Bangladesh Media Landscape by Robert

1 Bangladesh Media and Telecoms Landscape go by May 2012 If you wish to decl ar aceself twain updates or am curioments to this document, please contact Robert Powell on Robert. emailprotected org Type schoolbook 2 Introduction Bangladesh is a flatcar and low-lying rude that occasion both(prenominal)y suffers from annihilative tidal gags and floods. It is besides ace of the just ab tabu densely populated countries in the world. The ordered series of human race suffering ca l destination oneselfd by a combination of game winds, tidal surges and heavier-than- halomanship rainstorms is cpstimes immense.In 2009, Cyclone Ailia cause a tidal surge that flooded low-lying coastal force fields and leftfield well-nigh 500,000 homeless. 80% of Bangladesh consists of flood plain. 75% of the do principal(prenominal)s land ara is less than 10 metres above sea level. This makes Bangladesh vulnerable to rising sea levels as a lead of climate change. fill ca utilise by rive rs bursting their banks is a big problem in umpteen argonas. shut uply 20 meg plenty living in low-lying coastal aras argon at risk of being flooded expose of their homes by rising water sum levels and tidal surges.The great(p), capital of Bangladesh, has nation of about 16 one thousand one thousand thousand and is one of the outsizest cities in the world. But 73% of Bangladeshs 164 jillion severalize placid lives in hoidenish beas. near of the population relies on subsistence distantming. Rice is the staple exercise and the lands im user interfaceant blood of food. Bangladesh ranked 146 out of 187 evinces listed in the 2011 UN kind- visuali compulsiveed development Index. agree to the valet de chambre Bank, 81% of the population lives in p overty Type text 3 Administrative sectionalizations of Bangladesh Source http//www. give-and-takepecialpictures. om/category/map-2/bangladesh-map/ Type text 4 The adult literacy rate was 56% in 2009, fit to UNE SCO. It estimated that 61% of men could claim and write, and solitary(prenominal) 51% of women. Bangla or Bengali is spoken as a kickoff lecture by 98% of the population. It is the official wording of regimen Bangla is in like manner spoken in the neighbouring West Bengal secern of India, with which Bangladesh has close pagan and historical ties. Bengalis in some(prenominal) countries love their lecture and abundant culture. Poets ar field attack melodycraftes, k direct to ein truthone. nigh amend East Pakistanis still moot the city of Kolkata (formerly know as Calcutta), crossways the border in India, as the cultural capital of Bengal a region that historic on the wholey includes West Bengal and Bangladesh. many an(prenominal) East Pakistani families still live with healthy links to West Bengal, having left per passworda of their family at that place when they fled clashes mingled with Hindus and Muslims during the partition of India in 1947. more thanover, at a policy-making level many Bangladeshis feel ambivalent about India. The intentions of this larger and more and more efficacious neighbour ar astray distrusted.Several turn overical anesthetic anesthetic anesthetic terminologys argon spoken in the Chittagong cumulation Tracts in in the south- einsteiniumern Bangladesh and in the original due northern about of the country, where the influence of Indias neighbouring Assam region is pronounced. intimately 300,000 wad in the troubled Chittagong pitcher Tracts speak Chakma. The important worldwide communicationing to spoken is slope. This is a legacy of nigh both centuries of British colonial approach pattern. Type text 5 Bangladesh maked independence from British colonial rule as part of the Islamic earth of Pakistan in 1947.The territory was then know as East Pakistan, still when it was physic entirelyy separated from the rest of Pakistan by India. The precept of incline declined pursuance independence from Pakistan in 1971 as Bangla was promoted for nationalist rea word of honors. However, English continues to be widely used in regimen, cable and the media. It is in like manner widely spoken among the meliorate elite. English is now making a come sustain. Many Bangladeshis regard fluency in the dustup as vital for acquire well-paid jobs both at home and overseas. About 90% of Bangladeshis be Sunni Muslim. A nevertheless 9% argon Hindu. in that respect be micro minorities of Christians and Buddhists. Tradition altogethery well-nigh Bangladeshis seduce defined themselves as Bengalis origin and Muslims south-centralward. However, Islamic fundamentalism has been on the rise since the ahead of time 1990s. Bangladesh carve up away from Pakistan by and byward a roaring armed uprising in 1971, which was plunk for by the Indian Air Force. This is known in Bangladesh as the War of Liberation. phraseology and culture was a key doer in the liberation st ruggle. Bangladeshi nationalists advocated the use of Bangla as an official speech communication alternatively of Urdu, the official language of Pakistan.Nationalism, democracy, secularism and favorableism were the 4 pillars of Bangladeshs 1972 Constitution. However, in 1988 Islam was make the introduce religion. Type text 6 Post-independence governing defend been damage by a bitter fray amongst the dickens important policy-making dynasties in Bangladesh. tribal sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the puting come of Bangladesh, served as the countrys inaugural ch transportperson until his blackwash by soldiery officers in1975. He was the leader of Awami league, founded in 1949. His daughter, dandy Hasina Wajed, took over the caller leadership after his death.She has been Prime Minister and leader of the presidency since 2009. A rival policy-making dynasty was founded by General Ziaur Rahman, a military hero of the 1971 revolt over against Pakistan. Ziaur Rahman, who is widely known as General Zia, became the de facto military ruler of Bangladesh in 1975. He took the helm after several(prenominal) months of instability triggered by the kill of Mujibur Rahman. Ziaur Rahman appoint both(prenominal) of Mujibur Rahmans assassins to senior governing body positions. This move created a rift in the midst of the families of the cardinal men and has poisoned relations between them ever since.Ziaur Rahman assumed the title of president in 1977 and govern Bangladesh until his own assassination in 1981. He founded the Bangladesh Nationalist troupe (BNP), the countrys some different main political app arnt motion in 1978. The party is now led by Ziaur Rahmans widow, Khaleda Zia. She served as vertex minister from 1991 to 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006. In early 2012, with the Awami League back in origin, she was leader of the emulation. The personal tilt and animosity between beau Hasina and Khaleda Zia is intense and has coloured ofttimes of Bangladeshi politics over the sometime(prenominal) 20 geezerhood.Both women argon in their late 60s. Type text 7 Since independence, Bangladesh has all been ruled by the Awami League, the BNP or a military-led regime. The armys just about forward-looking-fashioned intervention in politics took pop in 2007. It formed a c betaker administration after the previous BNP-led regimen failed to bedevil fresh elections by the end of its parliamentary mandate. A military-led interim disposal unionised fresh elections in 2008. The Awami League scored a landslide victory, winning 49% of the every mean solar solar mean solar mean solar day vote and 263 of the 300 seats in parliament.It re do ploughed to power in early 2009 with Sheikh Hasina as Prime Minister. This was her second destination as head of administration. She had earlier ruled Bangladesh from 1996 to 2001. The ideological differences between the Awami League and the BNP be insignifi roll in the hayt, plainly the animosity between their respective(prenominal) leaders is intense and extremely personal. Sheikh Hasina blames General Zia and the BNP for being close to her stirs murderers, for removing