Media in Cambodia is vibrant and largely unregulated. This situation has led to the establishment of numerous radio, television and print media outlets. Many private sector companies have moved into the media sector, which represents a significant change from many years of state-run broadcasting and publishing.
Since emerging from the communist governments of the
Khmer Rouge and the
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
-backed
People's Republic of Kampuchea
The People's Republic of Kampuchea (PRK), UNGEGN: , ALA-LC: ; vi, Cộng hòa Nhân dân Campuchia was a partially recognised state in Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as So ...
regime, the Cambodian media sector has become one of Southeast Asia's liveliest and most free. However, the lack of professional journalism training and ethics along with the intimidation by both
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...
and private interests limit the Cambodian media's influence.
History
In 1987, the state controlled print and electronic media and regulated their content. The most authoritative print medium in 1987 was the ruling KPRP's biweekly journal,
Pracheachon
The Krom Pracheachon ( km, ក្រុមប្រជាជន ; "People's Group"), often referred to simply as Pracheachon, was a Cambodian political party that contested in parliamentary elections in 1955, 1958 and 1972.
For much of its exi ...
(The People), which was inaugurated in October 1985 to express the party's stand on domestic and international affairs. Almost as important, however, was the weekly of the
KUFNCD, ''Kampuchea''. The principal publication of the armed forces was the weekly
Kangtoap Padevoat (Revolutionary Army). As of 1987, Cambodia still had no daily newspaper.
[Shinn, Rinn-Sup. "The Media". ]
A Country Study: Cambodia
' (Russell R. Ross, editor). Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...
Federal Research Division
The Federal Research Division (FRD) is the research and analysis unit of the United States Library of Congress.
The Federal Research Division provides directed research and analysis on domestic and international subjects to agencies of the Unit ...
(December 1987). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
/ref> Though this situation changed swiftly after the withdrawal of Vietnamese troops and the UNTAC supervised general election in 1993.
Radio and television were under the direction of the Kampuchean Radio and Television Commission, created in 1983. In 1986 there were about 200,000 radio receivers in the country. The Voice of the Kampuchean People (VOKP) radio programs were broadcast in Khmer, Vietnamese, French, English, Lao, and Thai. With Vietnamese assistance, television broadcasting was instituted on a trial basis in December 1983 and then regularly at the end of 1984.[
As of March 1986, Television Kampuchea (TVK) operated two hours an evening, four days a week in the Phnom Penh area only. There were an estimated 52,000 television sets as of early 1986. In December 1986, Vietnam agreed to train Cambodian television technicians. The following month, the Soviet Union agreed to cooperate with Phnom Penh in the development of electronic media. Cambodian viewers began to receive Soviet television programs after March 1987, through a satellite ground station that the Soviet Union had built in Phnom Penh.][
Beginning in 1979, the Heng Samrin regime encouraged people to read official journals and to listen to the radio every day. Widespread illiteracy and a scarcity of both print media and radio receivers, however, meant that few Cambodians could follow the government's suggestion. But even when these media were available, "cadres and combatants" in the armed forces, for example, were more interested in listening to music programs than in reading about "the situation and developments in the country and the world or articles on good models of good people."][
]
Television
Cambodia launched a test television station, its call sign
In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assign ...
is XUTV, which began broadcasting in 1966. The station was part of state-owned Radio Diffusion Nationale Khmere in 1970, operating 12 to 14 hours daily, with advertising as its primary income. Its studios were destroyed by the Khmer Rouge in 1975, halting the role of television during the Khmer Rouge era.
In 1983, the government launched another station, TVK, under the Vietnamese-backed People's Republic of Kampuchea regime. It began broadcasting in color in 1986, thus becoming the last sovereign country in the world to start color broadcasting. There was only one station until the 1992, when private companies began to launch their own stations, the first being TV9 and TV5.
All of these stations have local programming, including serials, variety shows and game shows. Thai soap operas (dubbed in Khmer) were extremely popular, until a backlash following the 2003 Phnom Penh riots
In January 2003, a Cambodian newspaper article falsely alleged that Thai actress Suvanant Kongying claimed that the Angkor Wat belonged to Thailand. Other Cambodian print and radio media picked up the report and furthered nationalistic sentiment ...
, after which Thai programs were banned.
Cable television, including UBC
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks among the top three ...
programming from Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
as well as other satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioi ...
networks, is also widely available in Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...
