Traditional radio and television also reveal the richness of the media. Having begun in the 1920s (radio) and the 1950s (television) as public network institutions, since the 1980s the colorful spectrum of a dual system made up of public network channels and private stations has emerged. Nowadays some 430 radio stations, for the most part local and regional in character, compete with each other. 

There are differences in the television structure on two levels, national and regional, and between general and special interest channels. Germany has some of the largest public broadcasters (ARD and ZDF), which are financed by license fees, and private, free stations (RTL, SAT.1, ProSieben) in Europe and the world, as well as the pay-TV channel Sky. From news, films, series, and shows, to sport the general channels offer the entire range of individual genres, whereas the special interest channels feature news (n-tv, N24), music (VIVA, MTV) or sport (DSF). Depending on the technical platform (terrestrial, satellite, cable, broadband, mobile), and on analogue or digital mode, hundreds of German-language and international channels such as CNN, BBC and TV5 and more than 20 different public TV channels can be received. These include the two national channels ARD and ZDF, as well as regionally produced stations broadcast nationwide, such as WDR, MDR, BR, and special-interest channels such as the primarily political docu-station Phoenix and kids’ TV KIKA. Then there are three international broadcasters: Deutsche Welle, Franco-German arte, and Austro-German-Swiss cultural channel 3sat. 

In addition to a duty to a basic and general service and a legally defined program, one of the other fundamental duties of public network broadcasting is to preserve political and economic independence. In addition to their standard program these broadcasters also have considerable Internet activities. The public network broadcasters, however, are always threatened with a conflict with the private stations, who fear competition will be distorted by the strong influence in the market of the “subsidized” stations. Further pressure on the public network channels is emerging through the fact that more and more young people are taking advantage of their programs. Even though user behavior has in some cases changed enormously through the Internet and mobile communication, Germany still has one of the most diverse and multi-faceted traditional media landscapes. Free and pluralist, highbrow and entertaining, nationally and internationally focused.