| هيئة الإذاعة والتلفزيون الفلسطينية | |
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| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1 July 1994 (1994-07-01) |
| Headquarters | Ramallah,Palestine |
| Agency executive |
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| Website | www |
ThePalestinian Broadcasting Corporation (PBC;Arabic:هيئة الإذاعة والتلفزيون الفلسطينية,romanized: Hayʾat al-ʾIḏāʿa wa-t-Tilifizyūn al-Filasṭīniyya) orPalestine Public Broadcasting Corporation (الهيئة العامة للإذاعة والتلفزيون الفلسطينيةal-Hayʾa l-ʿĀmma li-l-ʾIḏāʿa wa-t-Tilifizyūn al-Filasṭīniyya), also known asPalestine TV, was established on 1 July 1994 and is within the jurisdiction of thePalestinian Authority.
PBC has a subsidiary radio station known as theVoice of Palestine and a satellite channel known asPalestinian Satellite Channel. Palestine TV first began broadcasting in 1996 in Gaza.
The first head of the PBC wasFatah activist andArafat loyalistRadwan Abu Ayyash, former head of theArab Journalists' Association.[1] PBC had a terrestrial television network, comprising channel 5 in Naplose, channel 21 in Khan Younis, channel 21 in Jericho (very low power), channel 23 in Kasser-Elhakim, channel 25 in the capitalRamallah, channel 30 in Halhul, channel 31 in Jenin and channels 4 and 34 in Betjala. The channel in its early years broadcast twelve hours a day, up to eighteen hours on holiday periods.[2]
On 19 January 2002, theIsrael Defense Forces used explosives to destroy the five-story main building and transmission tower of the PBC inRamallah claiming retaliation for the killing of six people by a Palestinian gunman linked to Fatah. The Israeli Government later singled out PBC for broadcasting material deemed to be anti-Semitic or that incited violence.[3][4]
The broadcasting corporation is a formerEuropean Broadcasting Union associate member, and was alleged to have held negotiations with the European Broadcasting Union to become a full active members.[5] However,Palestine is not a member of the required organisations, and thus does not comply with the criteria.[6] Currently, the broadcaster is a member of theArab States Broadcasting Union (ABSU).
The PBC was funded partially by theUS government until 1998.[7] In 2010, thePresident of the State of PalestineMahmoud Abbas issued a decree converting the PBC into a public institution.[8]