# Media in Somalia: radio, TV, news sites and the risks journalists face

> Somali media explained: the first radio stations, BBC and VOA Somali, TV and news websites, internet use, press freedom rankings and the safety of journalists.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/society/media-in-somalia/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## Radio first

Radio is the most popular source of news in Somalia, and TV reaches mainly towns ([Reporters Without Borders, Somalia](https://rsf.org/en/somalia)). Radio suits an oral culture: news, poetry, religion and song all travel by voice.

## How Somali radio began

- **1941 to 1945, Hargeisa.** A small transmitter for the British police became "Hargeisa, Radio Somali" by 1945, the first live Somali-language station. It took the name Radio Hargeisa in 1953 ([Fathi Jama, Geeska, 2025](https://www.geeska.com/en/radio-hargeisa-and-rise-somali-modern-music)).
- **1956 to 1957, Cairo and [London](/en/diaspora/london/).** Radio Cairo began Somali broadcasts, and the **[BBC Somali Service](/en/society/bbc-somali/)** went on air on 18 July 1957 ([BBC Somali Service, Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Somali_Service); [Geeska, how Radio Cairo made waves in Somalia](https://www.geeska.com/en/how-radio-cairo-made-waves-somalia)). In 2017 the BBC marked 60 years with a young women's poetry prize, won by Deqa Nuux Yonis at the Hiddo Dhawr centre in Hargeisa ([WardheerNews](https://wardheernews.com/bbc-news-somali-seeks-next-generation-of-female-poets/); [Lola Kenya Screen](https://lolakenyascreen.org/bbc-news-somali-young-female-poet-of-the-year-contest-winner-announced/)).
- **Radio Mogadishu** was the national station. In the 1970s its Waaberi group shaped Somali music ([Music In Africa](https://www.musicinafrica.net/node/25169); see [Somali music](/en/society/somali-music/)).
- **2007, VOA Somali.** Voice of America launched its Somali service on 12 February 2007 ([Inside VOA](https://www.insidevoa.com/a/a-13-34-2007-12-05-somali-increase-111608189/178119.html)).

## After 1991: a crowded field

After the state collapsed, private radio, TV and websites filled the gap. Private broadcasters such as Radio [Shabelle](/en/economy/farming-and-harvests/), [Goobjoog](/en/economy/somali-media-companies/) and Universal TV operate in Mogadishu and the member states ([Media Bias/Fact Check, Somalia media profile](https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/somalia-government-and-media-profile/)). There are two state TV channels and several private ones, some broadcast by satellite from abroad. London-based Universal TV is the best known ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/somalia)).

Many outlets are tied to political or clan interests, so readers often compare several sources ([Media Bias/Fact Check](https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/somalia-government-and-media-profile/)).

## Online

- **Internet users:** about 5.72 million at the end of 2026, 27.9 percent of the population ([DataReportal](https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2027-somalia)).
- **Social media:** about 3.51 million user identities in October 2025 ([DataReportal, Digital 2026](https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2026-somalia)).
- **Print** is shrinking in Mogadishu as online media grow ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/somalia)).

## The law and press freedom

- **Ranking:** Somalia was 126th of 180 in RSF's 2026 World Press Freedom Index, up from 136th in 2025 ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/somalia)).
- **Media law:** the federal government adopted a media law on 9 January 2016 ([Landinfo, 2016](https://landinfo.no/asset/3568/1/3568_1.pdf)). A Media Council oversees the sector. RSF reports that in March 2024 the Minister of Information appointed six of its nine members.
- **Courts:** journalists are often tried under the 1964 Penal Code, and RSF says a promised moratorium on arresting journalists has not been adopted ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/somalia)).

## Safety

RSF counts more than 50 media workers killed since 2010 and calls Somalia "one of the most dangerous countries for journalists in Africa" ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/somalia)).

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