With three weeks left to run before general elections, Jiří Paroubek has decided to boycott all of the Czech Republic's major newspapers and magazines. The leader of the Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) and front runner in the polls, who aims to become the country's next prime minister, told Lidové noviny that "the conservative media in collusion with right-wing political parties is responsible for orchestrating an atmosphere of hatred." His decision to withdraw from the media follows an attack on ČSSD second-in-command Bohuslav Sobotka, who was punched by a spectator at recent rally. The "media blackout is in direct opposition to the basic principles of a democratic society," complains the daily, while its sister paper Hospodářské noviny notes that the Czech people "are now harvesting the fruits of a negative campaign" similar to the one launched by Paroubek for the general elections in 2006.
The leader of Greece’s leftist alliance SYRIZA is the new bright hope of Greek politics. Steering a course between pragmatism and the rhetoric of class warfare, he has unsettled Berlin, and not just those who back Angela Merkel's austerity policies. 
Europe’s economic woes have forced us to try to understand the secret Olympian world of global finance. But now that we pay more attention to bond yields and stability mechanisms, isn’t it clear that the experts up on their lofty peaks don’t know what’s going on either? 
This year’s Eurovision Song Contest is hosted by Azerbaijan, a country that is far from being a model democracy. An Estonian journalist takes a critical look at the deferential treatment enjoyed by the regime in Baku.