Students and citizens protest in Brno against government media funding changes

The numbers

Only figures a source states, with who said it. Estimates often differ.

Crowd

9,000

approximately 9,000 people²

The full story

On November 3, 2026, thousands of people gathered in Brno to protest against a government proposal to replace public media license fees with direct state budget funding. Organised by student initiatives and striking employees of local public media studios, the demonstration began at Zelný trh before moving to Náměstí Svobody. Participants expressed concerns that the funding shift would threaten the independence of Czech Television and Czech Radio. The event drew approximately 9,000 attendees, including representatives from universities, theaters, and civil society. While government officials have defended the proposal, arguing it does not compromise media independence, the plan has faced widespread criticism from opposition politicians, academic leaders, and cultural institutions. A petition against the state-controlled funding model has already gathered over 5,500 signatures from students and faculty at Masaryk University.

Timeline

1. Nov 5

   Organisers announced a new protest for November 10 to continue the campaign against the government proposal.²

2. Nov 3

   Thousands of protesters gathered in Brno to demonstrate against the government's plan to change public media funding.¹²