Televisión Nacional de Chile

Main Chilean cities where TVN channels were installed between 1968 and 1974

The first regional station established by Televisión Nacional de Chile was Arica's Channel 7 with the support of the Board of Advancement of Arica (Junta de Adelanto de Arica), initiating its broadcast on 11 December 1968 with provisional studios located in the Edificio Plaza and its transmitter located then in the Morro de Arica. It was officially inaugurated the same day by President Eduardo Frei Montalva, counting only on programming relayed from Santiago. Subsequently, as 1 February 1969 the broadcast of channel 6 of Punta Arenas began with an inauguration attended by President Eduardo Frei Montalva, as well as the Intendant of Magallanes, Mateo Martinic.[7]

On 21 May 1969 Talca began to receive TVN broadcasts on Channel 10 direct from Santiago (even when the Santiago channel was not inaugurated until some months later). On 15 July 1969, the broadcast of channel 6 of Antofagasta were officially inaugurated, making some local programs and receiving programming from Santiago with some days of delay. Finally, on 18 September of that year, started the regular transmissions of Channel 7 on Santiago. This channel had previously and experimentally broadcast Chile's matches in the Davis Cup that year, the presidential message to Congress of 21 May (Navy Day) and the arrival of man on the Moon that July.

After the regular broadcasts of Televisión Nacional began officially in Santiago on Independence Day, 18 September 1969, covering at that time 6 of the 25 provinces of the national territory and having a stable programming with more than twelve hours of daily broadcast, although unlike what was expected, operating under the model of subsidiaries or associated channels in the provinces. Initially the first studios of the new network were concentrated in a house leased to the family of the poet Vicente Huidobro, located at the intersections of Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins Avenue (Alameda) and San Martín Street, near the Torre Entel. Then they moved to one side of the Santiago Metropolitan Cathedral and finally the then new permanent studios were inaugurated on 20 August 1970 in Providencia.

The expansion of the main signal was carried out in Iquique on 23 May 1970 on Channel 10 while on 2 July TVN was launched in Calama and Chuquicamata, also on channel 10. In August of the same year the expansion of the network included Valdivia on channel 3, Osorno on channel 5, Puerto Montt on channel 4, and Ancud on channel 7. Subsequently, its expansion would reach new locations, such as Coyhaique on 21 May 1971, La Serena and Coquimbo on channel 4 in June 1972 and Castro on channel 10 on early 1973. TVN, already positioned as a means of information at the beginning of that decade, had to be ordered by law 17,377 of 1970, which provided legal recognition to the station and making it "public", since the law 7039 of 1958 did not contemplate this.

Originally, the network's mission was to be a pluralistic and independent media of the current government, which was intended to "integrate, inform, entertain and give culture to the Chilean family", concepts that the Ministry of Education and the group of professionals who directed TVN, they started at the beginning. However, the situation of the country was convulsed and in constant division, for that reason the governments of President Salvador Allende initially and the dictador Augusto Pinochet later, used the channel as means of propaganda and political idealism to promote in the television audiences support to their governments and ideologies.

On 11 September 1973 after the coup d'état in the morning, Televisión Nacional did not start broadcasting during the day and the studios were closed for three days, there was also an assault on the headquarters, where abundant amounts of audiovisual material were burned by the military, ending with a large part of the records of the first years of broadcast. During the three days it was closed, Canal 13 decided to occupy the TVN national network, because it was the only one authorized to broadcast after the coup d'état. After resuming the broadcast, it becomes the official television media of the new military dictatorship with informative management and strong control in the programming, granting advantage in audiences to Canal 13 news programme Teletrece, which was considered "more liberal".

Old Panasonic colour-television camera used by Televisión Nacional.

The first experimental colour-broadcast in Chile was developed by Televisión Nacional in the final night of the Viña del Mar International Song Festival on 6 February 1978. However, the decree 480 that was in force since 10 September 1976, restricted the import of colour television sets. This regulation promulgated by Augusto Pinochet, was abolished on 10 April of that year with the promulgation of a new resolution ending the purchase restrictions and therefore officially beginning broadcasts in color, adopting thus for the country the NTSC format from the United Stats as the official system. At the time of the authorization and start-up, a large part of the network's programming was already in place and programmes such as La cafetera voladora were fully developed with this technology. This allowed the use of innumerable special effects. It astonished the children's of the time and could extend until 1982, setting a precedent in the production of programmes of this type in Chile.

