Radio y Television de Andalucia (RTVA) is a provider of radio and television broadcasting in the south of Spain. Its establishment dates back to 1988-1989 when Canal Sur Radio and Canal Sur Televisión launched broadcasting. RTVA now airs four television and four radio stations.
Media assets
Television: Canal Sur (HD), Canal Sur 2, Andalucía TV, Canal Sur Andalucía
Radio: Canal Sur Radio, Radio Andalucía Información, Canal Fiesta Radio, Flamenco Radio
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
RTVA was established by Law No. 18 of 2007 as a corporate public agency owned by the Regional Government of Andalucia. The capital stock of the company is fully subscribed by the Andalucia government. The head of RTVA is the General Director who is elected by the Parliament of Andalusia. The main governing body of the RTVA is the Board of Directors that has nine members appointed by parliament. According to experts, the Board of Directors at RTVA should be appointed on professional rather than political grounds to limit the political pressures made on the broadcaster.
Source of funding and budget
RTVA is financed through a combination of state funding (a government subsidy) and commercial revenues (mainly ad sales). In 2020, RTVA had a budget of €161m. The state allocation represented 88% of the total, according to the company’s annual report. In 2022, the company had a total budget of €163.7m, with the state government subsidy contributing some €149m, according to a company annual report.
Editorial independence
In October 2020, the trade union at Canal Sur said that a newly adopted Professional Statute of RTVA will allow the management of the broadcaster to censor content. In the past two years, examples of censorship and purging of critical journalists at Canal Sur have intensified.
The law that created RTVA and an internal professional statute contain provisions aimed at protecting the editorial independence of the station.
RTVA has an Ombudsman (or Audience Defender), a single person, whose mission is to handle complaints from the audience and suggestions from the public aimed at improving the content of RTVA.
September 2023