. Many people in Cambodia do not watch Cambodia-produced television, instead applying for UBC from Thailand to view Thai programs. Cambodians living abroad can watch Khmer television content via Thaicom
Thaicom Public Company Limited is a Thai satellite operator and provider of satellite and telecommunication services since 1991. The company operates a fleet of currently four satellites covering Asia, Oceania, and Africa. Thaicom is a subsidiar ...
from Thailand, Myanmar, and Vietnam.
Most television networks in Cambodia shut down in the evening. Since 2008, the government has allowed TV channels to close at 12.00 a.m. (midnight) and resume at 6.00 a.m..
Audience Measurement
There is no official standard for media measurement used by the industry, despite self-promotional claims by certain companies.
List of terrestrial television stations
There are 11 TV stations nationwide, including two relay stations with French, Thai and Vietnamese broadcasts, as well as 12 regional low-power stations (as of 2006). They include:
Terrestrial
There are fifteen terrestrial television stations in Cambodia
*Town Full HDTV, launched in 2017 - Broadcasts 24 hours a day.
*PNN TV, launched in 2015 with the largest studio in the country and nationwide broadcast coverage.
*CTV 8 HD (UHF 48) - The First Entertainment Channel providing HD quality program in Cambodia and available nationwide.
* TV3
* MNBT Television
*Apsara Television (TV11) - Broadcasts each day from 4:30am to 10:00pm.
* Bayon Television (Channel 27) - Cambodia's only UHF channel. Based in Kandal Province.
* Cambodian Television Network (CTN); formerly Television Cambodia Network (TCN)
*MyTV, a TV channel that targets Cambodian teens and youth, also owned by CTN
*Khmer Television (CTV9)
*National Television of Cambodia
The National Television of Cambodia (TVK; km, ទូរទស្សន៍ជាតិកម្ពុជា) is the national television station of Cambodia. It is owned and operated by the government of Cambodia in Phnom Penh together with the nat ...
(TVK)
*Royal Cambodian Armed Forces Television (TV5) - Broadcasts 17.5 hours from 6.00 a.m. to 11.30 p.m.
*SEATV (Southeast Asia Television)
* Hang Meas HDTV - Broadcasts 24 hours a day.
*Raksmey Hang Meas HDTV
*ETV
*CNC
* Bayon News TV
There are also regional relay stations for various channels in Mondulkiri, Preah Vihear, Ratanakiri, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville. TVK has the local stations with 2 hours of local programming, from 19:30 to 21:30.
Cable television providers
*DTV STAR Co., Ltd (TV, Internet, IP Phone)
*Cambodian Cable Television (CCTV)
Since 2009 the film industry has grown by a 26% rate attracting film companies and directors to film over seas in Cambodia. The M family have slowly been moving in to monopolies the media market.
*Phnom Penh Cable Television
Phnom Penh Cable Television, also known as PPCTV, is a cable TV subscription service established by Phnom Penh Municipal Cable Television (PPCTV). It is one of the major cable TV services in Cambodia with the largest number of viewers concentrat ...
(PPCTV),
*OneTV is the first digital terrestrial TV operator (joint venture between Cambodia's Royal Group of Companies and Russia's General Satellite)
Cambodian Television in the future
In 2015, Cambodian television is scheduled to switched to Digital Video Broadcasting (Terrestrial) DVB-T at the recommendation of ASEAN. Currently, only PPCTV provided the First DVB-T services in Cambodia which began offering services in May 2011, is offering DVB-T broadcasting in Cambodia.
There are also a couple of entrepreneurs that have plans of bringing more to the television networks associated with MNBT and CTOWN daily.
Since 2013 Kantar Media has conducted Television Measurement, however it is not an officially recognized standard in Cambodia.
There have been questions how independent it is since they were hired to work directly for specific stations and not as a transparent third party.
Contradictory data have been released by multiple stations raising the issue of potential bias or manipulation of data, but it is not clear where this problem comes from.
Other existing research and advertising agencies have been providing similar measurement services for many years and continue to operate with more extensive data available.
Digital Media Publishing
S A B A Y is a Cambodian Internet media company based in '' Phnom Penh''. The firm is a social news and entertainment company with a focus on digital media. Sabay was founded in 2007, originally known for IT company and online game publisher, the company has grown into a News media and technology company providing coverage on a variety of topics including Entertainment, Social, Sport, DIY, Women, Food, Social and Magazine.
