Public Radio of Armenia (Djsy Armradio) is a public radio broadcaster in Armenia. It was established in 1926 and remains one of the largest broadcasters in the country, with at least three national networks. The agency also has the country's largest sound archives and four orchestras, and it participates in cultural preservation programs.
Early years
On September 1, 1926, the first experimental radio programme (25 minutes duration) called "Voice of Yerevan" was transmitted in Armenia. The first test programmes were mainly folk music programmes regularly interrupted by local news, putting into operation the first radio station in Armenia. This created new wide-range perspectives for moving the amateur radio movement forward, and planned development of radio and wired broadcasting networks. The creation of radio station made it possible to use radio broadcasting as one of the most efficient mass media for informing and educating the population. That is why radio programs were expected to cover such topics, which would interest people of different specialities and meet their needs.
On June 15, 1927, Armenian Republican Radio started to broadcast its programmes on a regular basis. In the early years only Yerevan and surrounding villages were included in the broadcasting radius. Due to efforts of a group of radio lovers, radio service was provided in more than 25 villages in 1927, and in another 40 the following year.
On April 6, 1927, national print media published the first radio program consisting of news and concerts.
Until 1929 actors and journalists from newspaper editorials were being invited to conduct the radio programmes. And only in December 1929 the first radio hosts - Vergine Babayan and Suren Kananyan were invited to work at the Republican Radio of Armenia.