During its first sitting on Tuesday, the new National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT) chose Jan Dworak, a former Civic Platform member and TVP (national television) head, as its new chairman.

“The most important goals are speeding up the digitalization of the Polish media and implementing the amended media bill in order to fix the public media,” he said.

The members of the KRRiT had to be chosen anew because, for the first time in its history, the Sejm, Senate and the president rejected the annual financial review submitted the council, causing its immediate dissolution. The new members of the KRRiT were chosen by the Sejm (two members), Senate (one) and president (two).

The KRRiT now comprises: Jan Dworak, Krzysztof Luft, Stefan Pastuszka, Sławomir Rogowski and Witold Graboś, all of whom are connected to one of the two parties in the ruling coalition or the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD).

Other changes are in store for Poland's public media.

Parliament finished work on a new media bill on August 6 which now awaits the president's signature. The bill, if enacted into law, will change the way in which the management and supervisory boards of both public television and radio are chosen, as the majority of members will first have to be put forward for nomination by academic circles, before being voted on by the KRRiT. The remainder will be chosen by the treasury minister and culture minister. It will also be possible to remove members before the end of their terms, unlike now.

The terms of the supervisory and management boards of public television and radio will expire two weeks after the bill enters into force.

Although ostensibly designed to lessen politicians' influence on public media, the vote on the public media bill fell along partisan lines. It was passed by MPs of Civic Platform, the Polish People's Party and SLD.

These developments indicate that the political influence of Law and Justice, the fourth party in parliament, will wane in the public media, especially as no KRRIT members are now associated with the party.

An uncomfortable alliance of PiS and SLD had voted in favor of the previous media bill.