Soviet Central Television
Encyclopedia
The Central Television of the USSR (CT USSR) (Russian
:Центральное телевидение СССР, ЦТ СССР, Central'noe televidenie SSSR, CT SSSR), was the state television
broadcaster in the Soviet Union
.
Soviet TV programming was highly diverse and somewhat similar to that of American PBS. Like much of the Soviet Union
media, CT USSR was a propaganda
tool of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
. Initially, the service was operated, together with the national radio service, by Ministry of Culture of the USSR
. Later it was operated by the USSR State Committee on Television and Radio (USSR Gostelelradio, Russian
:Государственный комитет по телевидению и радиовещанию СССР, Гостелерадио СССР), under USSR Communications Ministry
and USSR Information and Press Ministry, and later a Council of Ministers-controlled network of television and radio broadcasting.
, however, in the 1930s
preparations for television were in full swing.
In 1 October 1934, the first television sets were made available to the public. The next year, the first television broadcasts began.
The Soviet Union
television service began full-time experimental test broadcasts on 1 March 1938.
Regular public programming began on 9 March 1938 - with an evening of programmes, which included news, documentary films and entertainment on Channel 1 in Moscow
. At the same time, Channel 5 Leningrad
the national television service from Leningrad and the northern Soviet Union
, was launched on 7 July the same year.
Programmes were stopped in 1941 at the start of Operation Barbarossa
, for fear that the Shabolovka transmitter would be used as an enemy
beacon. The same thing happened in Leningrad due to the almost 4 years siege there in the city.
The USSR television service began experimental test broadcasts on 7 May 1945 (two days before the German surrender), in preparation for its full reopening.
Regular public programming resumed on 7 March 1948.
The USSR television service temporarily stopped broadcasts on December
1948 for major upgrade of the broadcast equipment , but by 1 May the next year, Leningrad and the northern/northwestern USSR resumed television broadcasts for the Palace Square
May Day Parade.
Regular programming resumed on 16 June 1949, but was now broadcasting in 625 lines
- a first in the world.
On 22 March 1951, the Moscow TV station was renamed, to avoid confusion by viewers about the forthcoming local channels, becoming the Central Television Station, later known as Programme 1. Leningrad's television service was also renamed into Leningrad Television, and continued its national broadcasts.
On 26 August 1952, the Leningrad Television Centre was inaugurated, the USSR's first state-of-the-art television studios.
On New Year's Day
1955 the Central Television Station began transmitting daily programming.
On 14 February 1956, the new Moscow Programme commenced broadcasting for viewers in Moscow and in the surrouding Moscow Oblast
.
The USSR television service (both Programme 1 and Moscow Programme 2) began experimental colour broadcast tests on 14 January 1960.
The next year, Leningrad Television moved its studios and officers to more bigger premises.
The USSR authorities began construction of a television center in Ostankino in 1963 for the television networks. It was opened in 1967 as part of the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution
. Leningrad would soon follow suit the next year as the newly-renovated and expanded Leningrad Television Broadcasting Center reopened its doors.
On 1 September 1964, CT USSR Programme One launched Spokoynoy nochi, malyshi! (Good Night, Kids!) as an answer to the East German Sandmännchen
. The idea was an animated film and then and sending them to bed before the programmes for adults began at 21:00 (with the main evening news Vremya
). With several generations of children growing up with the show, it has remained a popular childhood memory. Russia 1 still continues this practice today.
On 29 March 1965, Programme Three commenced broadcasting. It was originally an educational channel. This channel was shown only in the major cities in the European USSR (e.g. Moscow and Leningrad
), and its programming was co-produced with the USSR Ministry of Education, oriented towards the nation's student population at all levels from pre-school till college.
In 1967, the all-new, youth, sport and entertainment network Programme 4 was launched. Programme 3, which was from the beginning available to Moscow only, began broadcasting to the entire USSR via satellite in 1982. Thus, it was renamed All-Union Programme for this purpose and moved to channel 2 in 1977, while Moscow Programme
switched to channel 3.
