Final Word from Thursday, September 30, 2004
Some of Culture Minister Pavel Dostál's ideas have been pretty silly, such as a proposed ban in 1998 on commercial evening-news programs that interfere with Czech Tele-vision's news. Some people say Dostál has been naive over the years to think he could take on the commercial stations like this and win, but he's grown into his job and has consistently defended Czech TV against efforts to steal its market. Unlike most other politicians who cherish their TV face time and won't do anything to jeopardize it, he hasn't been afraid to challenge the commercial TV monopoly. He's paid the price by being blacklisted by TV Nova. He's now recovering from a cancer operation, and the silver lining for TV advertisers and viewers could be even more Dostál than before. It's not uncommon for people who've successfully gone through such an ordeal to come back even more stubborn and determined. Here's to his full recovery!