Launched 10 November 1996 Country Turkey Broadcast area Turkey | Picture format 16:9 (576i, SDTV) Language Turkish | |
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Owned by Nergis Group (1996–1999)
Doğuş Media Group (1999–present) | ||
NTV is a Turkish nationwide television news channel. It has been partnered with MSNBC since May 2000. The channel consists mostly of news but it also shows football (soccer) games, especially La Liga matches, as well as the occasional NBA game.
History
NTV was founded in 1996 as a subsidiary of Cavit Çağlar's Nergis Group (hence the initialism) and as the first news channel of Turkey. In January 1999, it became a member of the Doğuş Group family. The success of NTV changed the Turkish media industry and started the era of thematic TV channels. NTV primarily broadcasts national and global news as well as quality documentaries and programs on the economy, culture and the arts, lifestyles and sports.
In June 2013, NTV's relative lack of coverage of the 2013–14 protests in Turkey saw protests in front of its head office in Istanbul, and some NTV staff resign in protest. The CEO of Doğuş Media Group, Cem Aydın, conceded that the criticisms were "fair to a large extent", and that "Our audience feels like they were betrayed". Shortly after his comments, Aydın left Doğuş Media. Shortly after that, NTV refused to air a BBC World News package on press freedom in Turkey, breaking its partnership agreement with the BBC. The BBC suspended the agreement in response.