Notable annual traditions of Soviet Central Television included the telecasts of the Red Square
demonstrations on May Day
, Victory Day
and the October Revolution
anniversary parades, and the broadcast of the film The Irony of Fate (Or Enjoy Your Bath!) on New Year's Eve
night, right after the CPSU General Secretary's New Year message, and Soviet national anthem, and the Little Blue Light New Year's Edition. Concerts and musical programs also commemorated these and other national holidays. Since 1971 it was also the official network for the USSR's Pesnya All-Union National Soviet Music Festival aired on New Year's Day, also soon becoming a holiday practice for viewers across the nation.
the fourth country in Europe
to switch to colour broadcast, after the United Kingdom
's BBC2, West Germany
and France
(see Timeline of the introduction of color television in countries
), again ready for the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution
on 7 November 1967. Moscow Programme and Leningrad Television were the first colour broadcasters, even through the 7 November 1967 parade was broadcast in monochrome in the main national channels and Programme 4. CT USSR chose the French
SÉCAM
colour standard, which would later be adopted across the Eastern Bloc (Romania
and Yugoslavia
, however, settled for the PAL
standard).
By 1976, full colour broadcasts began throughout the entire Soviet Union
using the SECAM format on all television programs broadcast on all the national channels: Programme One
, Programme Two
, Moscow Programme
, Programme Four and Programme Five - Leningrad Television, and in all the republican networks.
by Moscow
was a source of pride for the Eastern Bloc. However, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
in 1979 had caused outrage in the west, leading to a boycott of the games by 64 western-aligned nations. CT USSR, as the host nation broadcaster, presented a color broadcast of the Games to the world, and in Soviet territory the Games were broadcast on the two main channels with additional coverage on Program 3, Program 4 and Leningrad Television as well as the republican channels in Belarus, Ukraine (football) and Estonia (sailing). The other republican stations also simulcast and highlighted the entire event.
satellite was launched, providing television programming to much of Europe and northern Africa, and even eastern parts of the Americas. The programmes of all the Eastern European socialist republics, including the CT USSR channels, were broadcast on the satellite.
as the USSR underwent economic and popular political changes brought about by the reforms
in Moscow under Mikhail Gorbachev
.
At first, CT USSR stuck to the party line and barely reported the opposition to the communist regime. However, after the rule of the CPSU began to break down in 1990, CT USSR reformed their programmes to remove propaganda and to report news freely.
By the time the Glasnost
came into effect, the main news programme on the then Programme 1 (Vremya) 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 several TV channels around the world (such as Australia
's SBS
and the United Kingdom
's Sky News
).
CT USSR, at the same time, started a number of new programme strands and formats, including talk shows.
On 4 March 1990, emphasizing the Glasnost campaign, Programme 3 and Programme 4, plus Leningrad Television began to be carried across the Soviet territory via satellite.
Private TV channels such as ATV
and 2×2 were also introduced ending the state monopoly on television broadcasting.
ceased to be the state broadcaster of the former USSR.
On 27 December 1991, Ostankino Television 1 and Ostankino Television 4 (Presently Channel One (Russia)
and NTV (Russia)) took over the frequencies of Programme 1 and Programme 4. Leningrad Television 5 soon became St. Petersburg State Television Network, broadcasting to all of Russia
until 1997.
Employees of CT USSR were worried about job prospects in the new broadcaster and also had a loyalty to Central Television USSR. Viewers accustomed to the Russian programming, were concerned at the loss of favourite shows. (Some of the Central Television USSR shows are now consigned to Channel One Russia and Russia 1) Additionally the three big Russian channels - Channel One, Russia 1 and Petersburg-Channel 5 - have a good amount of presence in the former Soviet territory, and most of the republican stations are now fully independent.
channels over its history.
Central Television USSR signed off for the final time on 27 December 1991 and became Ostankino Television Channel 1 and Ostankino Television Channel 4, of Ostankino State Television. Its two remaining channels carried former their predecessors' programming. The direct successor of Soviet Central Television in Russia, it became defunct on 30 November 1994, becoming the Channel One Russia of today (It was then called until 2002 as ORT 1-Public Russian Television 1).
-designed antenna in it.
(Programme One
, Programme Two
and Moscow Programme
) sign on at 07:00 morning with the test card
along with music playing. clock ident
, play now at national anthem
accompanied by a largest viewer city of Moscow
a national capital of Soviet Union
and station ident.