With the pass of the decade of 1980, Televisión Nacional grows with diverse programmes and technological advances. It became the first Chilean television network to broadcast its programming via satellite, in 1987 it released its second channel and in 1989 it inaugurated its international service. But, despite all the technical achievements, the company is criticized for its newscast 60 minutos by misrepresenting the news and information that every day reverberated society during the period, in addition to the loss of credibility, prestige and audience, led to the reorganization and rethinking the mission and identity of Televisión Nacional at times of political instability in Chile, as the last months of the regime were being developed, therefore, in democracy, the company seeks to be reformed and the new government authorities are prepared to make all kinds of changes.

With the arrival the decade of 1990 and the return to democracy, under the mandate of President Patricio Aylwin is decreed the second law of television 19,132 of 1992, this widely was debated between government and opposition, consecrating to the public-owned network like an autonomous company with legal personality in its own right and establishing that its assets must be managed by a board of directors, in whose designation are involved the president of the republic and the Senate, plus a representative of the staff.

This legislation sought to transform TVN into a media, autonomous, pluralistic and representative, achieving the original objective proposed at the outset of a programmatic content impartiality trying to have an independence from the government. Another factor was the complementation of a self-financing system, not receiving public funds. Subsequently, the second channel, Canal 9, was acquired by businessman Ricardo Claro and converted into Red Televisiva Megavisión (Mega). With the new organisation model, TVN achieves major accomplishments such as the creation of new regional television centres, the first experimental broadcast in high definition in 1999, completely remodeling the Santiago headquarters in 2000, whose first stage was inaugurated in 2002 and the second in 2005, and the creation of the online service TVN.cl in 2001.

The fundraising event Teletón in 2016.

Some special programmes that are broadcast by TVN on an annual basis or from time to time, are the presidential debates that are organized by the National Television Association, general elections, special events, the messages of the President of the Republic and also the televised fundraising event Teletón, usually at the end of each year, along with other channels of Chilean television. Another activity that is covered annually is the pyrotechnic and musical show of the new year's celebrations in Valparaíso. Previously, celebrations in Santiago were issued in past decades.

Televisión Nacional has been the official network of the Viña del Mar International Song Festival from the 1971 to 1993, between 2007 and 2010, and again since 2019; the Festival del Huaso de Olmue from 1989 to 1990, and again since 2014; the Fiesta de la Independencia de Talca since 2016 and also in past decades broadcast the OTI Festival. Some sporting events that are and have been displayed on TVN are the Summer Olympic Games and some Winter editions, the FIFA World Cup, the Copa América, the Santiago Marathon, and in the past until the Formula 1, among other events.

Also broadcasts from its inception the Great Military Parade of Chile, a parade that takes place every year in Chile on 19 September in the O'Higgins Park of Santiago. The broadcast achieves high audience ratings in conjunction with other television channels, but especially in TVN because it is the channel that makes the television production of the event.

• TVN Red Antofagasta (Antofagasta Region).
• TVN Red Atacama (Atacama Region).
• TVN Red Coquimbo (Coquimbo Region).
• TVN Red Valparaíso (Valparaíso Region).
• TVN Red O'Higgins (O'Higgins Region).
• TVN Red Maule (Maule Region).
• TVN Red Biobío (Bío Bío Region and Ñuble Region).
• TVN Red Araucanía (Araucanía Region).
• TVN Red Austral (Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica Region).

• 
  1969-1978, Color television didn't yet exist in Chile so it was black and white on air.
• 
  1978-1984
• 
  1984-1988
• 
  1988-1990
• 
  March 1990-November 1990
• 
  November 1990 – 1993
• 
  1993-1996
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  1996-2004
• 
  2004–2016
• 
  2016–2020
• 
  2020–present.

• María, Hurtado; Edwards, Paula; Guilisasti, Rafael – Historia de la televisión en Chile (1959–1973) – Eds. Documentas, Ceneca, 1989.