Formerly ORTN, Radio-télévision du Niger (RTN) is the company responsible for running the Niger public service media. Founded in 1967 as ORTN, the company runs two television channels (Tele Sahel and Tal TV) and the radio station La Voix du Sahel. In April 2022, the company changed its name from ORTN to Radio-télévision du Niger (RTN).
Media assets
Television: Tele-Sahel, TAL TV
Radio: La Voix du Sahel
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
RTN is a state-owned company that is run by the Ministry of Communication. It was established through Law no. 67-011 of 1967, later amended. RTN is governed by a Board of Directors that the government appoints. In January 2023, Toudou Mariama Issaka, a journalist, was appointed general director of the RTN by the government.
Source of funding and budget
RTN is funded through a combination of state subsidies, revenue from license fees supposed to be paid by all citizens of the country, and commercial revenues. There are no publicly available reports documenting RTN’s financial performance. According to local experts and journalists, RTN operates with a budget of about US$2 m, 70% of which comes from the state. That is a higher share than 10 years ago when the state subsidy accounted for 52% of the RTN’s overall budget.
Editorial independence
The government imposes no formal rules on RTN to follow a pro-government line. Yet, local experts, journalists, and an ad hoc content analysis found that the station’s coverage is blatantly pro-governmental. It airs mostly communiques and information provided by government bodies and totally refrains from any criticism targeted at state institutions.
Following a coup d’etat in July 2023, the control of the government on state media has strengthened. At the same time, the junta that took over the political power after it overthrew the democratically elected president has imposed harsh restrictions on all media, cutting foreign media outlets that were present in the country.
No domestic statute or oversight or assessment mechanism to validate RTN’s editorial independence has been identified.
July 2024