(Programme One
, Programme Two
and Moscow Programme
) sign on at 18:00 evening with the test card
along with music playing. clock ident
, play now at national anthem
accompanied by a largest viewer city of Moscow
a national capital of Soviet Union
and station ident.
(Programme One
, Programme Two
and Moscow Programme
) sign off at 09:00 morning with the station ident, Clock ident
, caption Don't forget to switch off your set accompanied by intermittent beeping and test card
.
(Programme One
, Programme Two
and Moscow Programme
) sign off at 21:00 evening with the station ident, Clock ident
, caption Don't forget to switch off your set accompanied by intermittent beeping and test card
.
system was chosen. Following the collapse of the USSR, some of its former republics switched to the PAL colour system.
. However, in a command economy
, there was little or no competition between brands, so advertising was limited to a form of reminding viewers what products were available. (Other forms of advertising included posters and matchbox covers.)
With the Perestroika
, spot advertising was introduced to CT USSR in order to better cover the system's cost.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
:Центральное телевидение СССР, ЦТ СССР, Central'noe televidenie SSSR, CT SSSR), was the state television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
broadcaster in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Soviet TV programming was highly diverse and somewhat similar to that of American PBS. Like much of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
media, CT USSR was a propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
tool of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Initially, the service was operated, together with the national radio service, by Ministry of Culture of the USSR
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Later it was operated by the USSR State Committee on Television and Radio (USSR Gostelelradio, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
:Государственный комитет по телевидению и радиовещанию СССР, Гостелерадио СССР), under USSR Communications Ministry
Ministry of Communications (Soviet Union)
The Ministry of Communications of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was the central state administration body on communications in the Soviet Union from 1946 to 1991...
and USSR Information and Press Ministry, and later a Council of Ministers-controlled network of television and radio broadcasting.
First decades
Radio was the dominant medium in the former Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, however, in the 1930s
1930s
File:1930s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: Dorothea Lange's photo of the homeless Florence Thompson show the effects of the Great Depression; Due to the economic collapse, the farms become dry and the Dust Bowl spreads through America; The Battle of Wuhan during the Second Sino-Japanese...
preparations for television were in full swing.
In 1 October 1934, the first television sets were made available to the public. The next year, the first television broadcasts began.
The Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
television service began full-time experimental test broadcasts on 1 March 1938.
Regular public programming began on 9 March 1938 - with an evening of programmes, which included news, documentary films and entertainment on Channel 1 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. At the same time, Channel 5 Leningrad
Petersburg - Channel 5
Petersburg - Channel 5 is a television channel based in St. Petersburg, Russia, also known simply as Channel 5. Director General: Alexey Brodskiy, Producer General: Ljubov Sovershaeva...
the national television service from Leningrad and the northern Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, was launched on 7 July the same year.
Programmes were stopped in 1941 at the start of Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
, for fear that the Shabolovka transmitter would be used as an enemy
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
beacon. The same thing happened in Leningrad due to the almost 4 years siege there in the city.
The USSR television service began experimental test broadcasts on 7 May 1945 (two days before the German surrender), in preparation for its full reopening.
Regular public programming resumed on 7 March 1948.
The USSR television service temporarily stopped broadcasts on December
December
December is the 12th and last month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days.December starts on the same day as September every year and ends on the same day as April every year.-Etymology:...
1948 for major upgrade of the broadcast equipment , but by 1 May the next year, Leningrad and the northern/northwestern USSR resumed television broadcasts for the Palace Square
Palace Square
Palace Square , connecting Nevsky Prospekt with Palace Bridge leading to Vasilievsky Island, is the central city square of St Petersburg and of the former Russian Empire...
May Day Parade.
Regular programming resumed on 16 June 1949, but was now broadcasting in 625 lines
576i
576i is a standard-definition video mode used in PAL and SECAM countries. In digital applications it is usually referred to as "576i", in analogue contexts it is often quoted as "625 lines"...
- a first in the world.
On 22 March 1951, the Moscow TV station was renamed, to avoid confusion by viewers about the forthcoming local channels, becoming the Central Television Station, later known as Programme 1. Leningrad's television service was also renamed into Leningrad Television, and continued its national broadcasts.
