Political discourse on Polish commercial television. Case of “Fakty” TVN

The continual growth in the importance of commercial media, as proven by its growing share of the audience market, invites us to scrutinize the ways politics is mediated through these chan- nels. One may assume that the very essence of commercial activity influences the ways and forms of conducting political discourse by these media, and as a result influences the picture of politics. The aim of the article is to point out the shift away from traditional forms of political debates as well as the change in formula of covering political phenomena and events, and political processes by the media, and the specifics of the convergence of television genres, in which politics is present. The article will attempt a reconstruction of medial political reality, based on content analysis and the analysis of the forms of political discourse in commercial television, particularly in news programs using “Fakty”, broadcasted by TVN, as a case study.