Radio
Cambodia has two AM stations and at least 65 FM stations[Radio stations in Cambodia on asiawaves.net, retrieved 11 November 200]
/ref>
List of radio stations
* Lotus FM Radio 100.5
*Tonle FM Phnom Penh FM 102.5
*Tonle FM Siem Reap FM 102.5
*Tonle F Kampong Cham FM 102.5
*VAYO FM Phnom Penh FM 105.5
*VAYO FM Siem Reap FM 88
*VAYO FM Battambang FM 88
*VAYO FM Sihanoukville FM 102.5
*VIBE Radio 94.5
*Voice of Youth FM91.5 launched in April 2014 covering Phnom Penh, nearby provinces and soon nationwide.
*TOWN Radio FM 102.25 MHz
*TOWN Radio FM 95.7 MHz Battambang
*TOWN Radio FM 90.7 MHz Siem Reap
*TOP Radio FM 92.3 MHz Entertainment Radio
*Phnom Penh Radio FM 103 MHz
*Dance FM Phnom Penh's number 1# station
*NRG 89 fm. Phnom Penh's 1st dedicated music station, broadcasting 24hours a day.
*Radio Love FM 97.5 MHz - Cambodia's local western pop music radio station.
*Radio Australia 101.5 FM Phnom Penh & Siem Reap available 24 hours a day
*BBC World Service Radio FM 100. Broadcasting 24 hours a day. Available in and around Phnom Penh (2007).
*Apsara Radio FM 97 MHz
*Family FM 99.5;MHz
*National Radio of Cambodia (RNK) AM 918 kHz and FM 105.7 MHz
*Radio Beehive FM 105 MHz
*Radio FM 90 MHz
*Radio FM 99 MHz
*Radio Khmer FM 107 MHz
*Radio Sweet FM 88 MHz
*Royal Cambodia Armed Forces Radio FM 98 MHz (Green Wave 98)
*Women's Radio FM 102 MHz of Women's Media Centre of Cambodia- Using media to promote social change in Cambodian society.
*Sarika FM 106.5 MHz
*Radio Hang Meas FM 104.5 MHz
*Radio Raksmey Hang Meas FM 95.7 MHz
Newspapers
There are more than 100 newspapers in Cambodia, however few maintain regular publication schedules and have paid staff. Many newspapers are run by political parties or individual politicians, so coverage is often slanted. Reporters will sometimes demand payments from their sources to keep unfavorable stories, whether true or not, out of the paper.
However, reporters for the established vernacular dailies and journalists working for wire services
A news agency is an organization that gathers news reports and sells them to subscribing news organizations, such as newspapers, magazines and radio and television broadcasters. A news agency may also be referred to as a wire service, newswire, ...
and the foreign-language press, generally keep to a standard of ethics.
List of newspapers
National mass-circulation dailies
*La Reine Peanich
*''Chakraval Daily''
*The Cambodian Journal
*''Kampuchea Thmei Daily
''Kampuchea Thmei Daily'' is a daily newspaper published in Cambodia. The papers headquarters are in Phnom Penh. The newspaper focuses on business and politics
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making dec ...
''
*''Kampuchea Thnai Nes'' (''Cambodia Today'')
*''Kanychok Sangkhum''
*''Koh Santepheap
''Koh Santepheap'' ( km, កោះសន្តិភាព, ; ) is a Khmer language daily newspaper published in Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country ...
'' (''Island of Peace'')
*''Khmerfeed'' (''Khmerfeed Digital''
*''Moneaksekar Khmer'' (''Khmer Conscience'') - Published by the Sam Rainsy Party.
*''Rasmei Kampuchea
''Rasmei Kampuchea'' ( km, រស្មីកម្ពុជា; "Brightness of Cambodia") is Cambodia's largest daily newspaper
A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about curre ...
'' (''Light of Kampuchea'') - Cambodia's largest daily, it circulates about 18,000 copies.
*''Samleng Yuvachun'' (''Voice of Khmer Youth'')
*''Udomkate Khmer'' (''Khmer Ideal'')
*''Wat Phnom Daily''
*"The Messenger" ("អ្នកនាំសារ") Published by the Catholic Social Communications National Office
English-language newspapers
*''Business News''
* CTown daily - entertainment magazine.
*The Cambodian Journal
*''The Mekong Times'' - English (week) daily paper with Khmer translations. Publication of this paper has ceased temporarily, as advised by email to its subscribers on 19 August 2008.
*''The Mirror'' - Published by Open Forum of Cambodia, this is a weekly English-language overview of the Khmer-language press. Also publishes a weekly Khmer summary called ''Kanychok Sangkhum''.
*''Phnom Penh Post
''The Phnom Penh Post'' ( km, ភ្នំពេញប៉ុស្តិ៍, ) is a daily English-language newspaper published in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Founded in 1992 by publisher Michael Hayes and Kathleen O'Keefe, it is Cambodia's oldest Eng ...