On 26 August 1952, the Leningrad Television Centre was inaugurated, the USSR's first state-of-the-art television studios.
On New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
1955 the Central Television Station began transmitting daily programming.
On 14 February 1956, the new Moscow Programme commenced broadcasting for viewers in Moscow and in the surrouding Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast
Moscow Oblast , or Podmoskovye , is a federal subject of Russia . Its area, at , is relatively small compared to other federal subjects, but it is one of the most densely populated regions in the country and, with the 2010 population of 7,092,941, is the second most populous federal subject...
.
The USSR television service (both Programme 1 and Moscow Programme 2) began experimental colour broadcast tests on 14 January 1960.
The next year, Leningrad Television moved its studios and officers to more bigger premises.
The USSR authorities began construction of a television center in Ostankino in 1963 for the television networks. It was opened in 1967 as part of the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
. Leningrad would soon follow suit the next year as the newly-renovated and expanded Leningrad Television Broadcasting Center reopened its doors.
On 1 September 1964, CT USSR Programme One launched Spokoynoy nochi, malyshi! (Good Night, Kids!) as an answer to the East German Sandmännchen
Sandmännchen
Unser Sandmännchen, Das Sandmännchen, Abendgruß, Sandmann, Sandmännchen is a German children's bedtime television programme using stop motion animation...
. The idea was an animated film and then and sending them to bed before the programmes for adults began at 21:00 (with the main evening news Vremya
Vremya
Vremya is the state television newscast of the Russian Federation and is shown on Channel One Russia and previously on the First Programme of the Central Television of the USSR...
). With several generations of children growing up with the show, it has remained a popular childhood memory. Russia 1 still continues this practice today.
On 29 March 1965, Programme Three commenced broadcasting. It was originally an educational channel. This channel was shown only in the major cities in the European USSR (e.g. Moscow and Leningrad
Leningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
), and its programming was co-produced with the USSR Ministry of Education, oriented towards the nation's student population at all levels from pre-school till college.
Expansion
In 1965, CT USSR established a satellite network to expand the television service nationwide.- 1965 - Experimental broadcast to the Far East via the MolniyaMolniya (satellite)Molniya was a military communications satellite system used by the Soviet Union. The satellites were placed into highly eccentric elliptical orbits known as Molniya orbits, characterised by an inclination of +63.4 degrees and a period of around 12 hours...
system. - 1971 - Regular broadcasts begin in Siberia, the Far East and central Asia via the OrbitaOrbitaOrbita is a Soviet-Russian system of broadcasting and delivering TV signals via satellites. It is considered to be the first national network of satellite television....
system. - 1971 - The VostokVostok spacecraftThe Vostok was a type of spacecraft built by the Soviet Union. The first human spaceflight in history was accomplished on this spacecraft on April 12, 1961, by Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin....
satellite begins programmes to viewers in Kazakhstan. - 1976 - EkranEkranEkran was a Soviet-Russian type of geostationary satellite, developed for a national system of Direct-To-Home television.The first satellite of Ekran series was launched in 1976. Each satellite in the Ekran series was designed to provide one TV and 2 radio program channels to cable TV systems...
(Screen) satellite begins broadcasts. The satellite network for viewers in Soviet Asia (programmes were relayed by transmitter in the European side) was given the name "Orbita" in the same year.
In 1967, the all-new, youth, sport and entertainment network Programme 4 was launched. Programme 3, which was from the beginning available to Moscow only, began broadcasting to the entire USSR via satellite in 1982. Thus, it was renamed All-Union Programme for this purpose and moved to channel 2 in 1977, while Moscow Programme
Moscow Programme
The Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
switched to channel 3.
Television Programmes
- VremyaVremyaVremya is the state television newscast of the Russian Federation and is shown on Channel One Russia and previously on the First Programme of the Central Television of the USSR...
: The main news programme. - Little Blue LightLittle Blue LightThe Little Blue Light was a popular musical variety show aired on Soviet television since 1962 during various holidays. The name alludes to the light blue glare of a TV screen as well as some traditional Russian expressions relating to friendly visits: заглянуть на огонек – "to drop in on a...
