Oceania Broadcasting Network
Encyclopedia
Oceania Broadcasting Network (also known as OBN, or by its call letters A3M-TV 7) is a Tonga
n free-to-air television station, privately owned by Christopher Racine. and operated by members of the Tokaikolo Christian Fellowship. It began operating in 1991.
on September 29, 1991. It was the second TV station broadcasting in NTSC
to operate in the Kingdom, initially running in direct competition against rival Tongan TV channel ASTL TV3, before the latter ceased operations in 1993.
. It is said that the Mormons 'put a curse' on the building when they departed, but that is an invalid assertion, as neither the present Church leaders nor its members never curse anything they have to leave. The building was then leased to a Chinese entrepreneur, who set up the Tong-Hua Chinese Restaurant. Tong-Hua inhabited the building for almost ten years, until they were also forced to relocate when the king granted a 50 year lease to TV 7. The original TV tower was attached to the part of the building where the spire
once stood.
Christian programming broadcast on a regular basis included:
version of Channel 7), Channel 9 (broadcasting CNN
, and later BBC World
& Fox News in NTSC
), and Channel 10 (a PAL
version of Channel 9). This is when the company started emphasising the OBN moniker, as opposed to TV 7. However, the station is perhaps still best known (and more popularly referred to) among viewers as TV 7. In 2000, OBN ceased to operate Channel 9, after the Tongan government revoked OBN's license for that frequency. The government then allocated Channel 9 for its own television station, TV Tonga. OBN later dropped Channel 10, broadcasting on Channels 7(NTSC) & 8(PAL) only.
, son of Tokaikolo President, Rev. Liufau Saulala. OBN has often been referred to affectionately by members of the viewing public as 'TV Tokaikolo'.
during the 2005 civil servants' strike, OBN became an outlet for the voice of the strikers allowing a moral balanced and open freedom of speech unlike the government controlled station. Silenced by government in 2006 in an attempt to control the media in Tonga, the station is due to commence programming again in March, 2009.
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
n free-to-air television station, privately owned by Christopher Racine. and operated by members of the Tokaikolo Christian Fellowship. It began operating in 1991.
Opening
OBN was officially opened by King Taufa'ahau Tupou IVTaufa'ahau Tupou IV
Tāufaāhau Tupou IV, King of Tonga, GCMG, GCVO, KBE, KStJ son of Queen Sālote Tupou III and her consort Prince Viliami Tungī Mailefihi, was the king of Tonga from the death of his mother in 1965 until his own death in 2006...
on September 29, 1991. It was the second TV station broadcasting in NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
to operate in the Kingdom, initially running in direct competition against rival Tongan TV channel ASTL TV3, before the latter ceased operations in 1993.
Building
The building the station was licensed to was supposedly leased by a unit of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After their property lease was cut short by the King, the Mormons were forced to relocate to LiahonaLiahona
According to the Book of Mormon and other Latter Day Saint movement sources, the Liahona is a brass ball that operated as a type of compass with two spindles. One of the spindles was said to point the direction Lehi and his party should travel after their escape from Jerusalem. The Book of Mormon...
. It is said that the Mormons 'put a curse' on the building when they departed, but that is an invalid assertion, as neither the present Church leaders nor its members never curse anything they have to leave. The building was then leased to a Chinese entrepreneur, who set up the Tong-Hua Chinese Restaurant. Tong-Hua inhabited the building for almost ten years, until they were also forced to relocate when the king granted a 50 year lease to TV 7. The original TV tower was attached to the part of the building where the spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
once stood.
Christian influence
OBN started primarily as a Christian station, but later, at the king's request, expanded its programming to include other genres, such as news, sport and general entertainment.Christian programming broadcast on a regular basis included:
- Billy Graham MinistriesBilly GrahamWilliam Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
- Hillsong TelevisionHillsong ChurchHillsong Church is a Pentecostal megachurch affiliated with Australian Christian Churches and located in Sydney, Australia. The church's senior pastors, Brian and Bobbie Houston, began the church in 1983 as the Hills Christian Life Centre in Baulkham Hills...
- In TouchIn Touch MinistriesIn Touch Ministries is a Christian Evangelical non-profit ministry founded by Charles Stanley, the former head of the Southern Baptist Convention...
- 700 Club InternationalThe 700 ClubThe 700 Club is the flagship news talk show of the Christian Broadcasting Network, airing in syndication throughout the United States and Canada. In production since 1966, it is currently hosted by Pat Robertson, Terry Meeuwsen, Kristi Watts, and Gordon P. Robertson, two of whom will host on any...
Additional channels
In 1998, OBN expanded its operations with the upgrade of its studio facilities, the installation of two giant satellite dishes and a new tower, the tallest in Tonga. Three additional free-to-air channels were also opened to the viewing public, Channel 8 (a PALPAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
version of Channel 7), Channel 9 (broadcasting CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, and later BBC World
BBC World
BBC World News is the BBC's international news and current affairs television channel. It has the largest audience of any BBC channel in the world...
& Fox News in NTSC
NTSC
NTSC, named for the National Television System Committee, is the analog television system that is used in most of North America, most of South America , Burma, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, and some Pacific island nations and territories .Most countries using the NTSC standard, as...
), and Channel 10 (a PAL
PAL
PAL, short for Phase Alternating Line, is an analogue television colour encoding system used in broadcast television systems in many countries. Other common analogue television systems are NTSC and SECAM. This page primarily discusses the PAL colour encoding system...
version of Channel 9). This is when the company started emphasising the OBN moniker, as opposed to TV 7. However, the station is perhaps still best known (and more popularly referred to) among viewers as TV 7. In 2000, OBN ceased to operate Channel 9, after the Tongan government revoked OBN's license for that frequency. The government then allocated Channel 9 for its own television station, TV Tonga. OBN later dropped Channel 10, broadcasting on Channels 7(NTSC) & 8(PAL) only.
'TV Tokaikolo'
To the average viewer, one noticed OBN's tendency to devote a sizable portion of its air-time to the Tokaikolo Church and its school, Lavengamalie College. This was because the majority of OBN's employees were members of Tokaikolo, the most prominent being Station Manager Sangster SaulalaSione Sangster Saulala
Sione Sangster Saulala is a Tongan broadcaster and politician and member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga. He is a member of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands.-Personal background:...
, son of Tokaikolo President, Rev. Liufau Saulala. OBN has often been referred to affectionately by members of the viewing public as 'TV Tokaikolo'.
Influence in Tongan politics
While originally distancing itself from Tongan politics, OBN seemed to change its stance when it went commercial. With the pro-government TV Tonga's outright refusal to air any program supporting the Human Rights and Democracy MovementHuman Rights and Democracy Movement
The Human Rights and Democracy Movement is a political party in Tonga. Its leader is Uliti Uata.The HRDM was founded in the late 1970s as an informal group of Tongans interested in democratic reform. It was formalised in 1992 as the Pro-Democracy Movement, and contested several elections under...
during the 2005 civil servants' strike, OBN became an outlet for the voice of the strikers allowing a moral balanced and open freedom of speech unlike the government controlled station. Silenced by government in 2006 in an attempt to control the media in Tonga, the station is due to commence programming again in March, 2009.
Local programs produced at OBN
- Check it Out!
- Good Morning Tonga
- OBN Tonga News
- Pole 'o e Kuonga
- Stars on Sunday
- Tala 'o Tonga