Belarus-1
| Belarus 1 Беларусь 1 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Owned by | National State Television and Radio Company of the Republic of Belarus |
| Picture format | 16:9 |
| Country | Belarus |
| Broadcast area | CIS region - Russia, Ukraine, Belarus; Europe- Poland, Lithuania, Latvia |
| Headquarters | Minsk, Belarus |
Belarus 1 (Belarusian: Беларусь 1) is a state-owned television channel in Belarus.
History
The channel launched on January 1, 1956 after months of preparation. The first spoken words were Good evening! Happy new year. Today we start our test run. spoken by Tamara Bastun. Broadcasts were initially running for 2–3 hours every evening on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
In the 1960s, the channel reached at least 70% of the Belarusian territory, and later started test color broadcasts in 1961-62. In the 1970s, a second channel appeared, based on the first channel from Moscow, plus a 3rd channel. Eventually it got replaced with relays of ORT on behalf of the NTRC, followed in 2002 by an eventual replacement by a new channel, ONT.
The channel was renamed TBK in 1991, following the independence of Belarus from the Soviet Union.