'' - Cambodia's oldest English-language paper. Originally fortnight
A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days," since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights).
Astronomy and tides
In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is ha ...
ly, it is now daily.
*''Khmer Times
The ''Khmer Times'' is an English-language newspaper, launched in May 2014, based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in th ...
''-English-language newspaper following Cambodian national news, business, and entertainment. First launched in April 2014.
*The Cambodia Daily
''The Cambodia Daily'' is an English and Khmer language news site that writes and aggregates news about Cambodia. It was originally an English-language daily newspaper based in Cambodia from 1993 to 2017, and was considered a newspaper of record ...
-Closed
English-language magazines
*''Health Time Magazine'' - The Only Health Magazine in Cambodia.
*Cambodia Tourism Magazine (CTM) - The only one bi-monthly tourism magazine in both English and Khmer language provides abundant of tourism information, local destination, art and culture, foods and restaurants, accommodations, and other related sectors.
*Cambodia CityLife Magazine - A Bi-monthly publication is Cambodia's premier guide magazine bring good reading to all those in Phnom Penh and around town.
*''Lady Penh'' - handy weekly event guide for Phnom Penh (December 201). High circulation.
*''Bayon Pearnik'' - Mixes humor and satire about current affairs in Cambodia with critical commentary and adventure-travel information.
*''Visitors Guide'' - Publishes separate guides for Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville.
*''Cambodia Pocket Guide'' - a series of pocket-sized tourist guides that includes articles relating to travel, entertainment, nightlife and so forth.
*''DISCOVER CAMBODIA'' - An annual premium travel and leisure magazine
*'' AsiaLIFE Guide Phnom Penh'' - A monthly lifestyle magazine for Phnom Penh and regional Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...
with sections on food, drink, the arts, travel, shopping, leisure and business.
*''Economics Today'' - Closed
*''Coastal'' - a free 6-monthly publication with tourist information about Cambodia's coastal tourist towns.
* Sports Express is Cambodia's first English Language sports magazine featuring both Cambodian and International sports news, including the Cambodian Basketball League and the Metfone C-League.
* Cambodia Golf Today - Cambodia`s leading golf magazine in dual-language(Eng-Khmer) founded in 2014 covering golf news and reviews on a quarterly basis to promote golf in Cambodia
* ''THEMAN Magazine'' - THEMAN is Cambodia's only home-grown men’s Fashion English language magazine.
French-language newspapers
*''Cambodge Nouveau''
*''Cambodge Soir
''Cambodge Soir'' was a weekly newspaper published in Cambodia and it was the most important French language Cambodian newspaper of the country. It was edited in Phnom Penh and distributed in different Cambodian provinces, among French speaking ...
'' - Closed
Cambodge Mag by Christophe Gargiulo
Chinese-language newspapers
*''Cambodia Sin Chew Daily''
*
Jian Hua Daily
'
*''Angkor time''
Online News
*''Bakong Media''
*The Cambodian Journal
*
Thmey Thmey
'
*
Post Khmer
'
*Domnung: Khmer News Portal
*
Khmerload
'
AEC News Today
*'' khmerfeed''
*Siemreap.net
*''VEHA Media''
*
TNAOT
'
*'' Merl Komsan'' the best online media site & Media Agency in Cambodia.
*'' Cambodianess'' is an English news site affiliated with Thmey Thmey which provides impartial and in-depth news and information on Cambodia with core mission:"Media For Development." It was established in 2019.
VOD News
Fresh News
Kiripost
is a digital media company covering Cambodia’s startups and businesses. We bring our readers news, insights, and in-depth stories from entrepreneurs, inventors, innovators, and makers. We believe that startup founders and business people have many remarkable, untold stories.
*CEN: Cambodia Express News
*
Cambodia Express News
'
See also
* Communications in Cambodia
* Agence Khmer Presse
*Cinema of Cambodia
Cinema in Cambodia began in the 1950s, and many films were being screened in theaters throughout the country by the 1960s, which are regarded as the "golden age". After a near-disappearance during the Khmer Rouge regime, competition from video a ...
*Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, Cambodia
The Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts (MCFA; Khmer: ក្រសួងវប្បធម៌ និងវិចិត្រសិល្បៈ) is the government ministry with a mandate to promote, encourage and support the fine arts of Cambodia.
...
References
Newspapers List of Cambodia
External links
2005 report
by Reporters Without Borders
Television stations in Cambodia
Ethan Casey reviews Harish Mehta's book Cambodia Silenced: The Press Under Six Regimes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Media Of Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...
Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...