secularism from the constitution, and for rehabilitating collaborationist forces much(prenominal) as Jamaat-e-Islami, which formerly opposed independence from Pakistan.The BNP and Khaleda Zia suggest in turn that Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League atomic number 18 insufficiently Muslim, and that they are in league with Hindu-dominated India. Khaleda Zia filed subversive activity cases against Sheikh Hasina and her associates era she was in power. Sheikh Hasina has since retaliated in kind. The adjoining parliamentary elections are due in 2013. Corruption is wide unrestricted exposure at all levels of political relation in Bangladesh, especially in the police. Type text 8 The country was rated great hundred out of 183 countries listed in Transparency Internationals 2011Corruption Perce ption Index with a rank of 2. out of 10. Bangladesh at a time occupied the tar hail rung of the index, exactly its performance has change in recent long time. Every hardly a(prenominal) historic period, Bangladesh suffers from devastating floods, approximately of which are triggered by cyclonic storms sexual climax ashore from the utter of Bengal. Only 5% of the worlds cyclonic storms form in the alcove of Bengal, scarce these cause 85% of the detriment of disembodied spirit and property nattered by all cyclones on the pla ne bothrk. In 1991, a arduous cyclone killed nearly 140,000 Bangladeshis and do up to 10 million homeless. It sent a sise-metre high storm surge of sea water rushing inland.Following that disaster, world(prenominal) donors helped Bangladesh to build a profits of cyclone shelters along the coast and rotary up an early warning dodge for residents in vulnerable areas. Regular TV and wireless bulletins are issued as cyclones stretchiness key st ages of development in the bay of Bengal. The governing body overly passes warning put acrosss put lot to local anesthetic anaesthetic government officials. At moments of extreme danger, sirens mounted on the cyclone shelters are sounded. In 2009 the government used the energetic call in realizework to create an additional line of products for distri stilling cyclone warning messages.It began to dish out SMS cyclone warning messages to all agile phone owners living in danger zones as danger approached, gad them to urgently seek safety. Casualties amaze been greatly reduced as a result of these precautions, but respectable storms continue to inflict heavy damage Type text 9 humansquakes are rare, but when they do occur they ass be extremely powerful. Only heptad earthquakes of over 8. 5 magnitude generate ever been recorded in the world, but ii of those affected Bangladeshin 1887 and again in 1950. The country sits astride tercet major fault lines. In folk 20 11 a 6. magnitude earthquake with its epicenter in Sikkim to the north rocked buildings in the capital capital of Bangladesh and elsewhere for up to cardinal arcseconds. harmonize to Professor Humayun Akhter, Head of the Earth Observatory at capital of Bangladesh University, a 7. 5 magnitude quake with an epicentre 50km from capital of Bangladesh would wreak havoc in the capital. He estimated in September 2011 that much(prenominal) a quake would destroy 30% of all buildings in the city, killing 200,000 volume and trapping a further 300,000 in the debris of collapsed buildings. Famine has been a go on phenomenon in Bangladesh for centuries.However, thither has not been a serious hunger crisis in the country since 1974, when over one million people died. New varieties of rice, better fartherming techniques and improve early warning systems have boosted awkward output. In about years Bangladesh manages to achieve self-sufficiency in food. Although most of Bangladesh is peace ful, a regional conflict in the Chittagong pile Tracts (CHT) near the Burmese border in the Southeast has been simmering for the past 40 years. This pits indigenous people from the region against settlers from new(prenominal) move of Bangladesh and the army.The government signed a peace agreement with the hill tribes in 1997, granting limited autonomy to the CHT. Type text 10 However, the tell of self-rule for the CHT was never fulfilled and discontinuous violence continues to plague the region. Reports of human rights violations in the CHT are commonplace. In late 2011, at that place were 28,000 registered refugees from Myanmar (Burma) living in two government-run camps in the South eastern district of follows bazar. tight all of the refugees were Muslims from the Rohingya ethnic crowd. They represented the remnants of an influx of 250,000 refugees from Myanmar in 1991.The Bangladeshi government estimates that a further 200,000 to 300,000 Burmese live in Bangladesh witho ut formal refugee status. In October 2011 the Burmese government announced that it would take the Rohingya refugees back. The Bangladeshi authorities were keen for them to cast off, but by early 2012 at that place had been no reports of any laboured repatriations. The army has not attempted to step in in politics since it re glowering Bangladesh to elected urbane government in 2008. However, in 2010 more than 70 people, including civilians and army officers, were killed during a rebellion by the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) border force.More than 2, atomic number 6 BDR personnel were subsequently detained. accord to media reports, more than 60 of these detainees died in custody. The army and the police have a poor human rights record. The fast natural action Battalion, an elite anti-crime and anti-terrorism unit set up in 2004, has a particularly badness reputation. It is able to act in closeness and with impunity. Type text 11 concord to Amnesty International, the speedy A ction Batallion has been implicated in the killing of at least 700 people since its formation. It has alike been accused of torturing detainees.In 2010, according to human rights organisations, law enfor cement officials were obligated for 127 deaths, 101 of which were attributed to crossfire. The quick Action Battalion accounted for 65 of the crossfire killings, objet dart reparation police were responsible for a further 21. Combined security units of Rapid Action Battalion and police agents were responsible for a further 12 deaths. Type text 12 Bangladesh at a glance population Main Language Other languages widely used in beam swinish National Income per capita Adult Literacy (15+) $624 (World Bank 2012) 56% (UNESCO 2009) 164 million (World Bank 2010) BanglaEnglish lively phones prompt phone penetration (lines per blow inhabitants) Mobile intercommunicate do byage (population) meshwork users 87. 9 million (BTRC February 2012) 94% (urban) and 83% ( plain) (NMS 2011) 98% (BTRC 2011) 5. 5 million (Internetworldstats. com December 2011) Internet subscribers Ranking in UN Human Development Index 2011 Ranking in Reporters Without Borders World take Freedom Index 2011/12 3. 1 million (BRTC February 2012) 146 (out of 179) 129 (out of 179) Type text 13 Media overview boob tube is the most fashionable initiation of intelligence show and entertainment in urban areas of Bangladesh.It is besides rapidly gaining ground in the countryside. However, wireless still drops large references in the boorish areas, where 73% of Bangladeshis live. Many rural families have no ingress to electricity and are too poor to afford a TV set. communicate ownership has move s good afternoon teadily in recent years and so have communicate audiences. The 2011 Nielsen Media and demographic Survey, addressed by the global media marketing group AC Nielsen, found that tuner auditory sense had declined to 15% of the population in 2011 from 36% in 1999. It as wel l as found that over the equal 12-year period find to video in urban areas increased from 69% to 91%.In rural areas, the proportion of the population keep an eye oning goggle box receiver increased pull mastered more dramatically from 24% to 67%. The 2011 Nielsen Survey indicated that Bangladeshis who still listen to receiving set are increasingly tuning in on their mobile phones rather than a traditional intercommunicatecommunication set. It showed that 73% of piano tuner listeners tuned into post on their mobile phones, but entirely(prenominal) 34% still listened to programmes on a communicatecommunication setcommunication set. This change in listening habits shines the fact that young urban Bangladeshis frequently listen to medicinal drug publicize by FM berths by dint of earphones attached to their mobile handset. Type text 14 However, one in five Bangladeshis do not watch TV or listen to piano tuner at all. The Nielsen reexamine indicated that 20% of the population has no devil to any media whatsoever. It found that 27% of females were unavailing to watch TV, listen to communicate or reach any former(a) media on a regular basis. 