The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT; Turkish : ) is the national

public broadcaster Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...

of Turkey, founded in 1964. TRT was for many years the only

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

and

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

provider in Turkey. Before the introduction of commercial radio in 1990, and subsequently commercial television in 1992, it held a

monopoly A monopoly (from Greek language, Greek el, μόνος, mónos, single, alone, label=none and el, πωλεῖν, pōleîn, to sell, label=none), as described by Irving Fisher, is a market with the "absence of competition", creating a situati ...

on broadcasting. More recent deregulation of the Turkish television broadcasting market produced analogue cable television. Today, TRT broadcasts around the world, especially in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Australia. Around 70% of TRT's funding comes from a

tax A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...

levied on electricity bills and a license tax on television and radio receivers. As these are hypothecated taxes, as opposed to the money allocated to general government funds, the principle is similar to that of the

television licence A television licence or broadcast receiving licence is a payment required in many countries for the reception of television broadcasts, or the possession of a television set where some broadcasts are funded in full or in part by the licence f ...

levied in a

number A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The original examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers c ...

of other countries, such as the BBC in the United Kingdom. The rest of TRT's funding comes from government grants (around 20%), with the final 10% coming from

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

History

TRT's predecessor, "''Türkiye Radyoları''" was one of 23 founding broadcasting organisations of the

European Broadcasting Union The European Broadcasting Union (EBU; french: Union européenne de radio-télévision, links=no, UER) is an alliance of Public broadcasting, public service media organisations whose countries are within the European Broadcasting Area or who ar ...

in 1950; it would return to the EBU fold as TRT in 1972. The original company started radio test broadcasts in 1926, with a studio built in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

in 1927 and a studio in

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

following in 1928. Test transmissions started on TRT 1 on 31 January 1968. A full national television schedule, which at that time linked the areas in and around

, and

İzmir İzmir ( , ; ), also spelled Izmir, is a metropolitan city in the western extremity of Anatolia, capital of the province of the same name. It is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara and the second largest urban agglo ...

, started in December 1971. TRT renewed its membership in the

(having been a founding member previously offering only radio) starting on 26 August 1972, with Turkey's first

Eurovision Network Eurovision is a pan-European television telecommunications network owned and operated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). It was founded 1954 in Geneva, Switzerland, and its first official transmission took place on 6 June 1954. Major tel ...

event, a football match (Turkey vs. Italy), airing across Europe on 13 January 1973. TRT also joined the

Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU or APBU), formed in 1964, is a non-profit, professional association of broadcasting organisations. It currently has over 287 members in 57 countries and regions, reaching a potential audience of about 3 bil ...

in 1976, the same year their first colour television test was showcased via laboratory at the general assembly of the

Organisation of the Islamic Conference An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived fro ...

. All programming was in black and white from the start of test transmissions in 1968 until the New Year's Eve programming on 31 December 1981, when the first on-air colour tests started.Historical Background of radio and television broadcasting in Turkey
/ref> The entire lineup switched to colour on 15 March 1984. TRT organised the

Eurovision Song Contest 2004 The Eurovision Song Contest 2004 was the 49th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Istanbul, Turkey, following the country's victory at the with the song "Everyway That I Can" by Sertab Erener. Organised by the European Broa ...

, with the semi-final on 12 May 2004 and the final on 15 May 2004. On 19 May 2012, TRT 1 HD started simulcasting with

TRT 1 TRT 1 (''TRT One'') is the first Turkish national television channel, owned by state broadcaster TRT. It was launched on 31 January 1968 as a test broadcast and was officially launched in December 1971. It was the only channel in Turkey until 15 ...

upscaled to full HD 16:9 DVB-S2 standard. In January 2018, TRT celebrated its 50th anniversary. All TRT channels broadcast a collection of old idents and news studio (still being modern logo) as part of the celebration in form of nostalgia. Each day new idents were made. This event also happened in 1978, 1988, 1998 and 2008.

Post-2016 coup attempt

After the 15 July coup attempt, many people in TRT were either fired or forced workers to retire. According to Haber-Sen Union; 1800 of workers were forced to retire. The union protested this situation on 21 November 2018 in Istanbul, Ankara, Diyarbakir and Brussels. During the protests, TRT employees stated that they were exposed to psychological pressure defined as MOBING. TRT employee Osman Köse stated that more than 3,000 TRT employees have been transferred to other state institutions and 5,000 people have been dismissed from TRT. Many of TRT employees were dismissed and sent to prison by the reason of the 15 July coup attempt. According to the list that published in the ‘Resmi Gazete’ of the state, 312 people were dismissed. According to the report provided by the non-governmental organisation-Sweden-based NGO Stockholm Center for Freedom (SCF), approximately 150 TRT employees were accused of being a member of a ‘terrorist organisation’. Many of them were arrested and imprisoned.

