War of Words

In researching the history of the Czech Communist Regime, I came to realize that a lot of the battle between the Czech citizens and the Regime took place through writing. Journalists and writers may have not had physical power or strength individually, but the power of influence helped to create a public opinion desiring freedom. The Communist Party overpowered and intimidated the Czech people not only through "purges" and physical punishment, but also through censorship and the fight to control the press. The Party put a lot of importance on combating the press and creating their own pro-Communist content. If not for the press and actions such as Charter 77, people may not have been inspired to fight back. After all, the Regime was ended by the Velvet Revolution, a student union protest turned into a strike by the Czech citizens. The press had a great influence over the public opinion and in the fight against Communism. When Dubcek came to power briefly in 1968, one of his major reforms was to take away censorship. This was vitally important in allowing people to publish their thoughts and create a more unified fight for freedom. The press and their influence over public opinion is really what controlled the fight against the Communist Regime and shows why the Party fought so hard to keep censorship.