13% of males were in the uniform situation. The government began to liberalise political programing in the late 1990s. Unusually, it allowed toffee-nosed TV move to operate before licencing cliquish radio receiver move. Bangladeshs freshman tete-a-tete send impart, ATN Bangla, began beam on beam in 1997.But the inaugural moneymaking(prenominal)ised radio circle, wireless Foorti, save went on product line in 2006. The government-run radio network Bangladesh Betar and state-run Bangladesh tv (BTV) have both lost audiences to backstage empyrean competitors in the towns and cities. However, state radio and TV still dominate the air waves at a national level. They are still the tho alloters that apprize be received intimately in large swathes of the countryside, where the ma jority of Bangladeshis live. Bangladesh Betar and BTV both knockoutly reflect the views of the government of the side truly daylight.Their program is widely regarded as dull and uninspired compared with that of their clandestine sector competitors. troop circulation password showpapers remain authoritative, especially in the main towns. The 2011 National Media Survey found that 40% of Bangladeshi men read passwordpapers at least once a hebdomad. The figure for women was much lower at 14%. Type text 15 This reflects lower literacy rank amongst women. It to a fault reflects the fact that men work to control house seduce incomes and that men get out and about much more than the women of the household.They therefore have more probability to buy tidingspapers. Before the government allowed the get-go head-to-head television system send to go on air in 1997, countersignpapers were the moreover source of self-supporting reading in Bangladesh. However, the liberalisa tion of the air waves, the proliferation of mobile phones and the spread of net income regain, have dramatically clear up the media landscape since then. Mobile shout ownership has constitute widespread in both urban and rural areas following a rapid expansion of the mobile telecoms network in the early years of this century.The 2011 Nielsen Media and demographic Survey found that two terces of all Bangladeshis over the age 15 have a mobile handset with an alive(p) SIM card. The Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory commission (BTRC) utter there were 87. 9 million mobile phone subscribers in the country by the end of February 2012. This figure implies that one in two Bangladeshis has a mobile phone. However many handset owners have SIM separate for more than one network, so the echt mobile penetration rate is doubtless lower. Mobile phones are mainly used for voice conversations.Very few handsets support the first principle of the Bangla language, so the mickle of t ext pass along is quite low. According to the BTRC, the average volume of SMS messages sent in 2011was 30 million per month. Type text 16 This is the equivalent of one message for every terce phones in use. Nevertheless, mobile phones are already being used as a line of business to programme information. Since 2009 the government has issued cyclone warnings by SMS. Members of the public shadower in like manner dial a pithy economy on any of Bangladeshs trey mobile phone networks to hear a recording of the la footrace BBC Bangla watchword headlines. These are updated every hour.Internet use is emergence fast from a low base, but addition to the internet is still curb well-off people living in the main towns. According to the web rank www. internetworldstats. com there were 5. 5 million internet users in Bangladesh at the end of 2011 equivalent to 3. 5% of the countrys population. The BTRC reported in February 2012 that Bangladesh had 3. 1 million internet subscribers, of whom nearly 3. 0 million went online via the mobile telecoms network. The website www. socialbakers. com which measures global internet usage, said more than 2. 5 million Bangladeshis had signed up to Facebook by February 2012.The most public Bangladeshi intelligence show website is that of Prothom Alo (First Light), the countrys top-sellling newspaper www. prothom-alo. com The independent and widely respect news website www. bdnews24. com follows close buns it. intelligence activity about Bangladesh is lots double-quick to break online than on local TV or radio. However, TV and radio are still widely regarded as the most authoritative sources of news and information. Type text 17 A 2008 study by the shew of Governances Studies at BRAC University, entitled The State of Governance in Bangladesh, found that state and sequestered course of studyers both scored highly on credibility.News on mystical TV was rated as authentic by 82% of respondents to the play along, while state-run BTV scored 78%. reality confidence in the state media was observably lower in urban areas, where there is loosely a greater pickaxe of media. The BRAC University study found that only 68% of urban residents considered government possess TV and radio to be authentic sources of information. However, the credibility rating of state media in the countryside was much higher(prenominal) at 87%. For many Bangladeshis in rural areas, the state radio network Bangladesh Betar is still the main source of news and information.Bangladesh Betar runs 12 regional radio move as well as a national radio serve well. It withal runs a special Traffic deal for capital of Bangladesh. Its broadcasts on FM and Medium flourish cover the entire country. Bangladeshs has only five buck hush-hush commercial radio send offs. each(prenominal) of them are based in capital of Bangladesh. Their broadcasts on FM are in the first place aimed at urban audiences. Only two reclusive radio blank spa ces have broad national coverage piano tuner Foorti and receiving set nowadays. Both have pass enchantters in several peasant cities. radiocommunication forthwith withal has a network of regional studios which produce some local programming. Type text 18 wireless Aamar has one pass on stead in Chittagong, but Metrowave and rudiment radiocommunication only broadcast to Dhaka and the surrounding area. The government has so far accredited 14 confederacy radio billets. The first two went on air in 2011. There are plans to establish more than 100 partnership place across the country in due course. Private TV place only distribute their programmes by satellite and cable. Nevertheless, they have come to dominate publicize in the towns and cities. head-i and ATN Bangla are the most common secret TV business.Government-run BTV is the only station that broadcasts free-to-air from mundane senders. As such it is the only TV station that stern been seen by most people with b some other to television in rural areas. However, BTVs hold on rural TV viewing audience is starting to loosen as more and more people in the countryside are switching to satellite television, which allows them to watch hush-hush and foreign bring. The largest and most influential Bangla language casual newspaper is Prothom Alo. It sold 437,000 copies per day in early 2011, according to government statistics.The newspapers online version www. prothom-alo. comhasmore than 800,000 readers, according to its editor. Many of these