Radio Televisión Madrid (RTVM) is a public broadcaster covering the Madrid region. It operates the television channels Telemadrid and La Otra and the radio channel Onda Madrid. The network was established in 1989.
Media assets
Television: Telemadrid (HD), LaOtra
Radio: Onda Madrid
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
Established by Law No. 8 of 2015 as a publicly owned company under the government of the Madrid Community, RTVM operates under a Board of Directors comprising nine members appointed by the local government in Madrid from proposals put forward by political parties and NGOs.
Source of funding and budget
RTVM receives funding from both state allocations and advertising sales revenues. It’s important to note that the figures provided by the government and the broadcaster are significantly different.
In 2022, the broadcaster’s total budget exceeded €90m, with €81.7m coming from state subsidies, as reported in an RTVM annual report. However, a media report from March 2024 stated that in 2023, the government awarded €67.3m to RTVM, the same as in 2022. Additionally, according to the same report, ad sales generated €6.7m and the Community of Madrid provided another €2.1m through an agreement. On the other hand, RTVM’s operating expenses reached €80.9 million in 2023.
Editorial independence
Despite occasional accusations of political bias in RTVM programs, these were, in the past, mostly part of the typical political disputes in the region.
However, in March 2022, the People’s Party (PP) introduced a new bill to the local government. This bill aimed to change the appointment process for the RTVM’s Board of Directors and Director General, shifting from a qualified majority (two-thirds) to a simple majority.
This change has allowed the Madrid government, led by the PP, to gain greater control over RTVM’s editorial direction.
In recent years, there has been mounting evidence that the Madrid region government, under the leadership of Isabel Diaz Ayuso, exerts significant influence over the station’s editorial coverage, displaying overt bias in favor of the Popular Party (PP), which controls the Madrid government.
The Madrid Parliament’s Basic Charter of RTVM explicitly ensures the broadcaster’s editorial independence from authorities and political groups. However, despite these provisions, government interference with the broadcaster’s editorial agenda has increased in recent years.
RTVM has an internal unit called the Office for Audience Participation, which handles direct communication between RTVM and the general public.
August 2024