Services

Television channels

Atatürk_Boulevard,_Radio_House,_1940s_(16851412171)

All television channels can be watched via Turksat satellite in Europe in Asia and terrestrial in Turkey and neighbouring countries. Some of them are also found on cable TV systems.

Domestic

(launched January 1968) – General entertainment channel with a broad schedule featuring local and foreign series, Turkish and

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

cinema, live shows with Turkish folk music, Turkish classical music and pop music, live sport, news & current affairs plus special events. * TRT 2 (launched September 1986, shut down March 2010, relaunched February 2019) – Highbrow channel with a broad schedule featuring cultural and educational shows, heavy promotion of the arts (Turkish and international), cultural talkshows, documentaries, and local and foreign films. *

TRT Spor TRT 3 is a Turkish television channel. It mostly broadcasts sport events. History TRT 3 started test transmissions on October 2, 1989 as "3. Kanal", and is now TRT's third most watched TV station. TRT 3’s transmissions are realized through a ...

(launched October 1989) – Live and archive sport including

Formula 1 Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

, World and European Figure Skating Championships, World and European Athletics Championships, Turkish Women's Volleyball league, U18 Basketball plus feature programmes. When parliament is in session, TRT 3 relays live coverage of the

Turkish Grand National Assembly The Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( tr, ), usually referred to simply as the TBMM or Parliament ( tr, or ''Parlamento''), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Consti ...

( TBMM-TV). *

TRT Çocuk TRT Çocuk is a Turkish television station, part of the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation, which can also be received in Azerbaijan. It broadcasts a wide range of programming for children such as cartoons, drama and entertainment 24 hours ...

(launched November 2008) – Children's programming, animated programmes and educational programmes. The station now broadcasts 24 hours a day. *

TRT Kurdî TRT Kurdî is the first national television station that broadcasts in Kurdish dialect of Kurmanji and in Zazaki. On the channels sixth anniversary it changed its name from TRT 6 into TRT Kurdi. The channel has been mostly met with criticism fr ...

(launched January 2009) – Channel broadcasting in

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...

. *

TRT Arabi TRT Arabia, () is an Arabic television channel of TRT, broadcasting to Arabic-speaking audiences in Turkey and the Middle East, 24 hours a day, on subjects, events, and news as well as soap operas from and pertaining to Turkey. It was launched on ...

(launched April 2010) – Broadcasts 24 hours a day in

Arabic language Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

with programs aimed at Arabs in Turkey, as well as the wider

Arab world The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

and

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

. *

TRT Müzik TRT Müzik is a Turkish television channel owned and operated by TRT. It broadcasts 24 hours music TV programmes featuring music magazines and talkshows. TRT Müzik can also be watched on TRT 4 TRT 4 was a Turkish television program. Before 2 ...

(launched November 2009) – 24-hour music channel with Turkish folk and classical music. It also airs pop, rock,

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

& ethnic music. * TRT Belgesel (launched November 2009) – 24-hour documentary channel. *

TRT Haber TRT Haber (English: TRT News) is a Turkish news and current affairs television channel. See also * List of television stations in Turkey The television industry in Turkey includes high-tech program production, transmission and coverage. T ...

(launched May 2010) – News and current affairs, sports news and weather. *

TRT 4K TRT 4K, is an UHD television channel established by TRT on Türksat 3A. TRT 4K started test broadcasting February 19, 2015. TRT4K is the first UHD FTA TV channel in Turkey and Europe. TRT4K uses HEVC (H.265) codec with 4K Ultra HD resolution ...

(launched February 2015) –

Ultra HD Ultra-high-definition television (also known as Ultra HD television, Ultra HD, UHDTV, UHD and Super Hi-Vision) today includes 4K UHD and 8K UHD, which are two digital video formats with an aspect ratio of 16:9. These were first proposed by N ...

television channel of TRT. This is the first 4K television channel in Turkey. * (launched September 2019) – Alternate channel to

International

TRT Türk TRT Türk is the international TV channel of the TRT, which is broadcast to other countries. TRT Türk's task is to enhance the understanding of the possibilities Turkey and Turkic republics may possess or take advantage of in various fields throu ...

( 16:9, not encoded in DVB signal) ''(formerly known as TRT INT) '' – International news, current affairs, documentaries and cultural programming aimed at both Turks and Turkish speaking audience living abroad. It's the first TRT channel to make extensive use of a private production company for news programming. *

TRT Avaz TRT Avaz is a channel broadcast by the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation with focusing on Turkey and Balkans. It was launched in Turkey on March 21, 2009 and broadcasts throughout the Balkans, Turkic Central Asia, the Middle East, and the C ...