aremembers of the Bangladeshi diaspora living overseas. Prothom Alos stable mate, The workaday booster, is the largest circulation English language day by day in Bangladesh. It sells over 40,000 copies per day and is influential in the ruling elite. wholly of Bangladeshs national newspapers are publish in Dhaka. However, dozens of provincial dailies are published in several opposite cities, including Chittagong, Khulna, Rajshahi, Sylhet, Baris al, Bogra and lemanderin. Type text 9 Most insular media outlets are broadly aligned with one of Bangladeshs two main parties the Awami League, which is authenticly in power, or the resistance Bangladesh National connection (BNP). The hole-and-corner(a) media in Bangladesh is mostly possess by large tune get togethers, such as Transcom, foursquare convention and the Beximco. These groups have prolonged interests in manufacturing manufacture, trading and monetary work as well as the media. There are relatively few genuinely independent media outlets. Many too allow the melody interests of their owners to colour their news coverage.editor programs and journalists can face pressure or intimidation for opposing government policies, and coverage on sensitive issues such as corruption, crime, human rights abuses and illegal business practices. Salaries are low, so many journalists are in any case open to financial inducements to slant their stories in favour of their pa ymasters or suppress inept information. Threats from political parties, police and military, extremist phantasmal groups, and former(a) powerful individuals, are relatively common. Bangladesh was ranked 129th out of 179 countries listed in the Reporters Sans Frontieres 2011-12 Press Freedom Index http//en. sf. org/press- emancipation-index-20112012,1043. html According to The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) www. cpj. org , 12 journalists were dispatch in Bangladesh between 1992 and March 2012. Most of their killers escaped prosecution. Type text 20 Three accommodate of those who died were covering crime and/or corruption stories at the time. Generally speaking, journalists and editors tread carefully, self-censoring themselves to subdue trouble. The 2009 Right to cultivation (RTI) Act allows for immunity of access to information held by public organisations.This has modify the potential for investigative journalism, although so far few journalists have taken advanta ge of it. Libel, sedition and reporting on national security issues all exile the risk of criminal prosecution. Like other Bangladeshi citizens, journalists can be held for up to 90 days without trial chthonian the 1974 Special advocators Act. A code of conduct for newspapers, news agencies and journalists was issued by the Bangladesh Press Council, a statutory body controlled by the government, in 1993. It was amended in 2002. Restrictions on media freedom have often increased during periods of political turmoil.The authorities have occasionally tried and true to block access to some websites, citing spiritual and moral concerns. According to Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) www. rsf. org the government blocked access to the everyday social networking site Facebook for nine days in 2010 until it concur to withdraw cartoons of the Islamic Prophet Mohammed and cartoons of sealed Bangladeshi politicians The pro-opposition newspaper Amar Desh was closed for three months in June 2010 after a produce a report that accused the son of the prime minister of involvement in a corruption scandal. Its editor and main treatholder Mahmudur Rahman was arrested. Type text 21 Rahman, a former energy adviser of the opposition Bangladesh National Party (BNP), was released nine months later. dickens private TV stations, pack 1 and Jamuna TV, have in like manner been shut low by the current Awami League government since it came to power in 2008. Jamuna TV, owned by the Jamuna business conglomerate, was banned in noember 2009, after 35 days of test transmissions for in operation(p) without a licence. Channel 1, whose owner has close links with the BNP, was forced to suspend publicise in April 2010after the government accused it of violating unspecified rules.The station is owned by man of personal matters Giasuddin Al Mamun, who has close ties to the eldest son of opposition leader and former prime minister Minister Khaleda Zia. Wherever television is available, B angladeshis have come torely on TV rather than radio as their main source of news, information and entertainment. By the end of 2011, there were 19 local TV extends available in Bangladesh, only three of which were controlled by the government. Many Bangladeshis with a satellite dish also watch Indian origins transmit in Bangla and Hindi.The Indian soap operas on Star TV are particularly favorite. everywhere the years, a succession of governments has pledged to turn state TV and radio into independent public service broadcasters, but no convincing move has so far been made in this direction. However, the government has concur to allow the establishment of a smattering of community radio stations. Type text 22 The first two community radio stations opened in 2011 and the government has awarded licences to 12 others. All give be operated by local NGOs. Academic facilities for journalism information in Bangladesh are quite good.The state universities of Dhaka, Jahangirnagar, J agannath, Chittagong and Rajshahi all offer graduate and post-graduate courses on mass communication and journalism. Some respected private universities, such as BRAC, the nonparasitic University of Bangladesh, Stamford University, and Daffodils also offer courses in journalism and media studies. In 2007 USAID set up the journalism Training and Research Initiative (JATRI), a professional training centre for investigative journalism. It now forms part of BRAC Universitys Institute of Governance Studies. Type text 3 Media Groups Many newspapers and radio and TV stations in Bangladesh are owned by business conglomerates with extensive interests in manufacturing industry, trading and financial services as well as the media. The shares of some of these companies are traded on the Dhaka shopworn Exchange, but most of them are controlled by rich and politically influential families. The largest and most influential business groups with media interests are Transcom Groupwww. transcombd. c om Transcom owns Prothom Alo, the largest circulation Bangla language newspaper in Bangladesh.It also owns The fooling Star, the largest and most respected English language daily in the country. Transcoms broadcasting interests are represented by alphabet wireless, a Dhaka-based news and current affairs FM station. Transcoms media outlets are principally perceived as being politically neutral. The conglomerate was founded as a family-run tea plantation business in 1885. Its non-media business interests include electronics, mobile phones, pharmaceuticals, food and beverages. It owns the Bangladeshi franchises for Pepsi Cola, 7-Up, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut. Type text 24 Bashundhara Groupwww. bg. com. d Bashundara Group owns two influential Bangla language daily newspapers Kaler Kantho and Bangladesh Protidin, and an English language newspaper, The Daily Sun. It also owns the bi-lingual news portal www. BanglaNews24. com not to be confused with the more commonplace w ww. Bdnews24. com The conglomerates media outlets are held through a publishing secondary company called the East West Media Group. Bashundhara Group began life in 1987 as a real estate company. It has since diversified into obtain malls, manufacturing industry and the media. It is a major producer of cement and paper products and bottles and distributes Liquid Petroleum louse up (LPG).The Bashundhara Group website says the conglomerate intends to set up its own TV channel and radio station in due course. The pillar line of the groups newspapers by and large favours the ruling Awami League. Many of their news reports