The Vatican Television Center (CTV) was created in 1983. In November 1996 it was officially recognized as an organization fully associated with the Holy See.
The principal aim of CTV is to contribute to spreading the universal message of the Gospel by using television to document the Pope's pastoral ministry and the activities of the Apostolic See. (From the Statute of June 1st 1998)
The main services offered by CTV are the following: live broadcasts, production, archiving, and daily assistance to other broadcasters.
LIVE BROADCASTS
Every year CTV conducts around 130 live broadcasts of events inside the Vatican (the Angelus, the Pope's General Audience and other events or celebrations). In addition there are the live broadcasts associated with the Holy Father's trips in Italy and abroad. Live broadcasts are trasmitted by other Catholic television networks. On request by international TV networks CTV can coordinate satellite link-ups in order to relay the signal anywhere in the world.
DAILY SERVICES
CTV covers the daily public activities of the Holy Father and the main events that take place within the Apostolic See.
It distributes this footage to the press agencies and television stations that request it. CTV also distributes footage shot as part of the papal entourage during the Pope's trips abroad and coordinates special duplications centers within the press centers on these trips. Inside the Vatican, CTV offers assistance and facilities to foreign correspondents (TV crews, video and audio assistance, satellite broadcasts, editing facilities, etc.).
PRODUCTION
CTV has produced numerous documentaries of Pope John Paul II's pontificate, on the Vatican and the Basilicas of Rome. These have been broadcast on television and distributed on home video, often in other language editions including English and Spanish.
Since Easter 1998 a weekly (25-minute) magazine program entitled "Octava Dies" is rebroadcast nationally by Italian Catholic networks and globally in "natural sound" by APTN.
ARCHIVES
CTV manages a temperature and humidity controlled area housing a video archive with over 10,000 cassettes and approximately 4,000 hours of video recordings of Pope John Paul II documenting his pontificate since 1984. Television networks and documentary producers from all over the world constantly request access to this archive. A computerized filing system means the footage can be easily consulted according to subject matter, date etc.
Private individuals can request copies of CTV video recordings and productions on DVD by contacting the Vatican Television Center office which is open from 9 to 13, Rome time, Monday to Saturday.
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