Saudi 2
CountrySaudi Arabia
Broadcast areaSaudi Arabia
Arab World
Worldwide
NetworkSaudi TV
HeadquartersRiyadh, Medina Saudi Arabia
Programming
Language(s)English
Picture format16:9 576i SDTV
Ownership
OwnerSaudi Government
Sister channelsAl Saudiya
Faaliat
SBC
KSA SPORTS
Quran TV
Sunna TV
History
LaunchedAugust 9, 1983; 40 years ago (1983-08-09)[1]
ClosedDecember 22, 2017; 6 years ago (2017-12-22)
Former namesKSA 2
Links
Websitewww.saudi2tv.sa Edit this at Wikidata

Saudi TV Channel 2 (KSA 2), or as of 2014 known as Saudi 2 was the English news and entertainment TV channel of Saudi Arabia.[2]

Established in 1983, the channel used to produce programmes focusing on cultural, political, and economic issues aimed at expatriates living in Saudi Arabia. Following its conversion to a 24-hour channel it expanded its broadcasting to Europe and North America in the middle of 2007 and now employs a large network of news correspondents based in the Middle East, the United Kingdom and the United States.[2]

Despite being the only English-language public channel for Saudi Arabian expatriates, the Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Awwad Bin Saleh Al-Awwad has suspended the channel's transmission in December 2017 as part of a plan to suit the Saudi Vision 2030.[3]

History

The Saudi government began planning the second network in 1979, with the launch expected for the first few months of 1980. The goal was to reserve one channel for informative, cultural and educational programming and the other channel for entertainment. According to the Third Development Plan which oversaw the creation of the new channel, the new service would concentrate its efforts on "cultural programs, current events and features about national development, and public information campaigns", with the existing channel concentrating on entertainment and public information, with an "appropriate mix of programs" for both.[4]

The launch of the channel was delayed following the events of the Great Mosque seizure of 1979, leading to its launch in August 1983, three years after it was initially planned. The new goal was to target foreigners working in Saudi Arabia.[4]

The channel was the first in Saudi Arabia to carry commercial advertising in 1986, though in Arabic instead of English, the dominant language of the service.[4]

Former programming

Foreign

Cartoons

Children's

Soap Opera

Cooking

Comedy

Drama

Documentary

Reality

Game shows

Variety

Anthology

Education

Magic

Sports

References

  1. ^ Kraidy, Marwan. M., Khalil, Joe. F (2010). Arab television industries. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
  2. ^ a b "About channel 2". Archived from the original on 2013-08-21. Retrieved 2011-04-12.
  3. ^ Mohammed, Irfan (16 May 2018). "Ramadan this year will be without Saudi TV 2". Saudi Gazette. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  4. ^ a b c "An analytical study of television and society in three Arab states: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Bahrain". Ohio State University via UMI. 1989. Archived from the original on 12 February 2024. Retrieved 12 February 2024.

External links

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