TV channels Hungary

Hungarian television has a split personality in the best sense. On one side stands the national public-media family; on the other, a municipal broadcasting tradition so dense that nearly every county town keeps its own station. Between them sit the national news channels, commercial entertainment and church broadcasters.

The Public-Media Family

Hungary's public media, organized under Duna Media, covers every shelf. M1 TV is the 24-hour current-affairs channel with a constant stream of national and world news. M2 TV, whose test broadcasts reach back to 1971, has been the public children's channel since December 2012. M5 TV, launched on 6 August 2016, is the educational and cultural service. M4 Sport, on air since 18 July 2015, covers the main Hungarian sports disciplines and international events, with M4 Sport + as its companion. Duna World broadcasts around the clock for Hungarians overseas and in the Carpathian Basin, and the family's namesake Duna TV completes the block.

National News and Commercial Screens

Hír TV, broadcasting from Budapest since 2003, was Hungary's first channel devoted entirely to news, with rolling blocks and evening political debates. ATV Magyarország carries the title of Hungary's first private television channel, built on current affairs and public-affairs programming. Euronews Magyarul brings the European news network's output in Hungarian, and Hatoscsatorna TV - «Channel 6» - adds commercial entertainment from Budapest.

A Country of Local Stations

Nowhere in Europe does local television run deeper. The county seats keep their own newsrooms: Miskolc TV and Kanizsa TV both date to 1985, ZTV is owned by the city of Zalaegerszeg, Szolnok TV has served its city since 1986, and Nyíregyházi TV has passed three decades on air. Around them stand DTV in Debrecen, Szeged TV, Kecskeméti TV, Salgótarjáni Városi Televízió, Szombathelyi Televízió, Gyöngyösi TV, TV Eger, Fehérvár TV, Kapos TV and Jászsági Térségi TV for the Jászság region.

The map continues into small towns and Budapest's own districts: Budapest13 - TV13 serves the XIII district, Zugló TV the XIV, Rákosmente TV the XVII, and City TV and Hegyvidék TV cover the capital's centre and green hillside. Then come PilisTV for the Pilis basin, ESTV for Vác, Mór Városi TV, CsurgóTV, Bajai TV, Karcag TV, Heti TV, Móra-Net TV, Mezőkövesdi Televízió, Komáromi Televízió, Keszthely TV, the Balaton-region Balaton Televízió, Debrecen's commercial Alföld Televízió, Békéscsaba's 7.Tv and DSTV Dunaújváros Televízió, its city's oldest continuously operating broadcaster.

Hungarian Voices from Beyond the Border

Hungarian communities in neighboring countries have their own screens too. Erdélyi TV is the Hungarian-language television of Transylvania, broadcasting from Târgu Mureș with news, culture and entertainment for Romania's Hungarian community. BPETV - Budapest Europe Television - is an Oradea-based commercial channel broadcasting in Hungarian, one of the earliest Hungarian commercial stations.

Faith Channels

Religious broadcasting has two voices here. Remény TV - Hope TV - is the channel of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Hungary, carrying the Bible's message through modern technology. Bonum TV brings Catholic programming to Hungarian viewers as part of the wider Catholic media landscape.