''(formerly known as

)'' (launched March 2009) – International channel aimed at the Turkic republics and Turks living in the Balkans. The channel has a focus on entertainment and documentaries as opposed to TRT Türk's new focus on news. Programmes are broadcast in a mixture of languages including Turkish, Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Uzbek and Turkmen. *

TRT World TRT World is a Turkish public broadcaster international news channel which broadcasts in English 24 hours a day, operated by the TRT and based in Taksim Square, Istıklal Avenue, Beyoğlu, Istanbul. It provides worldwide news and current affair ...

– International news, current affairs, documentaries and cultural programming in English for international audiences.

Minority languages

TRT has a special TV channel for Kurdish that broadcasts on a 24-hour / 7-day basis called

and other TV and Radio stations that broadcast programmes in the local languages and dialects like

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

, Bosnian and Circassian a few hours a week. Another special TV channel aimed at the Turkic world,

was launched on 21 March 2009 and broadcasts in the Azerbaijani, Bosnian, Kazakh,

Kyrgyz Kyrgyz, Kirghiz or Kyrgyzstani may refer to: * Someone or something related to Kyrgyzstan *Kyrgyz people *Kyrgyz national games *Kyrgyz language *Kyrgyz culture *Kyrgyz cuisine *Yenisei Kirghiz *The Fuyü Gïrgïs language in Northeastern China ...

, Uzbek and Turkmen languages; while the TRT Arabic television channel started broadcasting on 4 April 2010.

Closing and opening times throughout the years

*31 January 1968: TRT 1 launched at 19:15 and closed at 20:51 *1970: TRT 1 launched at 19:00 and closed at 22:00 *1975: TRT 1 weeknights launched at 19:00 and closed at 23:00 and weekends launched at 18:00 and closed at midnight *1981: TRT 1 weeknights launched at 19:45 and closed at 23:00, Saturdays launched at 17:00 and closed at 23:40 and Sundays launched at 10am and closed at 23:00 *1984: TRT 1 weeknights launched at 19:00 and closed at 23:00, Saturdays launched at 17:30 and closed at midnight and Sundays launched at 14:00 and closed at midnight *1986: TRT 1 close at midnight, TRT 2 at 23:30 or 00:00 *1987: TRT 1 and TRT 2 close at 00:00 *1988: TRT 1 close at 1am, TRT 2 at 00:00 *1989: TRT 1 close at 1am, TRT 2 and TRT 3 at midnight *1990: TRT 1 close at 1am, TRT 2 and TRT 3 at midnight, TRT 4 at 23:30 *1992: TRT 1 close at 2am, TRT 2 at 1am, TRT 3 at midnight, TRT 4 at 23:30 *1993: TRT 2 at 1am, TRT 3 at midnight, TRT 4 at 23:30 *1997: TRT 1 and 2 close at 2am, TRT 3 and 4 at midnight *2002: TRT 1 & 2 open 24/7. 3 and 4 open 7:00-0:30 *Since 2010: all channels 24/7 (TRT 4/TRT Çocuk (4th channel of TRT) and TRT GAP/TRT Spor/TBMM-TV (3rd channel of TRT) couples are exception but in whole couples they broadcast 24/7 too.)

Radio channels

Radyo 1 Radyo 1 is a major radio network of TRT. This network is the earliest radio network in Turkey. Radyo-1 is not a specialized network and presents programs of general interest, including news, science, art, literature, drama, sports, environment, ec ...

(launched in May 1927) – spoken-word programmes including culture, arts, drama, news, science, society, education and history *

TRT FM Radyo 2, also known as TRT FM, is a radio network of TRT The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT; Turkish : ) is the national public broadcaster of Turkey, founded in 1964. TRT was for many years the only television and radio provi ...

(formerly Radyo 2, launched in January 1975) – A mixture of Turkish pop, folk and classical music, foreign pop, call ins, news and travel information *

Radyo 3 Radyo 3 is a radio network of Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT). This network specializes in all types of western music such as classical music, jazz and popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically di ...

(launched in January 1975) – Classical music, jazz, world music, foreign pop & rock * (launched in October 1987) – Turkish rap, R&B and Hip-Hop * (formerly Radyo 6, launched in 2009) – Broadcasting in Kurdish language for

Kurds in Turkey The Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Turkey. According to various estimates, they compose between 15% and 20% of the population of Turkey.; ; Sandra Mackey , “The reckoning: Iraq and the legacy of Saddam”, W.W. Norton and Company, ...

