The Times: The Trophy Cabinet of Czech Sphinx Daniel Kretinsky: From gas pipes and newspapers to West Ham

The Times

“Kretinsky first made waves by snapping up a stake in Royal Mail early last year. He has been rapidly expanding his media empire, having acquired newspapers, websites and TV channels at home and in eastern Europe since 2011.

In 2018, his company Czech Media Invest snapped up a series of French titles from Lagardère, including rights to the French edition of Elle for about €52 million. Then he took a stake in French daily newspaper Le Monde, triggering panic among journalists about its editorial independence. A revised agreement was signed to stave off concerns. This year he emerged with a 5 per cent stake in the French broadcaster TF1.

His growing media influence in eastern Europe is concerning groups such as the Balkan Free Media Initiative, whose advisory board includes the former BBC journalist John Sweeney. It has expressed concern about his interference in editorial policy at sites such as Info.cz. Kretinsky denies these claims, and says he is a ‘passionate advocate of the freedom of the press’. “