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NHK
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, or Japan Broadcasting Corporation, is Japan's public broadcaster. The NHK is financed by a television licence. This Japanese public corporation has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, NHK.
The NHK operates two terrestrial television services (NHK General TV and NHK Educational TV), three satellite television services (NHK BS-1, NHK BS-2, and NHK Hi-Vision, a High-definition television service), and three radio networks (NHK Radio 1, NHK Radio 2, and NHK FM).
The NHK also provides an international broadcasting service called NHK World.
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Encyclopedia
, or Japan Broadcasting Corporation, is Japan's public broadcaster. The NHK is financed by a television licence. This Japanese public corporation has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, NHK.
The NHK operates two terrestrial television services (NHK General TV and NHK Educational TV), three satellite television services (NHK BS-1, NHK BS-2, and NHK Hi-Vision, a High-definition television service), and three radio networks (NHK Radio 1, NHK Radio 2, and NHK FM).
The NHK also provides an international broadcasting service called NHK World. NHK World is composed of NHK World TV, NHK World Premium, and a shortwave radio service NHK World Radio Japan. Some programs of Radio Japan are also available on the Internet.
History
Until the 1940s, NHK was a national radio broadcasting monopoly.
On March 22, 1925, one and a half years after the Great Kanto earthquake, the Tokyo Broadcasting Station produced the first radio broadcast in Japan, transmitting from Atago Hill just north of the Tokugawa Tombs in Shiba Park. The first program included Beethoven, classical Japanese music, and a play by oyo. In the same year, there were also broadcasts from Osaka and Nagoya.
NHK was founded in 1926, modeled on the BBC radio company of the United Kingdom. NHK evolved from the amalgamation of the three regional broadcasting corporations. This merger and reorganization was carried out under the auspices of the pre-war Ministry of Communications.
NHK's second radio network was started in 1931. And in 1935, NHK started a shortwave radio service for listeners overseas, which was known as Radio Japan in 1930s and 1940s.
In November 1941, the Imperial Japanese Army nationalised all public news agencies and coordinated their efforts through the Information Liaison Confidential Committee. All published and broadcast news reports became official announcements of the Imperial Army General Headquarters in Tokyo for the duration of World War II. The famous Tokyo Rose wartime programs were broadcasts by NHK.
In 1950, post-war three radio rules were enacted including the Broadcast Law ("Hoso Ho"). Under this law, NHK started afresh as a special corporation to be supported by audiences.
NHK started General TV in 1950 and the Educational TV in 1959. It aired its first color television broadcast in 1960.
In 1980s, NHK BS TV broadcasts were started. And in 1995 , NHK started NHK World TV.
In 2000, NHK started satellite digital TV broadcasts. And in 2003, terrestrial digital TV broadcasts were started for three megacity areas, which are to be expanded to cover almost all Japan by July, 2011.
NHK BS Hi-Vision analog TV was stopped by September, 2007.
Since End of September 2008, NHK World TV can be received Free-To-Air over the Astra 19.2°E (Astra 1L) in Europe.
As of 28 November, 2008, NHK World TV was seen to start Test transmissions on the Eurobird series of satellites, Free to Air, at 28.5 Degrees East. The transmissions, on 11.680GHz (Vertical polarity, FEC 2/3, S/R 27.5MBaud), currently appear only by adding the channel manually on Sky Digital equipment, and the channel is currently recognised by a code number, "51108". It is not currently known how long this service will be available for, or what the plans for NHK World presently are.
License Fee
NHK is paid for by license fees (known in Japanese as ???, reception fee). The Broadcast Law which governs NHK's funding stipulates that any television equipped to receive NHK is required to pay. The fee is standardized, with discounts for office workers and students who commute, as well a general discount for residents of Okinawa prefecture.
However, the Broadcast Law lists no punitive actions for nonpayment; as a result of this, after a rash of NHK-related scandals, the number of people who had not paid the license fee surpassed one million users. This incident sparked debate over the fairness of the fee system. In 2006, the NHK opted to take legal action against those most flagrantly in violation of the law.
NHK domestic broadcasting stations
TV programming
NHK General TV broadcasts a variety of programming. The following are noteworthy:
News
Local, national, and world news reports. NHK News 7 offers bilingual broadcasts on NHK General TV, NHK World TV and NHK World Premium. Its current flagship news program is News Watch 9, also broadcast throughout the whole NHK network. NHK also offers news for the deaf, regional news and children's news. News Today 30 Minutes is the new name of NHK NEWSWATCH which ran for 6 years. It is an English newscast designed for foreign viewers.
Emergency reporting
Under the Broadcast Act, NHK is under the obligation to broadcast early warning emergency reporting in times of natural disasters such as earthquakes and tsunamis. Their national network of seismometers in cooperation with the Japan Meteorological Agency and skip-back cameras makes NHK capable of delivering the news in just 2-3 minutes after the quake. Their skip-back cameras are equipped with a back-up power supply in case the electricity is cut-off and are able to rewind fast to show the first moment of the shaking.
Education
Education programmes are watched nation-wide at primary schools. "" (better known as TTK) is a one-of-a-kind educational show combining education with a bit of entertainment. TTK is currently hosted by the Yasuda Big Circus and a cast of 24 children ranging from ages 8 to 13.
Weather
Weather in detail, nationwide, and international for travellers.
Sports
NHK broadcasts the six annual Grand Sumo tournaments, high-school baseball championships from Koshien Stadium, Olympic Games, National Sports Festival of Japan, and a range of other sports. NHK also broadcasts Boston Red Sox games when Daisuke Matsuzaka pitches.
News analysis
The network carries in-depth reports on current topics, political debate, and similar programming.
Music
The annual Kohaku Uta Gassen on New Year's Eve is the highlight. The weekly schedule includes an amateur hour, and prime-time shows for all ages. Music Japan is shown each week with brand new J-Pop, and J-Rock acts.
J-Melo is NHK's first music program to be recorded entirely in English for international consumption.
Drama
A sentimental morning show, a weekly jidaigeki and a year-long show, the Taiga drama, spearhead the network's fiction offerings.
Documentaries
NHK has become known for its documentary series, first popularized by the miniseries Legacy for the Future, and "The Silk Road."
Children
The longest running children's show in Japan, "Okaasan to Issho", still airs to this day on NHK-ETV.
Other
Cooking, comedy, exercise, etc.
Notable programs
See also
External links
Japanese
English
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