Securitization in media regulation: a comparative analysis of EMFA implementation in the Czech Republic and Estonia

Abstract

This thesis examines how securitization is reflected in the draft laws implementing the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) in the Czech Republic and Estonia. Although the EMFA is a directly applicable EU regulation formally uniform across all Member States, the two draft laws differ significantly. The thesis combines Differentiated Policy Implementation (DPI) with securitization theory to explain this variation, applying qualitative content analysis (QCA) to both draft laws and their explanatory memoranda. The findings show that Estonia embeds security logic directly into its licensing system and regulatory architecture, framing certain media actors as threats to societal security, a pattern shaped by long-standing concerns about Russian information influence. The Czech draft law contains no securitization elements and instead strengthens procedural protections for journalists against state interference, reflecting a media environment defined by domestic political pressure and ownership concentration. The thesis demonstrates that securitization can be embedded directly in legislation rather than only in political discourse, and that meaningful implementation variation occurs even within directly applicable EU regulations.