Media in Suriname

Suriname has a plural media landscape serving mainly Dutch-speaking audiences. Printed newspapers include De Ware Tijd, De West, Dagblad Suriname and Times of Suriname. Online news sources include Starnieuws, DWT Online, Waterkant, Suriname Herald and GFC Nieuws. People also receive news through radio, television and social-media platforms. Broadcasting functions are distributed among several institutions. The TAS handles frequency matters and licences or supervision for radio, television, internet service providers and Virtual Television. The Ministerie van Transport, Communicatie en Toerisme sets national communication policy. The CDS serves as a central government information channel and operates GOV.TV. Suriname Television Stichting (STVS) provides public television. The 2023 TAS register listed numerous FM stations and television channels, including Radio Apintie, ABC, Radio 10, Radio SRS, STVS, ATV, Apintie TV, ABC TV, GOVTV and DNA TV. Active licence coverage and availability are not fully consolidated by district. Digital television uses a multichannel system. Virtual Television gives one media company its own subchannel through a platform provider. TAS information states that this licence lasts at least five years, with an application fee of USD 180 and an annual fee of USD 795. An application normally includes an intent declaration from the platform provider, identification, a CBB or KKF extract, statutes, a business plan, a service and technical description, and type approval. The procedure is stated to take about 10 working days. The channel should begin broadcasting within one year. Changing platform providers requires a new application. A company that only sells airtime without maintaining its own media identity may sell up to three consecutive hours at a time under the stated Virtual Television rules. Streaming requires an internet connection and usually works through a smartphone, tablet, smart television or laptop. Telesur+ offers live television, local and international content, subscription video, sports and events. Activation is available by SMS or USSD, at Telesur branches, and through prepaid or postpaid arrangements. The listed Telesur+ prices are SRD 65.18 for one day, SRD 108.63 for three days and SRD 217.25 for 30 days. Netflix is also available in Suriname at listed prices of USD 3.99 to USD 7.99 per month. Child profiles and PIN controls can reduce access to unsuitable material. The local price and licence position of other streaming services is not recorded in one central source. Access to digital media is widespread but unequal. In January 2025, about 500,000 people used the internet, representing 78.4% of the population. There were about 943,000 mobile connections, equal to 148% of the population, and about 349,000 social-media identities, equal to 54.8%. Platform advertising figures do not necessarily represent unique active people. Around 138,000 people were estimated to be offline. A UNICEF study recorded much higher weekly social-media-use figures for Paramaribo and Wanica than for Nickerie, Sipaliwini, Coronie and Brokopondo, with reported figures of 25.9, 23.7, 10.7, 9.7, 8.2 and 7.4 respectively. Internet quality, coverage outside urban areas, device prices and data costs therefore affect whether people can use online news and streaming services. Facebook reached about 349,000 accounts, Instagram about 121,000 and X about 30,400 according to platform advertising data. The Constitution protects publication and freedom of expression through the press or other communication media under Article 19. Article 17 protects privacy, honour and reputation, while confidentiality may be limited by law. Reporters Without Borders ranked Suriname 34th out of 180 countries in 2026 with a score of 73.20, compared with 32nd and 74.49 in 2025. Physical attacks are described as uncommon, but political pressure, intimidation, self-censorship and shortages of resources and training remain concerns. Strict defamation provisions can carry up to seven years’ imprisonment for public hate speech against the government. No comprehensive, verified Freedom of Information Act or single national ombudsman model has been identified in the available local sources; the CDS functions as a practical government information channel. Journalists can seek professional representation through the Surinaamse Vereniging van Journalisten (SVJ). The Stichting Stimuleringsfonds Journalistiek Suriname (SSJS), founded in 2023, supports projects through applications and a mentor network. No general licensing requirement for journalists has been verified. Event accreditation and security arrangements are handled case by case. Copyright protection follows the Wet Auteursrecht 1913, as amended through S.B. 2015 No. 83. Protection arises without registration and covers works such as press material, photographs, films, audio recordings and broadcasts. BIE is the national contact point for intellectual-property functions. Article 72 of the Wet Elektronisch Rechtsverkeer requires electronic identification data to be processed lawfully, for a defined purpose and proportionately. Sharing such data with third parties generally requires explicit consent or a legal duty. Reposting, livestreaming, music, photographs, video and images of children can therefore raise separate copyright, privacy and consent questions. Children and young people receive dedicated media content and protection measures. 10 Minuten Jeugdjournaal is a local ten-minute news format aimed at approximately ages 10 to 14 and distributed through web, video and television, with a role for young people’s voices. In 2024, the Openbaar Ministerie, UNICEF and the Ministerie van Onderwijs, Wetenschap en Cultuur ran training against grooming and child sexual-abuse material; 92 professionals received certification, including teachers responsible for school media libraries. Police Youth Affairs, the OM Desk Jeugd en Zeden, schools, parents and caregivers form the practical reporting and protection environment. Risks include grooming, child sexual-abuse material, cyberbullying, loss of privacy and deepfake or other AI misuse. Age-appropriate use, consent and the removal of identifying details from victim coverage are central safeguards. People participate in public media through social media, online news, radio and television interaction, local video formats, 10 Minuten Jeugdjournaal, CDS information channels and the Burgermeldpunt. No direct national media council or established citizen-journalism equivalent has been verified. OAS and IACHR reporting points to misinformation and hoaxes on social media, limited access to official information and a need for media literacy, investigative journalism and fact-checking. SVJ and SSJS support professional and participatory media work. General print, radio, television, internet-service and platform tariffs are not centrally published, so the actual cost of access depends on the provider, device, connection and location.