are seen as serving the groups own business interests. Jamuna Groupwww. jamunagroup-bd. com The Jamuna Group publishes the popular Bangla daily Jugantor and is trying to set up a TV station Jamuna TV. The TV station started broadcasting in 2009, but was shut down by the government after 35 days for direct without a licence. Type ext 25 The Jamuna Group was found ed as an industrial manufacturing venture by businessman Nurul Islam in 1974. Today it has interests in electronics, slip and textile manufacturing, construction and chemicals. The conglomerate also owns Jamuna Future Park, one of Bangladeshs largest shopping malls. Jamuna diversified into media with the establishment of Jugantor in 2002. feign Group www. impressgroup. com. bd Impress Group is a textiles, groom manufacturing and pharmaceuticals conglomerate which owns Channel i, one of Bangladeshs most popular private TV channels.Its Impress Telefilm subsidiary also produces TV programmes for other Bangladeshi TV channels, such as BTV, ATN and Ekushey TV. Beximco Group www. beximco. net Beximco is one of the largest diversified industrial groups in Bangladesh Its relatively modest media interests include the English language daily The commutative and the Independent TV channel. Beximcos main business activities include pharmaceuticals, ceramics, textiles, garment manufacturing, real estate, and banking. Type text 26 Beximco was founded in the 1970s by two brothers, Ahmed Sohail Fasiur Rahman and Ahmed Salman Fazlur Rahman.The latter is a close consultant to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed on private sector investment matters. Multi Media end product Company This media group, founded by entrepreneur Mahfuzur Rahman owns two of Bangaldeshs most popular private TV channels ATN Bangla and ATN News. ATN Bangla became Bangladeshs first private TV channel when it started broadcasting by satellite in 1997. Rahman made his initial fortune in the garment manufacturing industry. Diganta Group Diganta Group owns Naya Diganta, a Bangla language daily newspaper, and Diganta TV, a private television channel launched in 2008.Politically this media group is a strong supporter of the Jamaat-e-Islami Islamic fundamentalist party. Square Group The Square Group is a large industrial conglomerate which launched Bangladeshs ne wolfram TV channel, Maasranga TV, in 2011. It h as invested heavily in hiring leading media personalities to run the new station and has spent lavishly on equipping its studios. Type text 27 The Square Group, founded by business magnate Samson Chowdhury, also has interests in pharmaceuticals, textiles, food processing and healthcare. Type text 28 intercommunicate overview tuner audiences in Bangladesh have locomote steadily in recent years as people have turned to television instead. The 2011 Nielsen Mediaand Demographics Survey showed that only 15% of the population still listened to the radio once every s til now to 10 days, down from 36% in 1995. The same scan indicated that 91% of people in urban areas and 67% of people in rural areas now had access to television. piano tuner stations in Bangladesh are still mostly still owned and controlled by the government. The first private radio station, wireless Foorti, only began broadcasting in 2006.By early 2012, there were just five in private owned commercial FM stations on air and the community radio movement was in its infancy. The five private commercial radio stations are all based in Dhaka. They are tuner Foorti piano tuner Today alphabet wireless radio set Aamar Metrowave State-owned Bangladesh Betar is the countrys only nationwide radio network. Type text 29 It operates a chain of 12 regional radio stations which link up with Dhaka for national news bulletins and other networked programmes, positively charged a Traffic Channel for commuters in the capital. Bangladesh Betars broadcasts on Medium pluck and FM reach all parts of the country.However, Bangladesh Betars news and current affairs coverage is tightly controlled by the government and its programmes are often dull and uninspired compared with those of other broadcasters. Repeated pledges by government leaders to transform Bangladesh Betar from a government oral cavity into an independent public service broadcaster have so far come to nothing. Reach of radio (% Population) 45 4 0 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 1995 1998 2000 2002 National 2005 Year urban 2006 2008 Rural 2009 2011 (Source NMDS 2011) Type text 30 Most of the private FM stations transmit symphony and entertainment programmes aimed at an urban younker audience.The notable exception is first principle radio set, a talk station which targets a reasonably older audience with a strong diet of news and current affairs. ABC piano tuner is owned by Transcom, the same business group that owns Prothom Alo and The Daily Star, Bangladeshs leading newspapers in Bangla and English respectively. Radio Foort iand Radio Todaybothhave a network of FM put across transmitters in several provincial cities. This gives them broader national coverage. Radio Today also has studios in eigh provincial cites which produce some local programming. Radio Aamar broadasts in Dhaka and Chittangong. ABC Radio and Metro gesture only transmit from Dhaka.According to the 2011 Nielsen Media and Demographics Survey, Radio Foorti is t he most popular FM radio station in Bangladesh, with 47% of the national FM radio audience. It was followed by Radio Today with 28%. The check into found that where listeners have a choice, they regard the private FM stations as being more informative and socialise than Bangladesh Betar. The government has so far licensed 14 community radio stations. The first two went on air in 2011. Type text 31 Although radio ownership has declined in recent years, more and more Bangladeshi radio listeners are tuning into programmes on their mobile phones.In fact, mobile phones have become the preferred method of accessing radio in Bangladesh, especially for young people on the move in search of medication and entertainment. The 2011 Nielsen Survey found that 73% of radio listeners used their mobile phones to tune in to programmes, whereas only 34% listened on a conventional radio set. How Radio Is Accessed (%of listeners) 73 Mobile 34 Radio Others 1 Source Nielsen Media and Demographics Surve y 2011 Several internationalist broadcasters target Bangladesh with broadcasts in Bangla and English.They attract listeners because Bangladesh Betar is viewed by most people as piddling more than a crude mouthpiece of the incumbent government. Type text 32 BBC Bangla, parting of the States (VOA), Radio Deutsche Welle and All India Radio are all respectedas sources of independent news, but they command relatively small audiences. BBC programmes in Bangla and English are relayed on FM by Bangladesh Betars FM 100 station in Dhaka. BBC Bangla programmes are also relayed twice a day by six of the state broadcasters regional stations. Some VOA Bangla programmes are relayed by Radio Today and Radio Aamar.According to the 2011 Nielsen assess, 5% of radio listeners tune in to the BBC, and only 4% to VOA. Radio Deutsche Welle and All India Radio can only be comprehend on Short motion. Their audience figures are even lower. Several internet radio stations have been launched in Banglades h since 2010. These include www. lemon24. com, www. oniyom. com, www. radio2fun. com, www. radiodhaka. net www. radiogoongoon. com. They broadcast popular Bangla songs, and regular news bulletins. However, they only reach relatively moneyed members of the educated elite who have access to the internet and Bangladeshis in the diaspora. Type text 3 companionship radio is only just coming into existence. The first community radio station, RadioLokobetar, began test transmissions in the town of Barguna in Barisal division in June 2011. It is run by the NGO, Mass Line Media nucleus. In October 2011, a second community station, Radio Padma, started broadcasting in Rajshahi. It is run by another NGO, the heart for communion and Development By the end of 2011, the government had issued a total of 14 licences tocommunity radio stations. Two were on air and another four had begun test broadcasts. distributively one is being set up and managed by a different civil society organisati on.The residential area Radio advocacy movement was started in 1998 by a network of NGOs and like-minded civil society organizations called the Bangladesh NGO Network for Radio and Communication (BNNRC). This pressure group argued that community radio would help to reduce poverty, eliminate social exclusion, empower marginalized rural groups and encourage the active participation of disadvantaged sections of the population in development. The government authorise the Community Radio Installation, Broadcast and Operation Policy 2008 (Bangladesh Gazette, 12 March 2008).The National Regulatory management on transmit subsequently proposed that a total of 116 community radio stations be established across the country. Type text 34 Community radio stations approved by the government in 2011 Sl. nary(prenominal) Name of radio and Frequency (where available) Krishi Radio, 98. 