The Interkerkelijke Omroep Nederland (IKON) is a Dutch public broadcaster which makes radio and television broadcasts on behalf of seven church communities. Next to broadcasting IKON also offers other services such as Teletekst

Teletext

Teletext is a television information retrieval service developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s. It offers a range of text-based information, typically including national, international and sporting news, weather and TV schedules...

, the IKON newspaper, the IKON pastorate and Internet. In IKON's airtime the Wilde Ganzen collect money for projects in the Third World. Since August 2010 there are discussions with the KRO, NCRV

NCRV

NCRV is a public radio and television broadcaster in the Netherlands, mostly transmitting on Nederland 1 and Nederland 2....

 and RKK

Rooms-Katholiek Kerkgenootschap

Rooms-Katholiek Kerkgenootschap is a special broadcaster on the Netherlands Public Broadcasting system, which is allowed to broadcast on radio and television because of their religious background...

 to form a large confessional broadcaster.

History

After the war

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 the IKOR, (Interkerkelijk Overleg inzake Radioaangelegenheden) was founded. On January 1, 1976 IKOR and the Convent van Kerken founded the foundation IKON.

IKON journalists were often active in dangerous warzones. On March 17, 1982 four IKON journalists were murdered in El Salvador

El Salvador

El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...

: Koos Koster (correspondent), Jan Kuiper (editor), Joop Willemse (cameraman) en Hans ter Laag (soundman).

In the 1970s and '80s IKON was known as a left-wing

Left-wing politics

In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...

 broadcaster, focussing on subjects such as racism

Racism

Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...

, oppression

Oppression

Oppression is the exercise of authority or power in a burdensome, cruel, or unjust manner. It can also be defined as an act or instance of oppressing, the state of being oppressed, and the feeling of being heavily burdened, mentally or physically, by troubles, adverse conditions, and...

, emancipation

Emancipation

Emancipation means the act of setting an individual or social group free or making equal to citizens in a political society.Emancipation may also refer to:* Emancipation , a champion Australian thoroughbred racehorse foaled in 1979...

, development aid

Development aid

Development aid or development cooperation is aid given by governments and other agencies to support the economic, environmental, social and political development of developing countries.It is distinguished...

 and peace

Peace movement

A peace movement is a social movement that seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war , minimize inter-human violence in a particular place or type of situation, often linked to the goal of achieving world peace...

.

Since the end of the cold war

Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

 the appeal of leftist ideals declined as did the attendance of churches. IKON had to adapt to these changes.

Airtime for churches

Article 2.42 of the Dutch media law (the Mediawet) makes room for faith-based radio and television broadcasters who do not have to have any members, unlike regular public broadcasters (several of which are also faith-based).

IKON makes programming for various church communities namely:

• Algemene Doopsgezinde Sociëteit
• Evangelische Broedergemeente Nederland
• Leger des Heils
  Leger des Heils
  The Leger des Heils is the name of the Dutch arm of The Salvation Army.The Leger des Heils was largely established by a Dutch teacher, Gerrit Govaars, who together with the English officers Captain and Mrs Joseph K...
  
  
• Molukse Evangelische Kerk
• Oud-Katholieke Kerk van Nederland
• Protestantse Kerk in Nederland (PKN)
• Remonstrantse Broederschap
• Vrijzinnige geloofsgemeenschap NPB

Two other organisations who fill airtime for different church societies are RKK

Rooms-Katholiek Kerkgenootschap

Rooms-Katholiek Kerkgenootschap is a special broadcaster on the Netherlands Public Broadcasting system, which is allowed to broadcast on radio and television because of their religious background...

 and Zendtijd voor Kerken

Zendtijd voor Kerken

Zendtijd voor Kerken is a special broadcaster on the Netherlands Public Broadcasting system, which is allowed to broadcast on radio and television because of their religious background...

(ZvK). IKON takes care of part of the technical facilities of ZvK.