Wikipedia

Caribbean Broadcasting Union

Caribbean Broadcasting Union[1]
Formation1970
TypeUnion of broadcasting organisations
HeadquartersBridgetown, Barbados
Membership27 active members in 15 countries and dependencies
Official language
English
Websitewww.caribroadcastunion.org

The Caribbean Broadcasting Union (CBU) founded in 1970 is a not-for-profit association of public service and commercial broadcasters in the Caribbean. Its secretariat is located in Barbados.[1][2]

Beginning in the mid-1980s, the CBU created several regionally syndicated programmes including CaribScope, Caribbean Newsline, Caribbean News Review, Caribbean Business Weekly, Talk Caribbean, the Caribbean Song Festival, Riddim Express and the CaribVision television news exchange, among other programmes.

Leadership of the association is mainly rotated between representatives of the affiliated media houses. On 9 June 2000 the commercial operations of the CBU and the Caribbean News Agency were merged into the Caribbean Media Corporation, also based in Barbados, which has carried on the business of television production begun by the CBU.

The CBU's current mandate includes the facilitation of some broadcast services, representation, and training of the staff of member stations in support of a unified Caribbean community. It holds an Annual General Assembly (AGA) in one of the member nations every August. Member stations are drawn from the 15 member nations of the Caribbean Community, with the exception of Haiti. Other member stations are drawn from several nations in the Caribbean area.[2]

Membership

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Full members

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As of September 2025, 21 public and private organizations have full memberships. These organizations range from radio and television broadcasters, newspapers, magazines, and media educational institutions.[3]

Country Broadcasting organisation Abbr. Year
Anguilla Radio Anguilla
Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda Broadcasting Service ABS
Bahamas Broadcasting Corporation of the Bahamas ZNS
Barbados Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation CBC
Starcom Network
Belize Great Belize Productions GBP
Bermuda Bermuda Broadcasting Company BBC
Colombia Teleislas 2017[4]
Cuba Institute of Information and Social Communication [es] ICS
Curacao TeleCuracao
Guyana National Communications Network NCN
Newsroom Guyana
Jamaica Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica (Previously Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation) PBSJ (JBC)
RJRGleaner
Saint Kitts and Nevis ZIZ Broadcasting Corporation ZIZ
Suriname Algemene Televisie Verzorging ATV
DIME Network
Trinidad and Tobago Caribbean Communications Network CCN
Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago (Corporate Communications Department)[a]
TTT Limited formerly Trinidad and Tobago Television TTT
Content Capital TV WESN
Turks and Caicos Islands Radio Turks and Caicos


Associate members

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As of September 2025, 6 public and private organizations are associate members.

Country Broadcasting organisation Abbr. Year
Barbados Barbados Government Information Service[b] [7] BGIS
UWITV Global (University of the West Indies) UWI
Belize Cuban Institute of Radio and Television ICRT
Grenada Government Information Service [c]
Guyana Guyana National Broadcasting Authority[d] GNBA
Jamaica Caribbean Institute of Media and Communication CARIMAC

Former members

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As of September 2025, a list of known former full and associate members are found from archived sources.

Country Broadcasting organisation Abbr. Defunct
Cuba Cuban Institute of Radio and Television[e] [11] ICRT Yes
Martinique Martinique 1ère[11] No
Montserrat Radio Montserrat[11] ZJB No
St. Lucia Government Information Service[f] [11] Unknown
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Broadcasting Corporation (SVG-TV)[11] SVGBC No
Trinidad and Tobago DirecTV Trinidad[11] No
US Virgin Islands Viya[11] No

Non-member affiliates & associates

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List of presidents of the CBU

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  • 1970–1973: Ray Smith
  • 1973–1975: Leo de Leon
  • 1975–1976: Ron Sanders
  • 1976–1980: Frits Pengel
  • 1980–1984: Terrence Holder
  • 1984–1987: Frits Pengel
  • 1987–1991: J.A. Lester Spaulding
  • 1991–1999: Vic Fernandes
  • 1999–2002: Gordon “Butch” Stewart
  • 2002-2013: Vic Fernandez
  • 2013-2018: Shida Bolai
  • 2018-2021: Gary Allen
  • 2021-2022: Kayleaser Deveaux-Isaacs
  • 2022-2024: Claire Grant
  • 2024-Present: Anthony Greene

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago is under the name of Corporate Communications Department and is a department of the Trinidad and Tobago Government[5]
  2. ^ Barbados Government Information Service is a department of the Barbados Government. [6]
  3. ^ Government Information Service is a department of the Grenada Government.[8]
  4. ^ Guyana National Broadcasting Authority is a department of the Guyana Government. [9]
  5. ^ On August 24, 2021, the institute ceased to operate and was replaced by the Institute of Information and Social Communication [es].[10]
  6. ^ Government Information Service is a department of the St. Lucia Government. [12]

References

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  1. ^ a b Staff writer (2024). "Caribbean Broadcasting Union (CBU)". UIA Global Civil Society Database. uia.org. Brussels, Belgium: Union of International Associations. Yearbook of International Organizations Online. Retrieved 24 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Membership". Caribbean Broadcasting Union. Retrieved September 13, 2025.
  3. ^ "Our Members". Caribbean Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 2025-09-13. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  4. ^ "Teleislas ingresa al 'Caribbean Broadcasting Union'". El Isleño (in Spanish). San Andrés. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
  5. ^ "Departments". ttparliament.org. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  6. ^ "Barbados Government Information Service". gov.bb. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  7. ^ "BGIS". gisbarbados.gov.bb. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  8. ^ "Grenada Government Information Service". gov.gd. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  9. ^ "Guyana National Broadcasting Authority". gnba.gov.gy. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  10. ^ "Surge el Instituto de Información y Comunicación Social en Cuba (+ PDF y Video)". Cuba Debate. 24 August 2021. Archived from the original on 25 August 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g "Our Members (Sep 2021)". Caribbean Broadcasting Union. 2021-09-19. Retrieved 2025-09-13.
  12. ^ "St. Lucia Government Information Service". govt.lc. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
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