Polityka

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Polityka (Politics)‎
Type	weekly newsmagazine
Format

Owner	"Polityka" - Spółdzielnia Pracy
Editor	Jerzy Baczyński
Founded	1957
Political allegiance	social liberal
Headquarters	Warsaw

Website: http://www.polityka.pl

Polityka ("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, and Krzysztof Zanussi

From 1993, Polityka annually confers the prestigious Paszport Polityki awards to artists. From 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]. Its long-time editor was Mieczysław Rakowski, later the last First Secretary of communist party and prime minister of Poland, who gave away communist rule. In 1983 the magazine was a subject of critics of Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for postulating political pluralism^[2]. Polityka supported talks of Round Table in Poland, ending the communist rule.

After the fall of communism in 1989, it became a 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 post-communist and leftist bias in their articles, as many of their leading editors served communist regime. These loyalties persisted after 1989: Janina Paradowska, for example, is accused of knowing from Adam Michnik about the corruptive proposal of Lew Rywin which eventually led to the outburst of so called Rywin affair, but together with the editorial team deciding not to inform the society about it until Michnik does 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.