: Popular entertainment show. shown on International Women's DayInternational Women's DayInternational Women's Day , originally called International Working Women’s Day, is marked on March 8 every year. In different regions the focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women's economic, political and...
, May DayMay DayMay Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....
, and New Years' Eve. - Budil'nik: Children's programme.
- Do 16 i starshe: Youth programme.
Notable annual traditions of Soviet Central Television included the telecasts of the Red Square
Red Square
Red Square is a city square in Moscow, Russia. The square separates the Kremlin, the former royal citadel and currently the official residence of the President of Russia, from a historic merchant quarter known as Kitai-gorod...
demonstrations on May Day
Labor Day
Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September that celebrates the economic and social contributions of workers.-History:...
, Victory Day
New Year
The New Year is the day that marks the time of the beginning of a new calendar year, and is the day on which the year count of the specific calendar used is incremented. For many cultures, the event is celebrated in some manner....
and the October Revolution
National Day
The National Day is a designated date on which celebrations mark the nationhood of a nation or non-sovereign country. This nationhood can be symbolized by the date of independence, of becoming republic or a significant date for a patron saint or a ruler . Often the day is not called "National Day"...
anniversary parades, and the broadcast of the film The Irony of Fate (Or Enjoy Your Bath!) on New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
night, right after the CPSU General Secretary's New Year message, and Soviet national anthem, and the Little Blue Light New Year's Edition. Concerts and musical programs also commemorated these and other national holidays. Since 1971 it was also the official network for the USSR's Pesnya All-Union National Soviet Music Festival aired on New Year's Day, also soon becoming a holiday practice for viewers across the nation.
Colour
Colour television was introduced on 10 October 1967, making the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
the fourth country in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to switch to colour broadcast, after the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's BBC2, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
(see Timeline of the introduction of color television in countries
Timeline of the introduction of color television in countries
This is a list of when the first color television broadcasts were transmitted to the general public. Non-public field tests and closed-circuit demonstrations are not included.Countries and territories which never had black and white television This is a list of when the first color television...
), again ready for the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution
National Day
The National Day is a designated date on which celebrations mark the nationhood of a nation or non-sovereign country. This nationhood can be symbolized by the date of independence, of becoming republic or a significant date for a patron saint or a ruler . Often the day is not called "National Day"...
on 7 November 1967. Moscow Programme and Leningrad Television were the first colour broadcasters, even through the 7 November 1967 parade was broadcast in monochrome in the main national channels and Programme 4. CT USSR chose the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
SÉCAM
SECAM
SECAM, also written SÉCAM , is an analog color television system first used in France....
colour standard, which would later be adopted across the Eastern Bloc (Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, however, settled for the PAL
PAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
standard).
By 1976, full colour broadcasts began throughout the entire Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
using the SECAM format on all television programs broadcast on all the national channels: Programme One
Programme One
Programme One was a television channel produced and transmitted by Soviet Central Television, the television broadcasting organization of the USSR...
, Programme Two
Programme Two
Programme Two was a fourth television channel created in 1967 for Moscow and Leningrad. It became a nationwide network in 1977. It broadcast centralized entertainment produced in Moscow and the various Soviet republics via the republican television stations....
, Moscow Programme
Moscow Programme
The Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
, Programme Four and Programme Five - Leningrad Television, and in all the republican networks.
Olympic Games
The hosting of the 1980 Summer Olympics1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...
by Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
was a source of pride for the Eastern Bloc. However, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
Soviet war in Afghanistan
The Soviet war in Afghanistan was a nine-year conflict involving the Soviet Union, supporting the Marxist-Leninist government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign "Arab–Afghan" volunteers...
in 1979 had caused outrage in the west, leading to a boycott of the games by 64 western-aligned nations. CT USSR, as the host nation broadcaster, presented a color broadcast of the Games to the world, and in Soviet territory the Games were broadcast on the two main channels with additional coverage on Program 3, Program 4 and Leningrad Television as well as the republican channels in Belarus, Ukraine (football) and Estonia (sailing). The other republican stations also simulcast and highlighted the entire event.
