Television in Syria was formed in 1960, when Syria and Egypt (which adopted television that same year) were part of the United Arab Republic. It broadcast in black and white until 1976. In 1985 a second channel was established and in 1995 Syrian television rented a channel on Arabsat and it started broadcasting eight hours daily via satellite in 1996. Syrian channels are mostly owned and controlled by the Syrian Arab Television and Radio Broadcasting Commission (SATRBC) which is connected to the Ministry of Information. It has 4,800 staff; both government employees and freelancers.
Since the start of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, the state has been engaging in a "media war" to combat the criticisms broadcast from other popular media outlets viewed in the Arab World and internationally, such as Al Arabiya and Al Jazeera. Syrian television coverage champions the government against Syrian opposition islamist rebel forces such as Al-Nusra Front, Free Syrian Army and the Islamic Front. According to BBC Arabic, it also tends to omit or downplay reports of civilian casualties in its coverage of confrontations with what the Government of Syria labels as terrorist groups. [1] The Arab League officially asked the satellite operators Arabsat and Nilesat to stop broadcasting Syrian media in June 2012. [2] [3] On April 27, 2013, Al Jazeera Media Network announced that it was suspending indefinitely its activities throughout Syria because of alleged intimidation and threats against its staff. [4]
Al Arabiya is a Saudi state-owned international Arabic news television channel. It is based in Riyadh and is a subsidiary of MBC Group.
Abu Dhabi TV is an Emirates-based television channel that was originally launched in 1969. It broadcasts content from Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, and is owned by Abu Dhabi Media.
Alhurra is a U.S. government-owned Arabic-language satellite TV channel that broadcasts news and current affairs programming to audiences in the Middle East and North Africa. Alhurra is funded by the U.S. government and is barred from broadcasting within the United States itself under the 1948 Smith-Mundt Act.
MBC Group, formerly known as Middle East Broadcasting Center, is a Saudi media conglomerate based in the Middle East and North Africa region. Launched in London in 1991, the company moved its headquarters to Dubai in 2002 and to Riyadh in 2022. It is majority owned and controlled by the government of Saudi Arabia.
JeemTV, formerly known as Al Jazeera Children's Channel, is a Qatari Arabic-language pay television channel, aimed at children between the ages of 6 and 12. It was previously co-owned by Al Jazeera Media Network and the Qatar Foundation from launch until June 2013, when Al Jazeera fully acquired the channel. It was then acquired by beIN Media Group on April 1, 2016.
Future Television is a formerly defunct Lebanese free-to-air television station founded in 1993 by the Future Movement leader Rafic Hariri, a former Prime Minister of Lebanon. Future TV was also available via satellite in the Arab world, European Union, United States, Canada, and Australia, but is currently broadcast on a frequency of the lebanese satellite service provider Cablevision. Politically, the channel supported the views of the Future Movement. The channel also had a sister channel, Future News, which is remains defunct.
Arab Radio and Television Network is an Arabic-language television network characterized by its multitude of channels. It is based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
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The mass media in Syria consists primarily of television, radio, Internet, film and print. The national language of Syria is Arabic but some publications and broadcasts are also available in English and French. While television is the most popular medium in Syria, the Internet has become a widely utilized vehicle to disseminate content. Transcending all available media, the government seeks to control what Syrians see by restricting coverage from outside sources. Publications and broadcasts are monitored by members of the government. All mass media outlets are under the supervision of the Ministry of Information. Third article of the 2013 Information Ministry guidelines stipulate that purpose of all media outlets is "to enlighten public opinion" in line with the ideological doctrines "of the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party and the policy of the state".
Television in Lebanon arose as a private initiative and not a state-institution. Lebanon was the first country in the Middle East & the Arab world to have indigenous television broadcasting. Various Arab televisions emulated the Lebanese model.
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Libyan Jamahiriya Broadcasting Corporation (LJBC) was the state-run broadcasting organization in Libya under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi. It distributed news in coordination with the Jamahiriya News Agency in accordance with state laws controlling Libya media.
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Addounia TV was a private television station based in Damascus, Syria since March 23, 2007. The station is described by some western media as "semi-official" and a "mouthpiece of the government." Addounia TV was a sister channel of Sama TV. The channel was shut down in 2015.
Al Mayadeen is a Lebanese pan-Arabist satellite news television channel based in the city of Beirut. Launched on 11 June 2012, it has news reporters in most of the Arab countries. In the pan-Arabist television news market, it competes against Qatar-owned Al Jazeera and Saudi-owned Al Arabiya, and also against Sky News Arabia and BBC News Arabic. At the time it was founded, most of the channel's senior staff were former correspondents and editors of Al Jazeera.
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The General Organization of Radio and TV, also known in French as Organisation de la Radio et la Télévision Arabe Syrienne, is the state and public broadcaster in Syria and reports to the Ministry of Information. Earlier names were Radio and Television and Syrian Radio & Television (SRT).
Orient News was a Syrian media group owned by Syrian businessman, journalist and opposition figure Ghassan Aboud, based in Istanbul, providing news service to the Middle East with a focus on Syria. It ceased to exist on 21 November 2023.
Al Jazeera Arabic is a Qatari state-owned Arabic-language news television network. It is based in Doha and operated by the Al Jazeera Media Network, which also operates Al Jazeera English. It is the largest news network in the Middle East and North Africa region. It was founded in 1996 by the then Emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.
Syria TV is a pro-opposition Syrian television network launched in March 2018 in Istanbul. It broadcasts a variety of programs and news shows in Arabic, covering society, politics, entertainment and culture. The channel's headquarters are currently in Istanbul. Syria TV is part of the Qatari pro-Muslim Brotherhood Fadaat Media network, of which Qatari sponsored The New Arab and Al Araby TV are also a members.