UBC Television
| Branding | UBC |
|---|---|
| Country | |
| Availability | National |
| Founded | 8 October 1963 by Government of Uganda |
| Motto | Inspiring Uganda |
| Headquarters | Kampala, Uganda |
| Parent | Uganda Broadcasting Corporation |
Launch date | December 6, 1963 |
Picture format | 720p (HDTV) |
Official website | ubc |
| Language | English |
UBC Television is the television channel of the state-owned Uganda Broadcasting Corporation. Founded in 1963 as Uganda Television (UTV), it merged with Radio Uganda in 2006, forming UBC. Historically, it had the widest reach among the terrestrial television networks of Uganda.
History
Uganda Television started broadcasting in October 1963, a year after Uganda achieved its independence.[1]
Much like the Uganda Broadcasting Service that came before, the station was built with European engineers. The station was initially housed at the Nakasero facilities, that were later demolished to make room for a Hilton hotel.[2] Bob Astles was appointed head of the outside broadcast unit in 1963,[3] a position he held until 1971 when Idi Amin took over the government. Amin wanted Astles to continue working for UTV, but was subsequently refused as Astles supported Obote and was subsequently jailed.[4]
Idi Amin's rule oversaw massive changes to Uganda Television, which was his first target. UTV was already a propaganda tool for the Obote government, something that was heavily retooled under the new leader. Network head Aggrey Awori was beaten up and fled to Kenya; his deputee James Bwogi took his place. He demanded to reform the broadcaster with the aim of introducing current affairs programmes reflective of his plan to make UTV a medium of discussion. Thanks to his reorganisation, UTV started housing opinions from "an increasing number of people", often showing opinions that never pleased Amin. Subsequently, he was abducted and Amin reformulated UTV again. The main news lasted for one hour, in four languages, English, Swahili, French and Arabic, per a presidential decree, even though French and Arabic were never official languages in the country.[5]
By the mid-1970s, it was broadcasting for six hours on weekdays (5pm to 11pm) and eight on weekends (3pm to 11pm) on a six-transmitter network.[1]
In 1988, shortly after the fall of Idi Amin's regime, UTV broadcast testimonies of those who survived his massacres between 1983 and 1985, on Sunday evenings. Long excerpts of these hearings were carried out on local newspapers.[6] The channel had exclusive rights to the 1998 FIFA World Cup, which was contested by Sanyu Television, Uganda's first private channel,[7]
On 12 March 2001, Uganda Television started broadcasting to the Western Region for the first time in its history, with the establishment of a transmitter at Fort Portal (alongside Radio Uganda's Blue Network).[8] A relay transmitter at Arua was at an "advanced stage" in May 2002.[9] In 2004, Simwogerere Kyazze of The Monitor saw UTV as a "badly managed parastatal"[10]
UTV was rebranded UBC Television after the merger took into effect on 19 April 2006 under the new corporate tagline "Bigger, Better"[11] (UBC Television also used the tagline "Uganda's Preferred Network"). The Monitor believed that the rebrand, as well as the implementation of more advanced graphics, caused UBC to look like WBS Television, the most watched TV network in Uganda at the time, who had poached several personalities from UTV since launch.[12] Edgar Tabaro delivered the opening speech of the new UBC Television.[13] The channel was also made available on the JumpTV platform shortly after, aiming at the diaspora.[14]
On 22 April 2006, UBC Television announced that it would relocate from Lubumba Lane in Nakasero to the existing radio facility at Nile Avenue, as two Sudanese brothers, working for AYA (U) Ltd., wanted to build a luxury five-star hotel in place of the former UTV headquarters.[15] The relocation took place on 15 July, while its broadcasts were suspended at 8am that day.[16]
By the late 2000s, 60% of Uganda received UBC, the widest compared to its private competitors.[17]
References
- ^ a b "Television Factbook" (PDF). 1977. p. 1133-b. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- ^ "UBC's 50-year long journey". Monitor. 9 January 2021. Archived from the original on 20 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ^ "Bob Astles". New Vision. 23 January 2013. Archived from the original on 20 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ^ "Bob Astles – The years of terror with President Amin". Paul Vallely. 10 December 1985. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ^ Kabeba, Don (1979). "Uganda: No Censors Needed". Index on Censorship. 8 (2): 18–21. doi:10.1080/03064227908532896. S2CID 143863530. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
- ^ Battiata, M. (1988, Jul 06). Uganda Begins to Heal After Years of Terror and Bloodshed. The Washington Post (Pre-1997 Fulltext)
- ^ Kaheru, S. (1998, Jun 10). Uganda: Sanyu, UTV in World Cup row. Africa News Service
- ^ Uganda television goes on air in western district for first time. (2001, Mar 12). BBC Monitoring Africa - Political
- ^ Uganda: Radio, TV relay station being built in Arua. (2002, May 24). BBC Monitoring Africa - Political
- ^ Exactly Who Needs Uganda Television?
- ^ "Bigger, Better UBC". New Vision. 24 April 2006. Archived from the original on 19 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
- ^ Uganda: From UTV to UBC
- ^ Uganda relaunches state-owned UBC Television. (2006, Apr 19). BBC Monitoring Africa
- ^ "Uganda: Diaspora to Watch UBC". AllAfrica. 24 April 2006. Archived from the original on 2 May 2006. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
- ^ Uganda: State-owned UBC TV to be relocated. (2006, Apr 22). BBC Monitoring Africa
- ^ Uganda state broadcaster relocates; terrestrial channels "temporarily" off air. (2006, Jul 15). BBC Monitoring Africa
- ^ "On Air: Uganda" (PDF). Open Societies Foundation. 1 July 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 August 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2023.