In 2016, the Tantaka Social Television project began to be structured, through the collaboration of the Euskadi-Cuba NGOs, Mugarik Gabe and Peace with Dignity. Without looking at the realities here and there in a global way, they began to work convinced that the possibilities of changing reality are reduced to zero. After two years, they have managed to launch television.

The founders of Tantaka have stated that this is a political and strategic project, with which they will claim “a policy that puts people at the centre before the particular interests or the market”. Television will dedicate a space to voices and struggles that have no place in the hegemonic media, with the aim of promoting critical and alternative communication. Television has been conceived with the objective of connecting their struggles and thinking about society, and focused on this social vocation, “it will be the reference of international solidarity and, at the same time, a channel of meeting and debate of ideas, with a varied programming”.

Tantaka’s main objective, as he explained, is to work on some core issues: the system’s hegemonic agenda (including migration, free trade agreements, transnational corporations, violence, etc.). ), its alternatives (social economy, feminism or food sovereignty, among others) and communication, respectively. Regarding the perspective, the emerging media intends to give a very different vision than that offered by the mass media, which looks at the world from internationalism, feminism and the diversity of subjects.

The project focuses on the right to information, training and mobilisation. In other words, television will provide information to influence the spectator politically and drive it to action.

Collaborating from the start

The project addresses from the beginning the implementation of the interaction between different movements and popular struggles. They have reached an agreement with Hamaika Telebista for the creation of television content and have reached an agreement for the sharing of studies. In addition to the creative NGOs of the project, more agents from Euskal Herria are also working with them. With the people of these agents and other individuals, a Political Commission has been set up that aims to visualize that the political lines of content are guaranteed and to expand the community of Tantaka.

The social function and cooperation are further strengthened. To this end, popular agents and movements will be able to create their own Tantaka programs, offering, if necessary, editing and video recording formations. In addition, they will also disseminate through their international audiovisual channel, creating a network with citizenship here and there.

New TV model

Tantaka is an innovative television. Both in content and in format, it has shown from the beginning its intention to break with the conventional of hegemonic media. Although the counter-hegemonic point of view will clearly differentiate them, television has a peculiarity from the perspective of format: it will be broadcast online. Content will be posted via the website and also disseminated via social networks (Twitter, Telegram, Instagram and Facebook).

Inauguration

On Thursday, 15 November, at 7:00 p.m., the opening of Tantaka Telebista began. The project was launched among the public in the Bilborock room in Bilbao, and the presentation was mitigated by several guests. To begin with, journalists June Fernández, Fakun Aznarez and Maialen Kortabarria participated in the debate table to make a critical and popular communication on the current situation. Then, Oihana Bartra and Miren Amuriza offered a bertsos recital. Finally, the Pompom Theatre Company gave the closing ceremony a touch of humor.

Among others, television members spoke and, following the path before them, stressed, among other things, that: Despite the fact that the Spanish Government has closed many of the media in this country, the blows, Basque society has demonstrated its ability to open media. And that's where Tantaka Telebista was born to a large extent.