Gorizont
In 1988, the USSR-built GorizontGorizont
Gorizont, , GRAU index 11F662, is a series of 35 Russian, previously Soviet, geosynchronous communication satellites launched between 1978 and 2000. The programme was started in order to develop a satellite system to relay coverage of the 1980 Olympic Games from Moscow. The first four satellites...
satellite was launched, providing television programming to much of Europe and northern Africa, and even eastern parts of the Americas. The programmes of all the Eastern European socialist republics, including the CT USSR channels, were broadcast on the satellite.
The reforms
Significant changes to CT USSR were made in the 1980s1980s
File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...
as the USSR underwent economic and popular political changes brought about by the reforms
Glasnost
Glasnost was the policy of maximal publicity, openness, and transparency in the activities of all government institutions in the Soviet Union, together with freedom of information, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the second half of the 1980s...
in Moscow under Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
.
At first, CT USSR stuck to the party line and barely reported the opposition to the communist regime. However, after the rule of the CPSU began to break down in 1990, CT USSR reformed their programmes to remove propaganda and to report news freely.
By the time the Glasnost
Glasnost
Glasnost was the policy of maximal publicity, openness, and transparency in the activities of all government institutions in the Soviet Union, together with freedom of information, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the second half of the 1980s...
came into effect, the main news programme on the then Programme 1 (Vremya) 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 several TV channels around the world (such as Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's SBS
Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's Sky News
Sky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
).
CT USSR, at the same time, started a number of new programme strands and formats, including talk shows.
On 4 March 1990, emphasizing the Glasnost campaign, Programme 3 and Programme 4, plus Leningrad Television began to be carried across the Soviet territory via satellite.
Private TV channels such as ATV
ATV (Russia)
ATV - the oldest Russian private TV-company. It was founded in the USSR in 1988 by Anatoly Malkin & Kira Proshutinskaya. It was very popular in Russia in the 1990s....
and 2×2 were also introduced ending the state monopoly on television broadcasting.
Dissolution of the USSR
Upon the total dissolution of the country on 25 December 1991, Central Television USSRTelevision in the Soviet Union
Television in the Soviet Union was owned by the state and was under its tight control and Soviet censorship.The governing body in the former Soviet Union was "USSR State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting or USSR Gosteleradio , which was in charge both of Soviet Central...
ceased to be the state broadcaster of the former USSR.
On 27 December 1991, Ostankino Television 1 and Ostankino Television 4 (Presently Channel One (Russia)
Channel One (Russia)
Channel One is the first television channel to broadcast in the Soviet Union. The channel was renamed Ostankino Channel 1 in 1991, after the Soviet Union broke up and the Russian SFSR became the Russian Federation. According to a recent government publication, the Russian government controls 51%...
and NTV (Russia)) took over the frequencies of Programme 1 and Programme 4. Leningrad Television 5 soon became St. Petersburg State Television Network, broadcasting to all of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
until 1997.
Employees of CT USSR were worried about job prospects in the new broadcaster and also had a loyalty to Central Television USSR. Viewers accustomed to the Russian programming, were concerned at the loss of favourite shows. (Some of the Central Television USSR shows are now consigned to Channel One Russia and Russia 1) Additionally the three big Russian channels - Channel One, Russia 1 and Petersburg-Channel 5 - have a good amount of presence in the former Soviet territory, and most of the republican stations are now fully independent.
Former television stations
Soviet Central Television had three and later five televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
channels over its history.
- Programme OneProgramme OneProgramme One was a television channel produced and transmitted by Soviet Central Television, the television broadcasting organization of the USSR...
was formed in 1938, and began to broadcast a regular daily schedule in 1955. This was the main channel in the former Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and was a crucial tool for the dissemination of propaganda by the Communist Party of the Soviet UnionCommunist Party of the Soviet UnionThe Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
. Its output included general entertainment, documentaries and news. - Programme TwoProgramme TwoProgramme Two was a fourth television channel created in 1967 for Moscow and Leningrad. It became a nationwide network in 1977. It broadcast centralized entertainment produced in Moscow and the various Soviet republics via the republican television stations....