80 megacycle per second Radio Chilmari, 99. 20MHz Lokobetar, 99. 20MHz Name and address of organisation which will run the radio 01 Agriculture Information usefulness (Ministry of Agriculture), Amtoli, Barguna RDRS Bangladesh, Chilmari, Kurigram 02 03Mass-line Media Center, Amtoli Hospital Road, (Kathpatti), Barguna Nalta Hospital Community Health Foundation, Kaliganj, Sathkhira Landless Distressed reformation Organization, Sherpur Road, Bogra BRAC Mathar Kapon, Chandnighat, Moulvibazar Sadar Naogaon Human Rights Development Association, Ukilpara, Naogaon Young world power in Social Action (YPSA), Sitakunda, Chittagong Proyas Manobik Unnayan society, Belepukur, Chapainawabgonj Center for Communication and Development (CCD), Monafer More, Rajshahi Srizony Bangladesh, Pabahati, Jhenidha 04 Radio Nalta, 99. 20MHz Radio Mukti, 99. 0MHz Radio Pollikontho, 99. 20MHz Barendro Radio, 99. 20MHz Radio Sagor Giri, 99. 20 MHz Radio Mahananda, 98. 80MHz Radio Padma, 99. 20MHz Radio Jhinuk, 99. 20MHz Radio Bikrampur 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 surround Council Bangladesh (EC Bangladesh), Dewvogh, Munshiga nj Broadcasting Asia of Bangladesh, Koyra, Khulna 13 Radio Sundarban, 98. 80MHz Radio Naf 14 Alliance for Co-operation and Legal charge Bangladesh (ACLAB), Teknaf, bes Bazar Type text 35 Location of authorised community radio stations Source BNNRC 2011 Type text 36 Radio stations Bangladesh Betar www. betar. rg. bd Bangladesh Betar is the state-run radio network. It is the only radio service that reaches the whole of the country. The flagship Home dish out is broadcast from the main studios in Dhaka. Bangladesh Betar also operates 12 regional stations in the following cities Bandarban Barisal Chittagong Comilla Coxs Bazar Dhaka Khulna Rajshahi Rangamati Rangpur Sylhet Thakurgaon These stations transmit on both FM and Medium totter In addition, Bangladesh Betar runs the Traffic Channelin Dhaka. This broadcasts occupation updates to commuters in the capital on 88. 8 and 103. 2 FM.Most Bangladesh Betar programmes are in Bangla, but some, including several daily news bulletins, are in English. Type text 37 National news bulletins and other networked programmes are transmitted from Dhaka and relayed by the other centres. Some local language news bulletins and programmes are produced in Chakma, Marma and Tipra for the tribes living in the Chittangong Hill Tracts. These are broadcast by the Bangladesh Betar local stations in Bandarban, Rangamati and Coxs Bazar. News bulletins are broadcast every hour. Special programmes for farmers are broadcast daily at 06. 5 in the morning and between 18. 05 and 20. 00 at night. Bangladesh Betar also produces an external service. This broadcasts on Short cockle in Bangla, English, Hindi, Urdu, Arabic and Nepali to Europe, the put East and Asia. Bangladesh Betar started life in 1939 as a regional station of All India Radio, broadcasting from Dhaka. After the partition of India in 1947, it became Radio Pakistan Dhaka. At independence from Pakistan in 1971 Bangladesh Betar assumed its present identity. Bangladesh Betar relays t he BBC World Service in English and BBC Bangla for 12 hours per day on its FM 100 station in Dhaka.BBC Banglas morning and afternoon programmes are also relayed by the Bangladesh Betar local stations in six other cities. Center Dhaka-Ka Dhaka-kha Dhaka-Ga Chittagong Type text Frequency (kHz) 693 630 1170 873 Meter 432. 90 476. 19 256. 41 343. 64 Power (kW) 1000 100 20 100 Broadcast epoch(Local) 0630-1210 and 14302330 0000-0300, 0630-0745 and 0900-2310 1500-1700 0630-1000 and 12002310 38 1080 Rajshahi 846 Khulna Rangpur Sylhet Barisal Thakurgaon Rangamati Coxs Bazar Bandarban Comilla 558 1053 963 1287 999 1161 1314 1431 1413 354. 60 537. 63 284. 90 311. 52 233. 10 300. 30 258. 9 228. 31 209. 64 212. 31 100 100 20 20 10 10 10 10 10 10 277. 77 10 0630-1000 and 12002310 0630-1000 and 12002310 0630-1000 and 12002310 0630-1000 and 14002310 0630-1000 and 14002310 1045-1715 1550-2310 1130-1630 1145-1645 1130-1630 1600-2310 Bangladesh Betar Medium Wave transmitters Source Bangladesh Betar w ebsite Center FM100, Dhaka FM, Dhaka FM 88. 8, Traffic Channel FM 90. 0, Traffic Channel FM (Home Service), Dhaka FM, Chittagong FM, Khulna FM, Sylhet FM, Rajshahi FM, Rangpur Type text Frequency (MHz) 100. 0 97. 6 88. 8 90. 0 103. 2 105. 5 102. 0 105. 0 104. 0 105. 0 105. Meter 3. 00 3. 07 3. 38 3. 33 2. 9 2. 85 2. 94 2. 86 2. 88 2. 86 2. 86 Power (KW) 3 5 10 10 5 2 1 1 5 1 1 Broadcast Time 1300-1600 0630-1200 1415-2315 0800-2000 0800-2000 1730-2200 0630-1000 1900-2310 0630-1000 1900-2310 0630-1000 1900-2310 0630-1000 1900-2310 0630-1000 1900-2310 0630-1000 1900-2310 39 FM, Comilla FM, Thakurgoan 101. 2 92. 0 2. 96 3. 26 2 5 0630-1000 1700-2310 1600-2310 Bangladesh Betar FM broadcasts Source Bangladesh Betar website managing director General (news)- Narayan Chandra Sen Tel +880 2 8115072 +880 2 8113356 +880 2 8115079 +880 2 8115036 telecommunicateemailprotected et cover Bangladesh Betar, Agargaon, Dhaka-1207 Radio Foorti www. radiofoorti. fm Radio Foorti is the largest private r adio station in Bangladesh. It broadcasts on 88. 0 FM in Dhaka and reaches a large audience in the interior through relay stations in the following vii provincial cities Barisal Chittagong (98. 4 FM) Type text 40 Coxs Bazar Khulna Mymensingh Rajshahi Sylhet(89. 8 FM) According to the 2011 Nielsen Media and Demographics Survey, Radio Foorti commands a 47% share of the total FM radio audience in Bangladesh. Most of its programming consists of euphony and entertainment.The station plays a wide pattern of music, ranging from Bengali classics to the current songs released by top Bangladeshi artists, along with some international tracks. Many programmes are inter-active, relaying phone calls and text messages from listeners. The station first went on in Dhaka in 2006. Since then its FM coverage has progressively been extended to other major cities. Radio Foorti is owned by the MGH Group. This is also has interests in transport, logistics, aviation services, banking and information tec hnology. Chief administrator -Daniel Afzalur Rahman Tel +880 2 8835747 +880 2 8835748 email Daniel. emailprotected m steer Radio Foorti, Landmark (8 floor), 12-14 Gulshan North C/A, Gulshan-2, Dhaka-1212 th Radio Today 89. 6 FM www. radiotodaybd. fm Type text 41 Radio Today is a music and entertainment station that broadcasts on FM from Dhaka and heptad other cities across Bangladesh. It claims to reach a potential audience of more than 120 million people across the country. Radio Today plays popular Bangladeshi music. It has subsidiary stations which produce several hours of local programming each day in the following provincial cities Bogra Chittagong Khulna Sylhet Barisal Coxs Bazar Mymensingh All broadcast on the same frequency 89. 