In the process of political, economic and social changes that have taken place in Poland since 1989, state radio and television, so far carefully controlled by the communist government, could not remain unaff ected. The establishment of a new order required several years and involved numerous changes in management and the content of programs. It is often said that this process has not been completed yet. What can be observed a$ er twenty years of transformation is the commercialization of media, whose “public” status is present only in their name. This is particularly apparent in the analysis of Polish television. In fact, the activity of this media is based on certain market mechanisms, including the desire to reach high viewership, attract the attention of advertisers and as a consequence, to maximize profit.

The term State appropriately reflects the dichotomous condition of contemporary journalism. The tension between the commercial and the functional side of the mass media leaves the journalist standing alone on the battlefiield facing a harsh dilemma to remain faithful to professional ethics or to give way to the pressure of ratings. In other words, striving to describe objectively, inform critically, and earnestly, leaves some space for your opponents or makes you dig out seemingly meaningful information and present it in the form of a factoid or a story that probably will not bring you closer to the truth but generates more buzz around the news and entertain the audience. It all comes down to a single choice – serious journalism versus tabloid journalism. In my opinion, it is a serious issue which has to be brought up in any discussion concerning the media. One can see it more clearly by looking closely at both notions. Serious journalism is responsible for its words, along with the awareness of the influence it has on the audience. Tabloid journalism, on the other hand, is marked by a nonchalant audience attitude. It is aware of its influence on the fans, but its impact is simplified compared to mass media doctrines, and comes down to the brutal slogan “riffraff would buy”. Though, not making a big fuss, it is worth saying that with journalism, having the meaning of a public service and letting down society, we are dealing with conflict of values and hitting rock bottom.

The discourse of reasons versus the discourse of emotions: storming of the US Capitol in the public media of Poland, Russia, and Germany

The article presents the results of the analysis of media coverage in European countries on the events of January 2021 in the United States. The US Congress was deliberating to approve the presidential election results when a crowd of Donald Trump supporters burst into the building. The authors compared television news services of public stations in three countries: Poland, Russia, and Germany. The content analysis in its quantitative and qualitative dimensions, qualitative methods (Critical Discourse Analysis) as well as comparative analysis were used. The research results allowed the authors to indicate the dominant types of discourse in the public media in January 2021. The authors have shown the varied nature of the narratives used (discourse instrumentalization versus the chronicle style of narration), language (emotional versus informational), and the contextualization of media reports (embedding in historical, social, or cultural contexts).