Robert Fico’s media law: a populist attack on public broadcasting

In April 2024, Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of Slovakia, oversaw the dismantling of one of the most popular media outlets in the country, RTVS—The Radio and Television of Slovakia. Fico claimed that the broadcaster was biased, subjective, and not serving the interests of the Slovak people. After approximately two months of debate, the parliament approved the law, resulting in the abolition of the network and its renaming as the Slovak Television and Radio (STVR).

This process was far from smooth and uncontested; mass protests erupted in the main square of the capital, Bratislava. Thousands of citizens joined the protests, condemning the law as anti-democratic and as an attempt by the government to consolidate its control over the media. Citizens, members of the political opposition, and even the president of Slovakia argued that silencing the independent media was against democratic values and fueling Slovakia’s democratic backsliding, placing the country on Hungary and Russia’s path. The international society and media advocacy groups added their voices as well. Critics denounced the law with headlines and phrases describing it as “Orbanisation”, “a black day” for Slovakia, “the disgrace and disrespect to the democracy”, and “a populist strategy.” STVR (formerly RTVS) was never the same after the law. A March 2025 report underscores for example the decline of Slovaks’ trust in STVR’s reporting. Today, half of the population perceives SRTV as a non-trustworthy broadcaster and opposes the government intervention in its editorial and reporting policy.

The law against RTVS is considered a significant attack on the media. The media environment in Slovakia can still be classified as free; however, polarization remains an issue. RTVS stood as an exception among a media landscape suffering from polarization and relatively low public trust. The outlet was well known for its journalistic investigations, insights, and political news. It uncovered government scandals, such as Prime Minister Fico’s early connections to oligarchs and even some criminals. It served as a platform for opposing statements, allegations, accusations, and to discuss everyday issues affecting ordinary Slovaks (ebu.ch, 2024).

Fico’s attacks on independent media, which he has described as a “servant of corrupt elites,” “foreign agents,” and “biased,” come directly from the populist playbook. According to Jan-Werner Müller (2016), populist leaders argue that there is a powerful dichotomy between a “corrupt elite” and a “pure people.” Generally, populists do not provide empirical evidence, data, or any kind of source to support their claims. They simply claim that they are the only true representatives of the people, their interests, and opinions. Therefore, the object of populists’ attacks can be political opponents, civil society, and other institutions.

Shutting down an independent network—portrayed as a representative and servant of a corrupt elite—illustrates the populist nature of Fico’s government. According to the prime minister, RTVS was a biased factory that echoed the cruel intentions of the elite, threatening “real” people. The accusations did not end here. In his first reaction to the new law, Fico further described RTVS as a public enemy and a traitor of the people’s interests, underscoring the importance of “objective information” and the violation of the people’s rights. These statements illustrate another key characteristic of populism, according to Muller (2016): anti-pluralism. This feature of populism refers to denying the legitimacy of any opposing thought, opinion, or action, which is showcased in Fico’s actions and messages. Anti-pluralism encompasses the perception of opponents as not only rivals, but also enemies, and traitors whose actions threaten a “pure” people.

Ultimately, the prime minister accomplished what he desired, as the media landscape has been transformed and is today a shadow of what it used to be. Meanwhile, other populist leaders such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić have also tried to attack the media, using the same narratives, framing them as “enemies of the state.” Today’s populists seem to follow a similar pattern of muzzling the free press after categorizing them as voices of evil elites. Fico is a mighty representative of this tendency.

According to Levitsky and Ziblatt (2018), threatening and oppressing the media is a key feature of autocratizing regimes. The most recent reports of V-Dem (2025) and Freedom House (2025), which highlighted the prime minister’s attacks on the media, have shown that Slovakia is displaying early signs of autocratization. In that lens, Fico’s actions are directly contributing to Slovakia’s democratic backsliding.

References

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Levitsky, S., & Ziblatt, D. (2018). How Democracies Die.

Muller, J.-W. (2016). What is Populism?

reuters.com. (2024). reuters.com. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/slovakias-government-pushes-ahead-with-contested-revamp-public-broadcaster-2024-04-24

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theguardian.com. (2023). theguardian.com. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/15/slovakian-media-express-alarm-after-prime-minister-robert-fico-threatens-to-restrict-access

V-Dem-Institute. (2025). 25 Years of Autocratization – Democracy Trumped? University of Gothenburg.