6 FM.Radio Today is owned by Radio Broadcasting FM (Bangladesh) Co. Ltd. , a company controlled by a businessman with strong connections with the opposition Bangladesh National Party (BNP). It first went on air in 2006. Type text 42 The station a lso rebroadcasts two news bulletins per day from Voice of America (VOA) Bangla. Chief News Editor Rashidul Islam Tel + 880 2 8829293 email emailprotected com solicit Radio Today, Awal Centre (13th and 19th Floors), 34 Kamal Ataturk Avenue, Banani, Dhaka-121 3 Radio Aamarwww. radioaamar. com Radio Aamar is a private radio station that broadcasts round the clock on 88. 4 FM in Dakhaand 101. FM in Chittagong. It carries news, traffic and weather updates, business news, Bangla and English music and phone-in programmes. It also relays 30 minutes of programming from Voice of America (VOA) Banglaevery level. Radio Aamar began broadcasting in 2007. The station is owned by the Uniwave Broadcasting Co. Ltd Type text 43 Chief Executive Zulfiquer Ahmed Tel + 880 2 9886800 +880 2 9861133 +880 2 8832989 Address Uniwave Broadcasting Company Ltd. , Silver jerk (12th Floor), 52 GulshanAvenue, Dhaka ABC Radio FM 89. 2 http//abcradiobd. fm ABC Radio is Bangladeshs only privately operated news and current affairs radio station.It is based in Dhaka and covers a potential audience of 40 million people living within 80 km of the capital. ABC Radio is owned by Transcom, the industrial conglomerate which also publishes two of Bangladeshs leading newspapers Prothom Alo and The Daily Star. This linkage gives ABC Radio access to the newspapers network of more than 240 reporters and correspondents countrywide. ABC radio was launched in 2009 and is on air 24 hours a day. There are news bulletins every hour. According to the 2011 Nielsen Media and Demographic Survey, ABC Radio reaches 13% of all FM radio listeners. Type text 44It can be heard clearly as far south as Comilla and Chandpur, as far north as Tangail and as far west as Faridpur. Head of News M. Sanaullah Tel +880 2 8142038 +880 2 8189307-10 e-mail emailprotected fm emailprotected fm Address ABC Radio, 99 Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, Dhaka Trade Center, Kawran Bazar, Dhaka MetroWave www. metrowave-bd. com MetroWave is a pri vate music and entertainment radio station based in Dhaka. Under the wrong of its broadcasting license, the station is required to relay some government news programmes and speeches by the Prime Minister and President. MetroWave is on air on 1170 Khz Medium Wave from 07. 0 until 10. 30 and again from 12. 00 to 15. 00. Its does not appear to broadcast on FM. Managing Director Emran Mahmud Tel + 880 2 9881131 Email emailprotected com Type text 45 Address MetroWave, Electros house (9th floor), 18 Kamal Araturk avenue, Banani, Dhaka BBC Bangla www. bbc. co. uk/Bengali BBC Bangla is the Bengali language service of the BBC. It is aimed at Bengali speakers in both Bangladesh and India. BBC Bangla broadcasts to Bangladesh on Short Wave and FM for two hours per day and online through its website. Programming consists of news, current affairs, sports, entertainment and sermon programmes.From 2005 to 2010, BBC Bangla broadcast a weekly TV and radio handling programme called Sanglap (Dialo gue)in association with Bangladeshs Channel i satellite TV station. This popular programme aimed to initiate constructive public debate and encourage greater responsibility from government and authority figures. It brought ordinary people face-to-face with influential politicians and business leaders and gives them an opportunity to ask questions about issues that matterto them. Sanglap was broadcast from different locations around Bangladesh and claimed a regular audience of 21 million. Type text 46 Itsinspired several other private TV stations in Bangladesh to launch same raillery programmes BBC Bangla is relayed on FM by Bangledesh Betar in Dhaka on its FM 100station. This also relays BBC World Service in English for 10 hours per day. In addition, BBC Bangla is relayed by the Bangladesh Betar local FM stations in Chittagong(105. 0 FM) Khulna(105. 4 FM) Rajshahi(105. 4 FM) Sylhet(105. 0 FM) Rangpur(105. 4 FM) Comilla(101. 2 FM) Since 2010 BBC Bangla has also offered a dial-in n ews update service to mobile phone users on Bangladeshs three largest mobile phone networks.By dialing the short code 16262 members of the public can listen to a recording of the latest BBC headlines in Bangla at any time of day and leave their own comments if they wish. The news headlines are updated every hour. BBC Bangla has journalists based in Dhaka, Kolkata and Delhi. BBC Dhaka say-so Tel +88 2 9130996 +88 2 9130997 +88 2 9130672 Type text 47 Address, BBC, Dhanshiri Apartments, straightaway No. D 602, 35 Indira Road, Tejgaon, Dhaka1215 BBC Bangla Editor Sabir Mustafa Telephone +44 20 7557 1840 Email emailprotected co. k Address BBC Bangla Service, Bush House, PO Box 76, Strand, LondonWC2B 4PH, UK Voice of America (VOA) www. voanews. com/bangla/news VOA Bangla is the Bengali language service of the US international radio station Voice of America (VOA). It transmits to Bangladesh and India on Short Wave for seven hours per week. In 2009 VOA Bangla said its radio broadcasts to Bangladesh reached 2. 6 million people and that its boilersuit audience, including TV and the internet, was 10 million. VOA Bangla produces a 10-12 minute TV programme every week which is aired by the Bangladeshi private satellite broadcaster NTV.Two of VOA Banglas daily radio news bulletins are relayed on FM in Bangladesh by Radio Today from transmitters in the following cities Barisal Type text 48 Bogra Chittagong Coxs Bazar Dhaka Khulna Mymensingh Sylhet Radio Aamar also broadcasts a 30-minute instalment of VOA Bangla programming at 22. 00 every evening from its transmitters in Dhaka and Chittagong. In addition, Radio Aamar broadcasts VOA Banglas one-hour call-in show how-do-you-do Washington every Wednesday. VOA Bangla Managing Editor Roquia Haider Email emailprotected om Address VOA Bangla Service, 330 Independence Avenue, Washington, DC 20457 Type text 49 Television overview Over the past hug drug television has emerged as the most powerful channel of news and entertainmen t in Bangladesh. It has displaced radio and newspapers to become the countrys main source of reliable information. The 2011 Nielsen Media and Demographic Survey found that 84% of urban households and 43% of rural households in Bangladesh owned a television set. The same survey showed that 74% of Bangladeshis aged 15 and over watch television at least once every seven to 10 days.The rise of television has been stimulated by a boom in private TV channels, since ATN Bangla became the first private commercial TV station to receive a license in 1997. Seventeen private TV channels have begun broadcasting to Bangladesh by satellite and cable since then. They generally provide more attractive and socialise programmes than the state-run Bangladesh Television (BTV) network. Type text 50 However, BTV has maintained a strong hold on viewing audience in rural areas since it is the only TV network that broadcasts free-to-air from global transmitters.The 2011 Nielsen survey showed that 83% of T V owners in urban areas have access to private TV channels via satellite or cable, but whereas only 39% of TV owners in the countryside do so. However, more and more rural households with access to some form of electricity supply are acquiring satellite dishes. As a result, BTVs former monopoly of rural television audiences is being gradually eroded. major planet TV channels broadcasting from India in Hindi and Bengali are popular for their soap operas, films and sports coverage. ETV Bangla, an Indian satellite channel based in Kolkata,ZTV, Star Plus, Sony TV, and z Cinema are among the most popular Indian entertainment channels. Doordarshan, BBC, CNN, and ETV Bangla, are popular satellite channels for news. TV channels charge the highest rates for advertising between 19. 00 and 23. 