was created in 1965. (Its name at first was Programme Three.) Its programmes was mostly entertainment, cultural, news and sport programming. This is also called the All-Union Program due to its national reach across the Soviet Union and the fact that even programs of all forms from the various Union republics were also broadcast here. - Moscow ProgrammeMoscow ProgrammeThe Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
was created in 1956, the second channel to be launched. Its programming was somewhat similar to Program One, but was more flavored at the MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
City and Region citizens. - Programme Four was created in 1967-1968. Its programming was aimed at the intelligentsiaIntelligentsiaThe intelligentsia is a social class of people engaged in complex, mental and creative labor directed to the development and dissemination of culture, encompassing intellectuals and social groups close to them...
and students at all levels. - Programme Five - Leningrad Television, the national television service from LeningradSaint PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
(St. Petersburg) and the northern and northwestern USSR was created in 1938, four months after the birth of television in the Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Programmes from Leningrad CitySaint PetersburgSaint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
and Region were aired here, plus those from the USSR's Baltic republics (the republics also had their share on Program 2, the All-Union Program). Today, it is Petersburg - Channel 5Petersburg - Channel 5Petersburg - Channel 5 is a television channel based in St. Petersburg, Russia, also known simply as Channel 5. Director General: Alexey Brodskiy, Producer General: Ljubov Sovershaeva...
and still airs nationally (from 1992-1997 and from 2004 to present).
Central Television USSR signed off for the final time on 27 December 1991 and became Ostankino Television Channel 1 and Ostankino Television Channel 4, of Ostankino State Television. Its two remaining channels carried former their predecessors' programming. The direct successor of Soviet Central Television in Russia, it became defunct on 30 November 1994, becoming the Channel One Russia of today (It was then called until 2002 as ORT 1-Public Russian Television 1).
Identity
There are 3 idents which were broadcast in a day during CT USSR.- Startup ident: The blue background with CT USSR's logo (see below) appearing, first the red star (with one point extended) with the phrase TB CCCP (TV USSR), followed by the rings and the caption changing to the channel's name. Broadcast after the national anthemNational Anthem of the Soviet UnionThe National Anthem of the Soviet Union or the State Anthem of the USSR was introduced during World War II on March 15, 1944, replacing The Internationale as the official national anthem of the Soviet Union as well as the national anthem of the Russian SFSR...
and before the exercise programme in the morning, and before the news in the evening (see Sign-on). - Daytime ident: Still version of the startup ident.
- Closedown ident: Reverse of the startup ident, but different soundtrack. Followed by the clock.
Logo History
There is only one CT USSR logo, which have five rings from a red starRed star
A red star, five-pointed and filled, is an important ideological and religious symbol which has been used for various purposes, such as: state emblems, flags, monuments, ornaments, and logos.- Symbol of communism :...
-designed antenna in it.
Today
Soviet Central TelevisionSoviet Central Television
The Central Television of the USSR , was the state television broadcaster in the Soviet Union....
(Programme One
Programme One
Programme One was a television channel produced and transmitted by Soviet Central Television, the television broadcasting organization of the USSR...
, Programme Two
Programme Two
Programme Two was a fourth television channel created in 1967 for Moscow and Leningrad. It became a nationwide network in 1977. It broadcast centralized entertainment produced in Moscow and the various Soviet republics via the republican television stations....
and Moscow Programme
Moscow Programme
The Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
) sign on at 07:00 morning with the test card
Test card
A test card, also known as a test pattern in North America and Australia, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast...
along with music playing. clock ident
Clock ident
A clock ident is a form of television ident that employs a clock displaying the current time with the station logo, typically used before news bulletins and closedown.-Appearance:...
, play now at national anthem
National Anthem of the Soviet Union
The National Anthem of the Soviet Union or the State Anthem of the USSR was introduced during World War II on March 15, 1944, replacing The Internationale as the official national anthem of the Soviet Union as well as the national anthem of the Russian SFSR...
accompanied by a largest viewer city of Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
a national capital of Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and station ident.
Evening
Soviet Central TelevisionSoviet Central Television
The Central Television of the USSR , was the state television broadcaster in the Soviet Union....
(Programme One
Programme One
Programme One was a television channel produced and transmitted by Soviet Central Television, the television broadcasting organization of the USSR...
