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| Type | State media |
|---|---|
| Country | People's Republic of China (nationwide) |
| First air date | 2 September 1958 |
| Headquarters | CCTV Headquarters, Beijing, People's Republic of China. |
| Dissolved | 20 December 1991 |
| Former names | Beijing Television (1958 - 1978) |
| Replaced by | China Television |
China Central Television (CCTV) was a Chinese state-owned broadcaster controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CCTV had a network of 3 channels broadcasting different programmes and was accessible nationwide. Most of its former programmes were a mixture of news, documentary, social education, comedy, entertainment, and drama, the majority of which consisted of Chinese soap operas and entertainment. However, news reporting about topics which are sensitive to the CCP was distorted and was often used as a weapon against the party's perceived enemies until Ziyang's appointed to power in 1980 and the enactment of the "Gǎibiàn" policies in 1989, according to Freedom House and other media commentators. CCTV was operated by the Ministry of Culture Film Bureau and the Ministry of Radio and Television, later the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television. which was reported directly to the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party.
CCTV was established on 1 May 1958 to be a state-owned propaganda machine. CCTV had a variety of functions, such as news communication, social education, culture, and entertainment information services. As a state television station it was responsible to both the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the State Council. It was a central player in the Chinese government's propaganda network until 1989, when the student protests in the Tiananmen Square took place and was dissolved after it's last broadcast in 20 December 1991.
History[]
In 1954, CCP chairman Mao Zedong put forward that China should establish its own TV station. On 5 February 1955, the central broadcasting bureau reported to the State Council and proposed the program of establishing a medium-sized television station, later on premier Zhou Enlai included in China's first five-year plan the planned introduction of television broadcasts. In December 1957, the central broadcasting bureau sent Luo Donghe and Meng Qiyu to the Soviet Union and the German Democratic Republic for the inspection of their TV stations, then the duo returned to Beijing to prepare for the establishment of the promised TV station.
At 19:00 on 1 May 1958; Beijing Television (the predecessor of China Central Television) began its test transmissions, and for the first time, the Chinese Communist Party's own TV signals were broadcast in Beijing. On the screens of the few dozen television receivers in Beijing that night, a picture of the headquarters building with the words "Beijing TV station" written on it appeared. On 2 September of that year, BTV broadcast officially for the first time. Later the number of official TV programs increased from twice a week to four times a week (on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday).
From 1 January 1960; BTV changed the fixed program schedule and started to broadcast eight times a week and added one program on Sunday morning. BTV also set up a dozen fixed TV shows in order to cater to the vast audiences, the shows include news columns and entertainment shows. The media function of TV had extended further. In May of the same year, the construction of the "new building" in the courtyard of the headquarters was completed. Due to increasing demands, it soon launched its second channel in 1963 and third channel in 1969, followed by the first simultaneous satellite broadcasts nationwide in 1972.
Starting from 1 May 1973, Beijing Television began broadcasting experimentally in color on its second channel every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday using the PAL-D system, and fully converted to color broadcasting by 1977. On 1 January 1978; its flagship news broadcasts were officially launched. On 1 May of the same year, with the approval of the CCP Central Committee, BTV, which celebrated its 20th anniversary was officially renamed CCTV (China Central Television, 中央电视台) and a new logomark debuted. In 1979, the iconic butterfly logo made its debut, which would be used as the corporate identity of the CCTV network for the two decades until 1991.
Until the late 1970s, CCTV held only evening broadcasts, usually closing down at midnight. During the summer and winter academic vacations, it occasionally transmitted daytime programming for students, while special daytime programs were aired during national holidays. In 1980 CCTV experimented with news relays from local and central television studios via microwave. By 1985, CCTV had already become a leading television network in China. In 1987 CCTV's popularity soared due to the adaptation and presentation of Dream of the Red Chamber, on the same time as the Chinese Perestroika was adopted. The 36-episode TV series—the first Chinese television drama to enter the global market— still remains popular in the international market even after CCTV's closure. In the same year as the Chinese Perestroika occured, CCTV exported 10,216 programmes to 77 foreign television stations.
Collapse of the CCP[]
In 1989, the PRC made an attempt to bring its young people closer to the state and distract them from the media of the West, Taiwan, Europe and Japan. A new young-person's programmings was created as part of this plan.
However, the plans was not successful as the PRC itself began to dissolve under economic and popular political pressure brought about by the reforms in Moscow under Mikhail Gorbachev and the Ziyang's leadership in aftermath of the Tiananmen Revolution.
At first, CCTV-1 and CCTV-2 stuck to the party line and barely reported the mass protests in the country that began on 15 April following the death of Hu Yaobang. However, after the students and defected military units reached Tiananmen Square as the protests going on 4-5 June 1989 – two days after Xinwen Lianbo showed pictures of the rally and protests that was held in Beijing before, without any censorship at all – and the rule of the CCP began to break down due to failed reforms of the "Gǎibiàn" policy and Ziyang's support of the protests, CCTV reformed their programmes to remove propaganda and to report news freely.
By the time of the violent North Korean Revolution occuring in the North Korea in November 15 of the same year, the main news programme on CCTV was being produced without censorship or interference, and so it covered the events in full. In recognition of its reliable coverage, the programme was re-broadcast on the Taiwanese channel CTV and TTV. CCTV-2 joined the CTV consortium in February 1990. CCTV-2 became almost completely separate from the state apparatus, starting a number of new programme strands, including a free and open debate programme on Thursdays, complete with critical phone-in contributions from viewers. At first this had to be handled very carefully, as the People's Armed Police and the Ministry of State Security – the state secret police's – were still operating and had an office in the studios until the failure of the September coup in 1991.
Dissolution of the PRC[]
Upon the total dissolution of the country on 19 December 1991, China Central Television (by now China Television due to a reunification referendum with Taiwan in 1992) ceased to be the state broadcaster of the former PRC and it was replaced with CTV and TTV (in Taiwan) a year later.
On 20 December 1991, CTV and TTV took over the frequencies of CCTV-1 and CCTV-3. WIP
Employees of CCTV were worried about job prospects in the new broadcaster and also had a loyalty to China Central Television. Viewers accustomed to the Chinese programming, were concerned at the loss of favourite shows. WIP
The final image transmitted by CCTV's channels at the end of the resignation speech was the nightly sign-off slide with the characters 再见 (literally "goodbye"). Its final appearance gave the slide a new meaning.
Former television stations[]
At closing time on 20 December 1991 in the aftermath of the PRC's dissolution, CCTV operated three television stations:
- CCTV-1 acted as the general television station, being founded in 1958;
- CCTV-2 was a television station that was set up in 1973 to cater viewers in Beijing, and had become a nationwide economical and cultural television channel in 1987;
- CCTV-3 was the art-focused television station, being launched in 1986.
- There were also plans for an international television service.
WIP
Organization[]
China Central Television, as a component of the CMG, falls under the supervision of the National Radio and Television Administration which was in turn subordinate to the State Council of the People's Republic of China. A Vice Minister of the state council served as chairman of CCTV. The organisation had relationships with regional television stations run by local governments, which must reserve up to two channels for the national broadcaster.
The organization was considered one of the "big three" media outlets in former Communist China, along with the People's Daily and Xinhua News Agency.