00, suggesting that this is also the peak viewing period. day TV audiences mainly consist of housewives reflection soap operas. When their menfolk come home from work in the evening, the TV set is oft en switched over to news and sports channels. There are no dedicated sports channels in Bangladesh, but televised football and cricket matches carried by foreign channels are very popular. Type text 51 Talk shows have become popular in the past three years, in response to the popularity of the BBC Bangla TV give-and-take programme BBC Sanglap. This ran from 2005 to 2010 on Channel i. Every TV channel now broadcasts at least one talk show per week and these programmes cause gigantic debate nationally. Some TV discussion programmes have been criticised for promoting the views of a particular political party or the channels owner, but others are very professionally produced and presented. There are two private TV channels devoted completely to news ATN News and Shomoy.Most of the other TV channels broadcast a motley of news, talk shows, reality shows, music shows, dramas, movies and other forms of entertainment. The majority broadcast hourly news bulletins throughout the day and a flagship news show in the evening. Most also air programmes about development issues such as health, agriculture, and education. Islamic TV, however, carries only apparitional news and discussions. Viewers in the main cities can access more than 70 TV channels by cable. There are hundreds of different cable networks in Bangladesh. Monthly cable subscriptions cost between 150 and 500 Taka, ($2. to $6. 50). They can easily be afforded by a heart and soul-income family. Type text 52 The extension of mains power supplies, solar power and the availability of low cost TV sets have substantially increased access to television over the past decade. travel incomes and the emergence of a large middle class have meanwhile made commercial television, based on the deal of advertising, extremely profitable. Many of Bangladeshs private TV channels have been set up by the countrys largest industrial conglomerates such as Beximco, Square Group and Impress Group.Many of these business groups als o own newspapers. In early 2012, there were three state-run TV channels and 16 private channels on air in Bangladesh. Government licenses had been granted for a further six private channels. According to the 2011 Nielsen Media and Demographic Survey, ATN-Bangla and Channel-iare the most popular TV channels overall. However, individual programmes on other channels may have higher ratings at certain times of day. The Nielsen survey identified ATN Banglas evening news as the most watched TV programme in the country.It rated NTV as the third most popular station. It has three channels which broadcast a mixture of news, entertainment, reality shows and discussion programmes. People in rural areas without access to satellite connections have no option other than state-run terrestrial channel BTV. Type text 53 BTV is Bangladeshs largest TV station in terms of its studios, staff, equipment and countrywide coverage. It claims that its terrestrial broadcasts cover 95% of the population. BTVs flagship national channel is broadcast from studios in Dhaka.It is normally on air for 18 hours a day. BTVs regional studios in Chittagong produce a small amount of regional news and programming for Southeastern Bangladesh. This replaces national network programming in Chittagong for up to two hours every night. In January 2011 BTV launched a third parliamentary channel, BTV Sangsad. This broadcasts proceedings from parliament and discussion programmes about important national topics. The channel is on air for three hours per day whenever parliament is in session. BTV also runs an international channel, BTV World.This broadcasts by satellite 24 hours a day to Asia, Australasia and the Middle East. Terrestrial TV channels can easily be taken off air by the authorities as Ekushey TV detect to its cost in 2002. Ekushey was shut down for four years by an submission Bangladesh National Party (BNP) government which perceived the station as being overtly in favour of the opposition Awa mi League. It only resumed broadcasting on satellite in 2006 Ekusheys experience has made other TV channels wary of terrestrial broadcasting. Type text 54Unlike radio stations, which are licensed by the Ministry of Information, TV channels in Bangladesh are regulated by the Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (BTRC). They require a permission to broadcast letter from the Ministry of Information, but BTRC issues their license. Television stations Bangladesh Television (BTV) www. btv. gov. bd Bangladesh TV (BTV) is the national state TV network. Its main channel is the most watched TV channel in Bangladesh, mostly because it is the only TV channel that can be received without a satellite dish in rural areas.BTV claims that its transmitter network covers 95% of the population. Its main channel is on air for 18 hours per day from 07. 00 to 01. 00. BTV also operates a small regional television station in the South-eastern port city of Chittagong. This broadcasts up to tw o hours of local programmes in the evening. In 2004, BTV launched an international satellite channel BTV World. This broadcasts round the clock and can be seen throughout Asia and the Middle East. Its latest venture is a parliamentary channel, BTV Sangsad. Type text 55Launched in January 2011, BTV Sangsad broadcasts for three hours per day whenever parliament is in session. It carries parliamentary debates and discussion programmes on topics of national importance. Most BTV programmes are in Bangla, but some are in English. According to the 2011 Nielsen Media and Demographic Survey, the proportion of TV viewers who tune in to BTV is higher in rural areas (92%) than in urban areas (80%). However, the same survey indicated that BTVs audience has declined across the board in recent years in the face of competition from private TV channels.The Nielsen survey ranked Ittyadi, a magazine entertainment programme as BTVs most popular programme. BTVs flagship evening news programme in Bangla scores high ratings and its Friday night movies are also very popular. State television started broadcasting in East Pakistan in 1964. BTV was created after Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan in 1971. BTV has transmitters in Dhaka and Chittagong and relay stations in the following locations Natore Sylhet Khulna Rangpur Mymenshingh Rangamati Noakhali Type text 56Shatkhira Jhenidah Thakurgaon Brahmanbaria Patuakhali Rajshahi Ukhia Type text 57 BTV transmitters and relay stations Source BTV website Type text 58 Director General Kazi Abu Zafar Muhammad Hasan Siddiqi Tel +880 2 9330131-9 +880 2 9330036-39 Email emailprotected gov. bd emailprotected net. bd Address Bangladesh Television, Television Bhaban, Rampura, Dhaka-1219 BTV Chittagong www. btv. gov. bd, BTVs Chittagong sub-station airs its own, locally produced programmes from 17. 30 to 19. 10 pm every day. This segment of local programming includes a 10-minute regional news bulletin.The Chittagong studios also produce short dramas and cultural programmes. Their quality is said to have improved since 2010. General Manager BTV Chittagong Tel +880 31 611751 Email emailprotected gov. bd Address BTV, 27, Nasirabad Housing Society, Road No. 3, Chittagong BTV Worldwww. btv. gov. bd, BTV World is the international satellite channel of BTV. It began broadcasting in 2004 and is on air 24 hours a day. Type text 59 Most of it the programmes are identical to those of BTVs municipal service broadcast by terrestrial transmitters. BTV World is broadcast on AsiaSat 3S.Its trace extends from the Sea of Japan in the east to Cyprus in the West, and from New Zealand-Australia in the South to Siberia in the North. Director General Kazi Abu Zafar Mohammad Hassan Siddiqui Tel +880 2 933 0131-6 +880 2 933 0036-8 Email emailprotected gov. bd Address BTV World, TV Bhaban, Rampura, Dhaka-1219 , Sangsad TVwww. btv.