In the last decade, it's become fashionable among the world's billionaires to purchase media outletswith some lately deciding to use that ownership as a means of shaping coverage. So it's no surprise that Bohemia Interactive CEO Marka panla and CFVO Slavomr Pavlektwo of the richest men in the Czech Republicwould want in on the action.What is surprising is one of the publications they chose to purchase. In 2023 the pair, through their media company Nae Mdia, acquired Parlamentn listy, a publication in the Czech Republic that's been accused for years of platforming extremist politicians, disinformation, and Russian propaganda.Unlike other unusual game industry-adjacent acquisitions Game Developer has reported on in the last year, this was not a secret transaction. panla and Pavlek are already the owners of Echo Media, which publishes the Czech publication Echo24 and its weekly print edition. Word of the purchase simply didn't make it far out of the Czech Republic. To those unfamiliar with the dynamics of the Czech media landscape, the purchase of Parlamentn listy would have appeared to be just another ordinary business move.In response to a request for for comment from Game Developer, panla explained that the purchase is part of his Pavlek's "broader media investment strategy." "We oversee a diverse portfolio of over 40 companies, including several significant media outlets like Echo24, Tdenk Echo, Hrot magazine, and Radio Prostor," he said. "Most of our operations are structured under the SPM holding company, though Parlamentn listy remains a separate entity." He stated that both Echo24 and Parlamentn listy rank "among the top 10 online news outlets" in the Czech Republic.Related:So why add this outlet to the roster? The answers, it turns out, are deeply tied to accusations of disinformation against Parlamentn listy.panla says there has been a "distortion of public debate" in the last decadeThe accusations against Parlamentn listy apparently played a role in panla and Pavlek's decision to add it to their portfolio. panla told Game Developer that the pair "recognized the increasing distortion of public debate during key moments like the 2015 European migration crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic.""This motivated us to take responsibility and help ensure independent voices challenging the prevailing narrative could be heard. We believe freedom of speech is essential for a prosperous and thriving society and competition of different world views, ideas and approaches is super important."He added that he sees recent "US/Western approaches to free speech and attempted control of thinking and narrative to support [a] single ideology" as comparable to what the Czech Republic experienced under communism during the Cold War.Image via Parlamentn listyIn a 2023 interview with Czech news site Seznam Zprvy (reviewed by Game Developer through GoogleTranslate), panla said he became interested in purchasing the publication following criticism of Echo24's print edition by an unnamed high-profile journalist."He calls the weekly Echo pro-Russian, talks about the pro-Russian elite, and for him, Parlamentn listy is a pro-Russian scum," panla said of the journalist, when speaking with Seznam Zprvy. "And for me, this whole line is very disturbing. It scares me when the heralds of the alleged truth openly spread hatred."panla told Game Developer that the operation of Parlamentn listy doesn't affect day-to-day life at Bohemia Interactive. "Our business structure is designed for efficient operation across multiple ventures. While Bohemia Interactive remains our primary focus, we've established strong management teams across our portfolio companies."It should be noted Bohemia has raised money for charities benefitting the International Committee of the Red Cros to benefit people affected by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, fundraising that may be at odds with the editorial choices of Parlamentn listy.With two of the studio's co-founders and current C-suite leaders playing a bigger role in the Czech media and political landscape, it's notable that the money earned through sales of the ARMA series, DayZ, and other games in Bohemia's portfolio allowed them to make these kinds of moves.It's exceptionally notable when you dig into the articles published by Parlamentn listy and start to take in the reach of alleged disinformation on display.Parlamentn listy runs stories promoting many right-wing talking points and conspiraciesCriticism of Parlamentn listy's editorial strategy dates back to at least 2015, shortly after Russia illegally annexed Crimea in a prelude to its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. It was around this time that the Russian government began to wage a global propaganda war promoting its interests and driving internal conflicts in its global rivals. If critics like like those at Britsk listy are to be believed, ties between Parlamentn listy and Russian business interests served as the foundation for publishing stories promoting Russia's interests, such