Radio-Télévision nationale congolaise


Radio Télévision nationale congolaise is the national broadcaster of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is government controlled in a country with a poor record on press freedom. Radio-Télévision Nationale Congolaise broadcasts in Lingala, French and English.

History

Radio Congo Belge was created in 1940 by the general government of the Belgian Congo. After the country gained independence, Radio du Congo Belge became Radiodiffusion Nationale Congolaise.
RTNC started television broadcasts in Kinshasa on November 24, 1966, three hours a day, on VHF channel 5. By the mid-1970s, following the rename of the country to Zaire, the television station was known as Télé-Zaire, and had its broadcasting hours extended. A second station in Lubumbashi started in 1967, on channel 9. Programming was mainly dedicated to news and current affairs topics, with smaller proportions of educational and entertainment programming. In preparation for the start of color broadcasts in 1974, Télé-Zaïre received US$1.6 million investments from RCA, which not only saw the implementation of color television, but also increased the facilities in Kinshasa.
Between 1981 and 1997, it was known as the Office Zaïrois de Radio Télévision at the time of Zaire, it was also the only Zairian agency to broadcast on the airwaves since the 1972 law. The station was made available on satellite in the 90s using the Intelsat system to deliver its signals; most relay relay stations in the country's inland were dependent on available power supplies. Since political liberalization in the 1990s, other private companies have broadcast audiovisual media. It took its current name on May 17, 1997, following the coming to power of the AFDL, the party of President Laurent-Désiré Kabila.

Operations

Radio

  • RTNC Chaîne nationale
  • RTNC Kinshasa
  • RTNC Bandundu
  • RTNC Bukavu
  • RTNC Goma
  • RTNC Kat
  • RTNC Kindu
  • RTNC Kisangani
  • RTNC MbujiMayi
  • RTNC Mbandaka

    Television

RTNC covers 70% of the Congolese territory and operates two television channels:
  • RTNC1: general channel with national coverage;
  • RTNC2: public provincial commercial and entertainment channel in Kinshasa.
In the early 2000s, RTNC seized Canal Kin Télévision and TKM, renaming them RTNC3 and RTNC4 in the process.