct the Polish media system not
towards a democratic corporatist model (as it is in Scandinavia) mentioned in Hallin &
Mancini’s book (2004) but a polarized pluralist one, which was admitted by three
models originators themselves lately (unpublished interview with the author).
Research area and methods
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