In Slovak broadcasting environment spoken word and music is spread by Slovak Radio – an organisational component of the statutory institution Radio and Television Slovakia and 34 commercial broadcasting stations. The situation in radio broadcasting has not experienced major changes for a long time.
With the adoption of the Act No. 532/2010 Coll., on Radio and Television Slovakia and on the transformation and amendment, some acts a statutory national independent information cultural and educational institution Radio and Television Slovakia – RTVS was established which offers public service in the area of radio and television broadcasting. RTVS is the merger of Slovak Radio and Slovak Television and it started broadcasting on 1 January 2011. RTVS provides radio broadcasting through its organisational component Slovak Radio (Slovenský Rozhlas). Slovak Radio (Slovenský rozhlas) began broadcasting from the Slovak capital – Bratislava. It started with rádiožurnál (a current affairs radio session) twice a week on 3 August 1926 and a daily from 2 October 1926.
Nowadays, Slovak Radio as an organisational component of RTVS runs and offers nine radio stations. One of them is dedicated to listeners living abroad.
Rádio Slovensko, the first station of Slovak Radio, provides topical news twenty-four hours a day, as well as non-stop traffic reports and weather forecast, public affairs, interviews, live transmissions of sporting and other social events. Through interactive broadcasting and discussions Rádio Slovensko constantly keeps in touch with its listeners. Evening programming also includes continuous readings, radio plays, musical and religious public affairs.
Rádio Regina is created by regional studios in Bratislava, Banská Bystrica and in Košice. These studios bring its audience information from particular regions of Slovakia; they mention regional peculiarities and history as well as present happenings in individual Slovak regions. Its programming comprises of stream, block, autonomous and common broadcast.
Rádio Devín focuses on artistic radio projects, the history of art, literature and drama as well as on non-commercial music styles (classical music, jazz, alternative music, art rock, folk music, chanson, experimental music etc.)
Rádio_FM brings its listeners contemporary and particularly alternative music trends and is attractive for young people.
Rádio Patria caters for national minorities and ethnic groups living in the territory of the Slovak Republic and therefore Radio Patria’s broadcasting languages are Hungarian, Ruthenian, Ukrainian, Czech, Romanian and German. As far as the range, themes and genre are concerned, broadcasting in the Hungarian language has the greatest share in the national minority broadcasting which is a reflection of the size of this minority in relation to the state-forming population. Radio Patria’s programming includes current affairs, every-day news from public affairs and entertainment, literary and drama works and also religious programmes.
The latest channels of Slovak Radio are Rádio Klasika focusing mostly on classical music of all time and minority music genres. Rádio Litera offers radio plays, poetry, prose works, fairy-tales, continuous reading and other types of literary creation. Last but not least is Rádio Junior. Its programming is aimed at the youngest listeners and it includes fairy-tale plays, monological fairy-tales, literature for children and programmes on music and songs for children.
Signal of the individual stations of Slovak Radio is spread terrestrially through MW, VHF, SW transmitters, through satellites, as well as on the Internet. The newest channels are spread digitally.
Apart from nine RTVS radio stations, there are currently 34 private radio stations broadcasting in Slovakia that are – in terms of their territorial signal coverage – multi-regional, regional or local radio stations.
In accordance with the law, multi-regional broadcasting is defined as broadcasting which covers several regions that can be received by more than 30 per cent, but less than 80 per cent, of Slovakia’s population. There are currently nine multi-regional radio stations. Regional broadcasting is defined as broadcasting which covers a territory larger than the cadastral territory of a municipality, which can be received by less than 30 per cent of the population. There are currently nine regional radio stations in Slovakia. Local broadcasting is defined as broadcasting whose reception, as a rule, is geographically restricted to a municipality, i.e. an area which does not exceed 100,000 population in the case of a village, or 200,000 in the case of a town. There are currently nine local radio stations.
Slovak Radio (Slovenský rozhlas) began broadcasting from Bratislava twice a week on 3 August 1926 and daily from 2 October 1926. Today it offers five terrestrial channels, plus a sixth channel dedicated to international broadcasting.
The one most listened to in Slovakia is Rádio Slovensko, which is profiled as a full-format information channel focused on actual news service and current affairs. Rádio Regina brings its audience information from particular regions of Slovakia, supports and develops audience relations to their community, town and region, Rádio Devín focuses on classical music, literature and art, Rádio_FM brings its listeners contemporary music styles and Radio Patria caters for national minorities and ethnic groups, while Radio Slovakia International broadcasts abroad.
Slovak Radio currently transmits on short and medium waves, on satellite as well as on the Internet. It is financed from public funds according to law through the collection of fees for public services which Slovak Radio offers in the area of radio broadcasting. It is managed by a director general elected by the Radio Council.
Rádio Regina is broadcast from Slovak Radio’s studios in Bratislava, Banská Bystrica and Košice. Its programming structure is dominated by news and current affairs programmes, but also includes coverage of art forms and genres, popular music from the 1960s to the 1990s, folkloric music and brass band music. Rádio Devín is the cultural arm of Slovak Radio, which offers arts magazine programmes, music, literature and radio drama. Rádio Devín maintains a ‘classical’ radio format, catering for a more discerning listener with an emphasis on original production. Rádio FM is defined as an alternative radio service which targets mostly young people aged from 14 to 30 years. It broadcasts programmes of uninterrupted music, plus features on music, science and technology as well as media, film and the Internet. Rádio Patria broadcasts programmes aimed at national minorities and ethnic groups living in the Slovak Republic. The languages of broadcasting include Hungarian, Ruthenian, Ukrainian, Czech, Polish, Romany and German. Broadcasts in Hungarian are most extensive in terms of scope and thematic/genre coverage, since the Hungarian national minority takes up the largest share of the population relative to Slovak citizens. The programming structure of Rádio Patria includes news reporting and daytime magazine programmes comprising current affairs and entertainment, literature and drama production, education and religious broadcasting. Ruthenian and Ukrainian broadcasting is undertaken jointly, being split into Ruthenian and Ukrainian sections. The main news programme is broadcast in each language on alternate weekdays, with the Ruthenian language news on one day and the Ukrainian language news on the following day. Entertainment programmes, radio plays, serials and folkloric music complete the broadcasting schedule, with liturgies of Orthodox and Greek Catholic Church also included.