* (launched in September 1993) – News programmes * TRT Nağme – Turkish classical music * – Broadcasting for

Turks in Europe The Turks in Europe (sometimes called Euro-Turks; tr, Avrupa'daki Türkler or ''Avrupa Türkleri'') refers to ethnic Turks living in Europe. Generally, the Euro-Turks refers to the large Turkish diasporas living in Central and Western Europe a ...

* TRT Türkü – Turkish folk music and

türkü Turkish folk music (''Türk Halk Müziği'') is the traditional music of Turkish people living in Turkey influenced by the cultures of Anatolia and former territories in Europe and Asia. Its unique structure includes regional differences under ...

Voice of Turkey Voice of Turkey ( tr, Türkiye'nin Sesi Radyosu) is the international service of Turkish state radio on shortwave, Turksat 3A satellite and the Internet. All the broadcasts are transmitted from single site near Emirler, Ankara Province. (). ...

(launched in December 1982) – Broadcasting with 26 different languages and around the World.

Regional channels

* Antalya Radyosu – Broadcasting in

Antalya Antalya () is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, fifth-most populous city in Turkey as well as the capital of Antalya Province. Located on Anatolia's southwest coast bordered by the Taurus Mountains, Antalya is the largest Turkish cit ...

, covers west

Mediterranean Region, Turkey The Mediterranean Region ( tr, Akdeniz Bölgesi) is a geographical region of Turkey. The largest city in the region is Antalya. Other big cities are Adana, Mersin, Hatay and Kahramanmaraş. It is bordered by the Aegean Region to the west, the ...

* Çukurova Radyosu – Broadcasting in

Mersin Mersin (), also known as İçel, is a large city and a port on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast of southern Turkey. It is the provincial capital of Mersin Province, Mersin (İçel) Province. It is made up of four municipalities and dis ...

, covers east Mediterranean Region, Turkey * Erzurum Radyosu – Broadcasting in

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. The city uses the double-headed eagle as ...

, covers

Eastern Turkey The Eastern Anatolia Region ('' tr, Doğu Anadolu Bölgesi'') is a geographical region of Turkey. The most populous province in the region is Van Province. Other populous provinces are Malatya, Erzurum and Elazığ. It is bordered by the Black Se ...

* Trabzon Radyosu – Broadcasting in

Trabzon Trabzon (; Ancient Greek: Tραπεζοῦς (''Trapezous''), Ophitic Pontic Greek: Τραπεζούντα (''Trapezounta''); Georgian: ტრაპიზონი (''Trapizoni'')), historically known as Trebizond in English, is a city on the Bl ...

, covers Northern Turkey * Radyo GAP – Broadcasting in

Diyarbakır Diyarbakır (; ; ; ) is the largest Kurdish-majority city in Turkey. It is the administrative center of Diyarbakır Province. Situated around a high plateau by the banks of the Tigris river on which stands the historic Diyarbakır Fortress, ...

, covers South Eastern Turkey

Teletext and EPG

TRT started

teletext A British Ceefax football index page from October 2009, showing the three-digit page numbers for a variety of football news stories Teletext, or broadcast teletext, is a standard for displaying text and rudimentary graphics on suitably equipp ...

trial-runs with the name “Telegün” on 3 December 1990. All TV channels are broadcasting the teletext. 6 channels are also broadcasting their programs with the

Electronic program guide Electronic programming guides (EPGs) and interactive programming guides (IPGs) are menu-based systems that provide users of television, radio and other media applications with continuously updated menus that display scheduling information for ...

(EPG).

News

TRT offers online news services in Turkish and other languages.
Afghani (Southern Uzbek)

Albanian
( TRT Balkan)
Arabic

Armenian
* Azerbaijan
(Latin)

(Arabic script)

Bosnian-Serbian-Croatian
(TRT Balkan)
Bulgarian

Chinese

Dari

English
(

)
French

Georgian

German

Greek

Hausa

Hungarian

Italian

Japanese

Kazakh

Kurdish

Kyrgyz

Macedonian
(TRT Balkan)
Melayu

Pashto

Persian

Portuguese

Romanian

Russian

Spanish

Swahili

Tatar

Turkish

Turkmen

Urdu

Uyghur (Arabic/Latin/Cyrilic)

Uzbek

Logos

File:TRT logo (1980).svg, 1986–1990 File:TRT logo (1990-2001).svg, 1990–2001 File:Turkish Radio and Television logo (2001-2012).svg, 2001–2018, still used in some channels until 2021. File:TRT logo (2018-).svg, 2018–present, first used by

from 2015.

References

External links

*
TRT World

TRT Sales
{{Authority control Mass media in Turkey Publicly funded broadcasters Turkish-language television stations Turkish-language radio stations European Broadcasting Union members Multilingual broadcasters Radio stations established in 1964 Television channels and stations established in 1968 1964 establishments in Turkey State media Companies of Turkey