as coverage of the 2014 elections held in annexed Crimea after Russia's invasion (these elections are not recognized as valid by members of the international community).Since panla and Pavlek's purchase of the outlet in 2023, Parlamentn listy has run stories referring to Ukrainians as "scum," published a number of stories accusing trans women in sports of being men in disguise, promoted the right-wing talking point that President Biden declared Easter a "transgender holiday" (he commemorated International Transgender Day of Visibility, which takes place on March 31 every year, and overlapped with Easter in 2024) and regularly draws thin connections between European institutions and billionaire George Soros. Conspiracies about Soros are a pillar of modern antisemitism in the far right. There are conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic, regular stories about migrant crime, and anti-vaccination talking points.In response to Game Developer's queries on these stories, panla offered the following statement: "Our approach to media ownership centers on respecting editorial independence. Each outlet's content and editorial decisions rest with their respective editorial teams. We fundamentally disagree with attempts to silence or label media outlets based on their viewpoints. The practice of falsely labeling different voices as 'pro-Russian' or 'anti-science' has become a concerning mechanism for silencing legitimate perspectives.""It's encouraging to see improvement in this situation now, as what appeared to be a U.S.-originated censorship industrial complex extending globally is being dismantled."Image via Bohemia Interactive.The publication seems to have a keen eye for supporting the policies of President Trump. In a recent story about the chaotic termination of USAID operations this week (led by Department of Government Efficiency head and billionaire Elon Musk, whose company Starlink was being investigated by USAID), Parlamentn listy downplayed the agency's role as a vehicle for humanitarian aid, stating that "the agency's program objectives shifted from purely humanitarian support to political ambitions, leading it to withdraw from Russia in 2012 and from Bolivia a year later." It also promoted the administration's false claim that the U.S government "subsidized" media outlet Politico for $8 million, characterizing federal agency subscriptions to the publication as a federal handout.Not all of the above stories are necessarily pro-Russian talking points, but they do mirror positions promoted by Russian international propaganda operations like American media group Tenet Media, which was found to have been funded by RT employees Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, who were charged by the FBI for allegedly violating the Foreign Agents Act.Podcasters Tim Pool, Lauren Southern, and Dave Rubin all regularly voiced similar positions while being paid millions by Kalashnikov and Afanasyeva (the three denied any knowledge of Russia's involvement with the company).It's unknown at this time if panla and Pavlek support any of the positions promoted by Parlamentn listy, but their involvement has raised concerns among some in the Czech game development community. Czech video game sales analyst Avi Duda told Game Developer they "weren't surprised" by the purchase, nodding toward donations made by Pavlek to the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy political party (SPD), whose members are often favorably covered by Parlamentn listy. panla acknowledged those donations in his interview with Seznam Zprvy, noting he personally supports Svobodn and Civic Democratic Party (ODS), both traditional conservative parties tacking toward the center and center-right."They're of course free to do whatever they want and purchase any media, but buying this to prove to others that having different opinions is ok seems very short-sighted," Duda said. "I don't see a difference in what's written in the website now and what was written there before they owned it. It's always the same eyebrow-raising content with a bunch of straight up lies. They should know better than that."As The Czech Republic becomes a bigger player in the global game development market (Czech developer Warhorse Studios managed to sell a million copies of Kingdom Come Deliverance II the day it launched), the role its leaders play in public life is having a greater and greater impact. That they've chosen to back a publication criticized for its alleged pro-Russian stance as Russia wages a physical and propaganda war against its rivals gives developers reason to ask what kind of role panla and Pavlek wish to play.For now, that role appears to be an expansion of the pair's media portfolio. "Parlamentn listy was neither our first nor last media investment," panla said. As founders of Bohemia Interactive, both Slavomir Pavlicek and I remain committed to supporting media freedom through strategic investments."Our current portfolio demonstrates our ongoing commitment to fostering diverse voices in Czech media."