Regulator: TVP Polonia aired about 75% fewer premieres for the Polish diaspora than planned

Poland's National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT) has found serious discrepancies between the approved programme plan and what TVP Polonia actually broadcast. The channel, meant to serve Poles living abroad, aired far fewer diaspora programmes than the 2026 plan set out.

What KRRiT found

The regulator analysed the schedule supplied by the broadcaster, Telewizja Polska S.A. in liquidation. In a statement dated 25 March 2026 it described the results of an analysis covering January and February 2026.

According to its data:

• of 26 planned recurring diaspora programmes, only 12 were broadcast,
• the programmes not shown included current affairs and cultural ones, among them programmes about Poles in Western Europe, North and South America, and Eastern Europe,
• the total planned running time of diaspora programmes was cut from 194 hours 39 minutes to 118 hours 16 minutes, more than 76 hours less,
• of 97 planned premiere editions, 24 were made, which KRRiT describes as a drop in current content of about 75%.

Changes without the regulator's approval

According to KRRiT, the broadcaster added four recurring programmes that were not in the approved plan. It also changed the structure of the schedule, for example by extending the running time of selected items. The regulator stresses that the changes were made unilaterally, without the required procedure. In its view, any significant change to a public broadcaster's programme should be formally approved by KRRiT.

KRRiT chair Dr Agnieszka Glapiak said the scale of the departures was serious and could not be treated as incidental. She said TVP S.A. in liquidation had significantly reduced its offer for Poles and the diaspora abroad. KRRiT has asked the broadcaster for explanations.

Reports on a later period

Onet Kultura, reporting on the matter on 27 October 2026, said the regulator's latest assessment shows the channel also cut premiere programmes for the diaspora in the first half of 2026. Repeats from other TVP channels, series and sports broadcasts were reportedly shown instead. We have not been able to confirm this assessment in documents available on the KRRiT website.

What this means for you

TVP Polonia is available to viewers abroad, including in the UK. If you watch it regularly, you may notice fewer new programmes about diaspora life and more repeats. The sources do not say whether the broadcaster will change its schedule following the regulator's intervention, or when it will respond to KRRiT's questions.