Polityka
  Anna Maria Jopek and Dorota Masłowska on Polityka cover |
|
| Type | weekly newsmagazine |
|---|---|
| Owner | Spoldzielnia Pracy Polityka |
| Editor | Jerzy Baczyński |
| Founded | 1957 |
| Political alignment | social liberal |
| Headquarters | Warsaw |
| Official website | http://www.polityka.pl |
Polityka (Polish pronunciation: [pɔˈlitɨka], Politics) is a centre-left weekly newsmagazine in Poland. With a circulation of 170,000 (as of June 2006) it is the country's biggest selling weekly, ahead of Newsweek's Polish edition and Wprost. Today, the magazine has a slightly intellectual, social liberal profile, setting it apart from the more conservative Wprost and the glossier approach of Newsweek Poland. Prominent editors and permanent contributors include Adam Krzemiński, Janina Paradowska, Daniel Passent, Ludwik Stomma, Adam Szostkiewicz, Jacek Żakowski, Ryszard Kapuściński, Jerzy Urban, and Krzysztof Zanussi
Since 1959 Polityka awards its History Award (for history book of the year) and since 1993 it confers annually the Paszport Polityki awards for artists. Since late 1990s it also funds scholarships for young scientists.
Established in 1957, after the end of Polish Stalinism, the magazine slowly developed a reputation for moderately critical journalism, promoting economical way of thinking, although always remaining within the constraints of the tightly controlled press in a communist country. Notably, Polityka was launched to replace the more radical Po prostu (1947–1957). The magazine reached reputation in 1961, printing five parts of Adolf Eichmann's memoires, stolen by anti-Nazis and given to Polityka (the only other magazine, that acquired fragments of these memoires, was Life)[1]. In 1983 the magazine was a subject of critics of Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for postulating political pluralism[2]. Its long-time editor was Mieczysław Rakowski, later the last First Secretary of communist party and the last communist prime minister of Poland, who eventually concurred with the democratic process of ending communist rule in Poland in 1989. Polityka supported talks of Round Table in Poland, which concluded with agreement to hold free elections eventually resulting in peaceful end of the communist rule in Poland.
After the fall of communism in 1989, Polityka became part of Poland's newly free press. In 1990, Polityka team left the state-owned publisher RSW Prasa-Książka-Ruch with rights to title and established an independent cooperative called "Polityka" - Spółdzielnia Pracy (it is a unique situation in the press market that such magazine is published by a cooperative). From 1994, editor of Polityka is Jerzy Baczyński. In 1995, the magazine changed its format from broadsheet to a standard coloured magazine, currently with over 100 pages.
[edit] Criticism
Polityka is sometimes accused of showing a neo-communist and leftist bias in their articles, as many of their leading editors served communist regime. These loyalties were claimed to persist after 1989: Janina Paradowska, for example, was accused of knowing from Adam Michnik about the corruptive proposal of Lew Rywin which eventually led to the outbreak of the so called Rywin affair, but together with the editorial team deciding not to publicise it until Michnik did so.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Daniel Passent: Zbrodniarz na łamach, Polityka nr 10/2007 (2595)
- ^ Wiesław Władyka: Historia Polityki dla dorosłych, Polityka nr 9/2007 (2594)
- ^ Michnikowszczyzna. Zapis choroby, by Rafał.A.Ziemkiewicz. ISBN 83-60504-16-4. Red Horse 2006.