, Programme Two
Programme Two
Programme Two was a fourth television channel created in 1967 for Moscow and Leningrad. It became a nationwide network in 1977. It broadcast centralized entertainment produced in Moscow and the various Soviet republics via the republican television stations....
and Moscow Programme
Moscow Programme
The Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
) sign on at 18:00 evening with the test card
Test card
A test card, also known as a test pattern in North America and Australia, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast...
along with music playing. clock ident
Clock ident
A clock ident is a form of television ident that employs a clock displaying the current time with the station logo, typically used before news bulletins and closedown.-Appearance:...
, play now at national anthem
National Anthem of the Soviet Union
The National Anthem of the Soviet Union or the State Anthem of the USSR was introduced during World War II on March 15, 1944, replacing The Internationale as the official national anthem of the Soviet Union as well as the national anthem of the Russian SFSR...
accompanied by a largest viewer city of Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
a national capital of Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and station ident.
Today
Soviet Central TelevisionSoviet Central Television
The Central Television of the USSR , was the state television broadcaster in the Soviet Union....
(Programme One
Programme One
Programme One was a television channel produced and transmitted by Soviet Central Television, the television broadcasting organization of the USSR...
, Programme Two
Programme Two
Programme Two was a fourth television channel created in 1967 for Moscow and Leningrad. It became a nationwide network in 1977. It broadcast centralized entertainment produced in Moscow and the various Soviet republics via the republican television stations....
and Moscow Programme
Moscow Programme
The Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
) sign off at 09:00 morning with the station ident, Clock ident
Clock ident
A clock ident is a form of television ident that employs a clock displaying the current time with the station logo, typically used before news bulletins and closedown.-Appearance:...
, caption Don't forget to switch off your set accompanied by intermittent beeping and test card
Test card
A test card, also known as a test pattern in North America and Australia, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast...
.
Evening
Soviet Central TelevisionSoviet Central Television
The Central Television of the USSR , was the state television broadcaster in the Soviet Union....
(Programme One
Programme One
Programme One was a television channel produced and transmitted by Soviet Central Television, the television broadcasting organization of the USSR...
, Programme Two
Programme Two
Programme Two was a fourth television channel created in 1967 for Moscow and Leningrad. It became a nationwide network in 1977. It broadcast centralized entertainment produced in Moscow and the various Soviet republics via the republican television stations....
and Moscow Programme
Moscow Programme
The Moscow Programme was a television channel in the Soviet Union. It had a political focus and discussed events in Moscow. Now it is a television station broadcast by the Moscow City Government named TV Center.- History :...
) sign off at 21:00 evening with the station ident, Clock ident
Clock ident
A clock ident is a form of television ident that employs a clock displaying the current time with the station logo, typically used before news bulletins and closedown.-Appearance:...
, caption Don't forget to switch off your set accompanied by intermittent beeping and test card
Test card
A test card, also known as a test pattern in North America and Australia, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast...
.
News
- 1938-1967: Newsreel intro.
- 1967-1976: Blue background with "Новости" next to a red star. Still and silent intro.
- 1976-1990: Blue background with "Новости" moving from right to left, with a stylized "H". Background music was "Time Forward" by Georgy SviridovGeorgy SviridovGeorgy Vasilyevich Sviridov was a Soviet Russian neoromantic composer....
. - 1990-1991: The letters T, C and H appear to form TCH - Телевизионная служба новостей (Television news service).
Colour TV standard
When colour television was introduced in 1967, the SÉCAMSECAM
SECAM, also written SÉCAM , is an analog color television system first used in France....
system was chosen. Following the collapse of the USSR, some of its former republics switched to the PAL colour system.
Advertising
Advertising - in the form of "commercial" magazine programmes - had appeared on the USSR television from the 1980s1980s
File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...
. However, in a command economy
Planned economy
A planned economy is an economic system in which decisions regarding production and investment are embodied in a plan formulated by a central authority, usually by a government agency...
, there was little or no competition between brands, so advertising was limited to a form of reminding viewers what products were available. (Other forms of advertising included posters and matchbox covers.)
With the Perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
, spot advertising was introduced to CT USSR in order to better cover the system's cost.