Television in Syria was introduced on 23 July 1960 with the launch of Channel 1, during the period in which Syria and Egypt were united as the United Arab Republic.
Syrian television channels are predominantly owned and operated by the Syrian General Authority for Radio and Television (GART), which is affiliated with the Ministry of Information. The organization employs approximately 4,800 staff, including both government employees and freelancers.
Television in Syria is mainly received through free satellite and digital terrestrial.
History
editPrior to 1976, all television broadcasts were aired in black and white. 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.
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. In Ba'athist Syria television coverage championed 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 tended to omit or downplay reports of civilian casualties in its coverage of confrontations with what the Assadist government labeled 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 27 April 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]
The collapse of Ba'athist and Assad family rule in late 2024 brought challenges to the media landscape in Syria as it is unclear whether the new Islamist-led Syrian government would relax censorship and allow more press freedom.[5]
National networks
edit| Channel name | Owner/parent company | Launched | Broadcast hours | Aspect ratio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aleppo Today | Aleppo Today Channel | December 1, 2011 | 24 hours | 16:9 HDTV | |
| Alyaum TV | Orbit Communications (original),
OSN (current) |
October 27, 2003 | 16:9 HDTV | ||
| Syria TV | Fadaat Media | March 2018 | 24 hours | 16:9 HDTV | |
| Al Thania TV | Fadaat Media | February 2025 | 16:9 HDTV | Sister network to Syria TV. | |
| Al-Souriya TV | GART | 1995 (original),
February 19, 2026 (current form) |
24 hours | 16:9 HDTV | Relaunched in 2026. Also on digital and satellite. |
| Syrian News Channel | GART | December 15, 2010 (original),
May 5, 2025 (current form) |
24 hours | 16:9 HDTV | Relaunched in 2025. Also on digital and satellite. |
| Massaya TV | May 1, 2007 | 16:9 HDTV | |||
| Prime TV | December 8, 2025 | 16:9 HDTV | Official broadcaster of the Syrian Prime Premier League | ||
| Sham TV | Mohammad Akram Al-Jundi | 2005 | 16:9 HDTV | First private satellite channel in Syria. | |
| Suboro TV | Syriac Orthodox Church | March 25, 2019 | 16:9 HDTV | Classical Syriac / Turoyo -language TV channel that broadcasts religious topics. | |
| Ronahî TV | 2012 | 16:9 HDTV | Kurdish-language TV channel. | ||
| Rojava TV | 16:9 HDTV | Kurdish-language TV channel. | |||
| Welat TV | 16:9 HDTV | Kurdish-language TV channel. |
Former channels
editSuspended channels
edit| Channel name | Owner/parent company | Launched | Suspended | Reason of suspension |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noor Al-Sham | ORTAS (GART) | July 31, 2011 | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. |
| Syrian Drama TV | ORTAS (GART) | August 20, 2009 | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. |
| Syrian Education TV | ORTAS (GART) | October 14, 2008 | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. |
| Sama TV | January 24, 2013 | December 2024 | Inactive. | |
| Drama 24 | ORTAS (GART) | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. | |
| Sakaker Kids TV | ORTAS (GART) | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. | |
| Sports TV | ORTAS (GART) | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. | |
| Syrian Local Channel | ORTAS (GART) | 2022 | December 8, 2024 | Fall of the Assad regime. |
Former
edit| Channel name | Owner/parent company | Launched | Closed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel 1 | General Organization of Radio and TV | July 23, 1960 | November 11, 2012 | |
| Channel 2 | General Organization of Radio and TV | March 13, 1985 | 2012 | |
| Manbij TV | Unknown | Unknown | Kurdish-language channel | |
| Nosor TV | Unknown | Unknown | ||
| Syria Baladna | Unknown | Unknown | ||
| Al-Jisr TV | Unknown | Unknown | ||
| Addounia TV | Rami Makhlouf | March 23, 2007 | 2015 or 2024 | |
| Arrai TV | Misha'an al-Juburi | 2007 | December 4, 2011 | |
| Orient News | Ghassan Aboud | February 2009 | November 21, 2023 | |
| Syrian Medical TV | ORTAS | Unknown | 2016 | |
| Talaqie TV | ORTAS | October 6, 2012 | October 17, 2016 | |
| Spacetoon | Spacetoon International | March 15, 2000 | Unknown | |
| Suriya al-Ghad | 2011 | 2022 | ||
| Syria al-Shaab | July 2011 | Unknown |
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "BBC documentary examines Syria's state TV channel al Ikhbariya". TheGuardian.com. 10 February 2013.
- ↑ "Blocking of Syrian television is justified – The National".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ↑ "Newser | Headline News Summaries, World News, and Breaking News". www.newser.com.
- ↑ "Syria". Reporters Without Borders. Archived from the original on 2010-09-25.
- ↑ https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2025/01/assad-syria-overthrown-freedom-expression-journalists/
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