Radio Slovakia International (RSI) is the international broadcasting arm of Slovak Radio, which is funded by a subsidy from the state budget for the relevant year. It broadcasts information on current affairs in Slovakia in the broadest spectrum, from economic and political affairs to education, science, culture and sport. Since 1993 it has broadcast seven days a week in half-hour magazines offered in English, French, German, Russian, Spanish and Slovak.
Apart from public service radio, there are currently 27 private radio stations broadcasting in Slovakia that are – in terms of their territorial signal coverage – multi-regional, regional or local radio stations.
By law, multi-regional broadcasting is defined as broadcasting which covers several regions that can be received by more than 30 per cent, but less than 80 per cent, of Slovakia’s population. There are currently nine multi-regional radio stations. Regional broadcasting is defined as broadcasting which covers a territory larger than the cadastral territory of a municipality, which can be received by less than 30 per cent of the population. There are currently nine regional radio stations in Slovakia. Local broadcasting is defined as broadcasting whose reception, as a rule, is geographically restricted to an area which does not exceed 100,000 population in the case of a municipality, or 200,000 in the case of a town. There are currently nine local radio stations.
In the programming of multi-regional radio stations, music alternates with the spoken word of presenters. Presented music programmes often include direct phone-ins by listeners, news and traffic reports, and to a lesser extent, also politics and public affairs. The multi-regional radio stations include EUROPA 2, FUN RADIO, Jemné melódie, Rádio Anténa Rock, Rádio BEST FM, Rádio EXPRES, RADIO ONE, RADIO ONE ROCK, Rádio VLNA, Rádio KISS, Rádio Šport and VIVA Metropol.
Apart from classical commercial radio stations, there are two stations in Slovakia of an evangelistic nature. Rádio Lumen developed out of the earlier Rádio Mária, which began broadcasting in 1993. It is a Christian radio station which promotes evangelism and caters for all age groups of listeners with its music selection focusing on the period from the 1960s to the 1980s. It covers information and events from the life of the church in Slovakia, being open to all communities identifying with Christianity. Rádio 7 has been broadcasting since 2006. Its programming comprises current affairs and religious programmes, literature and drama, carrying ecumenical principles. News and children’s programmes are also represented in its broadcasting schedule, and where music is concerned gospel is strongly represented, with space also being given to church music, country music and folk.
Regional radio stations have a similar programming structure to that of the multi-regional stations, and feature music, the spoken word and music entertainment programmes with a presenter, supplemented with brief news bulletins. The regional radio stations include BETA RÁDIO, Dobré rádio, Rádio FRONTINUS, Rádio Košice, Radio MAX, RADIO ONE RETRO, Rocková Republika, Rádio SiTy, Rádio SEVER, Šláger Rádio, Rádio WOW and Záhorácke Radio.
Local radio stations broadcast for cities/towns and communities and their closest neighbourhoods. They bring news and reports from the local environment, informing listeners about local events and problems, and about the deliberations of local government. They include Aligator, Rádio LIPTOV, Rádio Modra, Rádio Piešťany, RÁDIO PLUS, Rádio Prešov, Rádio Rebeca a Rádio YES. Two radio broadcasting licence holders have not started the broadcasting yet.
With the rise of the dual broadcasting system a number of early radio broadcasting licence holders established on 15 December 1992 the Association of Independent Radio Stations of Slovakia. The founding members of this association included FUN Rádio, Rádio TWIST, Rádio RAGTIME, RMC Rádio, Klassic Rádio, Rádio DCA and Rádio Tatry. The association extended its scope in 1997 to incorporate terrestrial television broadcasting and became the Association of Independent Radio and Television Stations of Slovakia (ANRTS), with a remit, in line with Statutes, which included (i) the furtherance of independent dissemination of information and independence of radio and television broadcasting; and (ii) representation of its membership in deliberating with state bodies, local administration authorities and organisations operating in the protection of copyright, as well as with other entities in the Slovak Republic and abroad. The association represents the private section of the Slovak dual media system, articulating on its behalf the basic issues in this area, producing position statements and background materials for prepared media legislation, and issuing statements against potential breaches of laws or basic principles of the dual system, infringements of the freedom of media and the rights of citizens to information. On behalf of its membership, the association concludes framework agreements with the copyright protection organisations Slovak Performing and Mechanical Rights Society (SOZA), SLOVGRAM Society of Performers and Audio and Video Producers and LITA, the Society of Authors, without which, within the meaning of the law, no activity of electronic media is possible. It provides its members with a legal service, and is a permanent partner in dealings with the Council for Broadcasting and Retransmission, the public service media and other associations operating in the area of media and advertising. The association is one of the founding members of the Council for Advertising, an association formed to regulate ethical standards of broadcast and print commercials. In 2008, the association had 21 members (17 radio and four television broadcasters).