RT (Russia Today) is a 24/7 English-language news network that broadcasts across the globe via cable and satellite. Broadcasting in English 24/7 in over 100 countries spread over five continents, RT is headquartered in Moscow, while it's US-based programming originates out of Washington DC. RT also has sister networks in Arabic and Spanish.
RT correspondents in New York and Washington, London and Paris, Delhi and Tel Aviv focus on international headlines whilst giving an innovative angle set to challenge viewers worldwide. RT was the first television station in the world to set up a bureau in Tskhinval, the capital of South Ossetia after the August 2008 conflict.
Launched in 2005, RT has speedily reached the heights of broadcasting popularity. In 2008 the monthly audience among those who have access or are aware of RT’s broadcasts on Time Warner Cable in NYC exceeds the one of BBC America by 11%. The daily audience of RT exceeds that of Deutsche Welle tenfold, within the same network. RT is available to almost five million viewers in the Washington Area on the following platforms: MHZ Networks 5: Comcast Cable, Cox Cable, RCN Cable, Dish Networks and Verizon FIOS TV.
200 million views puts RT far ahead of other global news channels, including famous mainstream names Fox News, ABC News, Sky News, and CNN International. RT YouTube has 13 times more views than Fox News, while CNN International has less than 2 million YouTube views. In August, the Russian channel made it to the Top 100 most watched channels among YouTube's 10,000 premium partners, taking the place of US President Barack Obama's channel. RT content has regularly been the most watched video of the day, with up to 7 million views. On several occasions, RT was YouTube’s most watched channel of the day. RT is a regular leader in the News and Politics category, with views increasing by approximately half a million each day.
The channel is government-funded but shapes its editorial policy free from political and commercial influence. Moreover, what RT does is in no way distinguishable from the activity of Agence France Presse, Radio Free Liberty, the BBC, or any of the other Western government funded media outlets.