Mass media in Ethiopia

The mass media in Ethiopia consist of radio, television and the Internet, which remain under the control of the Ethiopian government, as well as private newspapers and magazines. Ten radio broadcast stations, eight AM and two shortwave, are licensed to operate in Ethiopia. The major radio broadcasting stations include Radio Fana (or "Torch") a private station, Radio Voice of One Free Ethiopia, and the Voice of the Revolution of Tigray. The only terrestrial (broadcast) television networks are government owned and include EBC (24 hours of broadcast) and other regional stations (i.e. Addis TV, TV Oromiyaa, Amhara TV). In keeping with government policy, radio broadcasts occur in a variety of languages including Amharic, Afaan Oromo, Tigrigna, and more.^[1] There are also many video sharing websites which are a popular way of getting information as well as entertainment in Ethiopia.

Satellite television has been very popular in Ethiopia for many years, with people often watching foreign channels in English and Arabic due to the lack of choice in the Ethiopian television industry. For many years, the only private satellite channel in Ethiopia was EBS TV (established in 2008). However, starting in 2016, a number of new satellite channels serving the Ethiopian market started broadcasting in the main local language of Amharic. Many of these new channels focused on infotainment, as this type of programming had been for the most part lacking in the past. Most popular of these channels being Kana TV, which focused on providing dubbed foreign dramas, very popular in Ethiopia, to their audiences.^[2] Since the end of the Ethiopian Civil War private newspapers and magazines have started to appear, and this sector of the media market, despite heavy-handed regulation from the government and the ups and downs of Ethiopian economy, continues to grow. Despite increasing pressure from the current government at home, the much more affluent and cosmopolitan Ethiopian diaspora abroad has helped further the cause for a free press in Ethiopia, and has also catered to its many extra-national communities with news services (both online and off) in both Amharic and English.