Etablissement public de télévision (EPTV)

Formerly the Établissement national de télévision (ENTV), the Établissement public de télévision (EPTV) has been Algeria’s national public television broadcaster since 1991. It operates Algeria’s main state television services, including national channels covering general programming, French-language output, news, Amazigh-language broadcasting, religion, youth and family content, education, history and parliamentary coverage. It also maintains regional production stations and online and digital distribution services. As Algeria’s state television broadcaster, EPTV is a central instrument of public communication, operating under the tutelage of the Ministry of Communication.

Media assets

National channels: TV1, the main general channel; TV2 / Canal Algérie, the French-language channel; TV3, the news channel; TV4, the Amazigh-language channel; TV5, Quran and religious programming; TV6, youth and family programming; TV7, knowledge and education; TV8, memory and history; TV9, parliamentary coverage

Regional production stations: Oran, Constantine, Ouargla and Bechar

Ownership and governance

EPTV was established in its current legal form by Executive Decree No. 91-100 of 20 April 1991, which reorganised the former ENTV as a public establishment of industrial and commercial character under the tutelage of the Ministry of Communication. Its institutional lineage runs back to the post-independence Radiodiffusion-Télévision Algérienne and the subsequent restructuring of Algerian radio and television into separate public broadcasting entities.

EPTV is administered as a public establishment and performs a public-service mission, but its governance is not independent of the executive. Its director-general is installed by the authorities, and the role is closely tied to the Presidency’s communications structure and the Ministry of Communication.

EPTV’s leadership has turned over frequently and is politically sensitive. As of mid-2026, the director-general is Mohamed Baghali, appointed in September 2024 in succession to acting director-general Adel Salakdji, who moved to head Radio algérienne. Baghali, a former head of national radio and former editor-in-chief of the daily El Khabar, remained publicly identified as EPTV director-general in 2026. The succession of directors-general in recent years, several serving only briefly or in acting capacity, reflects the instability of the post and its dependence on political confidence rather than any fixed, independently protected term.

EPTV operates under the Ministry of Communication, currently headed by Zoheir Bouamama, who took office in 2025. The ministry’s role in directing and supporting public media reinforces EPTV’s status as a state broadcaster rather than an autonomous public-service media institution.

Source of funding and budget

EPTV is financed chiefly by state resources, supplemented by a licence fee collected through electricity bills and by advertising revenue. Public reporting in earlier cycles indicated a state allocation of around DZD 6.1 billion, roughly US$45 million, in 2021, with comparable state commitments in subsequent budget discussions and additional injections during that period. EPTV has not published detailed, regularly updated financial statements or audited public accounts.

The broadcaster therefore remains dependent on public funding, while precise current figures are not publicly disclosed. This is consistent with the limited financial transparency of Algerian state media. Commercial revenue, advertising and sponsorship may provide supplementary income, but they do not alter the structural dependence on the state.

Editorial independence

EPTV does not operate with editorial independence. Despite the framework of a public-service mission, its output is shaped by the Ministry of Communication and the Presidency’s communications structure, and journalists and media observers have described political intervention, editorial pressure and censorship in Algerian state television. Coverage that departs from official positions has reportedly carried consequences for senior staff, illustrating the limits placed on editorial autonomy.

No legal safeguard or independent oversight mechanism shields EPTV journalists from political intervention. Editorial control rests effectively with the executive through the Ministry of Communication and the broader state communications apparatus. The broadcaster’s coverage consistently reflects state priorities, gives prominence to presidential, government and institutional messaging, and operates within Algeria’s wider legal and political environment, which constrains independent and critical journalism across the sector.

AI and digital policy

SMM found no evidence that EPTV has published a dedicated public AI governance or editorial-use policy as of mid-2026.

The broadcaster distributes content across terrestrial, satellite and online platforms, including its website, digital video channels, social-media accounts and official mobile application. During the cycle, EPTV also signed a framework cooperation agreement with Djezzy in October 2025 covering areas of common interest, and it continued to expand digital and live-broadcast activity, including major sports coverage.

EPTV is also included in Algeria’s planned Dzaïr Media City project, intended to bring together major national media institutions, including EPTV, Algérie Presse Service, Télédiffusion d’Algérie, ANEP, Radio algérienne and AL24 News, alongside studios, production infrastructure and research and training spaces. This reflects broader state-led media-infrastructure modernisation.

These developments show continuing digital, production and infrastructure development. However, SMM identified no EPTV-specific public framework governing the use of AI in editorial production, verification, attribution, recommendation systems, audience analytics, synthetic-media labelling, content disclosure or human editorial oversight.

Classification rationale

EPTV is classified State-Controlled (SC), a classification maintained from prior SMM cycles. It is a state-owned public establishment under the tutelage of the Ministry of Communication, its director-general is installed by the authorities, its funding comes overwhelmingly from public resources, and its editorial output is subject to executive direction with no independent safeguard for autonomy. Digital and infrastructure modernisation during the cycle, including EPTV’s role in the planned Dzaïr Media City project, did not alter these determinants. EPTV therefore remains firmly in the SC category for the 2026 cycle.

June 2026