Television (TV) and universities intersect in the fields of education, information and entertainment when targeted towards the university community. Indeed, as Cabero (2005) highlighted, television stands out as an informative and communicative channel, with added fun and entertainment elements and a robust socializing component. Furthermore, television ranks among the mass media with significant societal influence, surpassing other mediums (Aguaded & Macías-Gómez, 2008). These characteristics align with universities, which, as institutions immersed in the knowledge society, face the challenge of competently educating citizens. For Baptista-Belluzzo and Beckman-Cavalcante (2011) the university television is “a communication vehicle that incorporates principles of social structure from the diffusion of culture, knowledge and education dissemination which may lead to the formation of behaviors and opinions instilling critical thought in individuals and promoting the dialogue between society and university by disseminating the knowledge produced in the academic environment” (p. 21).

Academics such as López-Yepes (1992) or Caldera-Serrano and Arranz-Escacha (2012) laid the groundwork for a state-of-the-art university television, emphasizing its positive impact on the academic community. Aguilera (1975) takes a similar stance, highlighting the importance of university televisions as a channel for disseminating knowledge to society. This underscores the shared objective between the university, regarded as the bastion of knowledge, and television in generating and disseminating scientific content, particularly documentary materials (Pérez-Agüera et al., 2004). This is precisely why higher education academic institutions are keen to harness this communication medium to reach the universities’ entire target audience.

Thus far, Spanish university TVs have typically been hosted on the academic institution’s website, facilitating easy access to their content and programs for users within the higher education community who navigate through their institution’s interface. This way, they can discover engaging content relevant to their university life and disseminate their research (López-Yepes & Sánchez-Jiménez, 2007). These televisions host educational programs categorized for easy access, and some even allow for live broadcasts.

Suárez and Navas-Montes (2005) consider university scientific dissemination as an andragogical issue, not only due to its occurrence within an adult education setting but also because it equips university students and faculty with the skills necessary to communicate in an audiovisual format effectively. Another advantage it offers is specific training for future communication professionals to practice creating and publishing information within a digital medium (Torrales & Matus, 2009).

While university television also functions as a practical training ground for students pursuing degrees in communication, its primary purpose remains educational. In other words, university television should not lose sight of its role as an audiovisual channel aimed at transferring knowledge generated by the university community.

Since 2006, coinciding with the recent proliferation of video channels and web televisions (Simpson, 2005), universities have launched audiovisual platforms to interact with institutional sectors and the broader society. In Spain, from 2006 to 2009, approximately 64 university institutions hosted either a YouTube channel or web address on their website, serving as tools for disseminating and communicating content.

Ultimately, the aim is to provide a communication channel from the institution itself and integrate students into it (Nogales-Bocio & Álvarez-Villa, 2020). This channel should also serve as a platform for expression for the university community and as a means of transmitting knowledge to society (Gámiz-Sánchez & Romero-López, 2012).

It should be noted that there is no universally accepted definition of university television. The term encompasses a repository of multimedia educational content, live-streaming programs, and the replication of educational content for other television platforms. An example of the latter is demonstrated by the Association of Ibero-American Educational and Cultural Television Stations (ATEI), which provides programs to RTVE’s channel 2.

We start from the premise that university TV is a medium integrated into the structure of the university, following non-commercial programming and is focused on the dissemination of science and university culture (Baptista-Belluzzo & Beckman-Cavalcante, 2011). It welcomes the participation of the education community and targets students as its primary audience (Aguaded & Macías-Gómez, 2008). This implies that this television model should distinguish itself from mainstream media, endeavour to cultivate its own audience, and function as a space for fostering scientific and academic creation and innovation (Camarero, 2013). Promoting synergy in content creation and broadcasting among university members (professors, administrative staff or students) is crucial. According to Aguaded and Ponce (2012), university TV serves as a crucial axis in the cultural dimension and outreach of the university, serving as an open window that educates, generates culture, informs and entertains.

Cabero (2005) and Salinas (2003) highlight the characteristics of university television: its institutional nature and a programming strategy governed by non-commercial criteria. Some see university television as an opportunity to create quality and public interest programmes, independent of political and financial interests (Draganov & Todorova, 2018). Indeed, unlike mainstream television, its effectiveness should not be solely measured by the size of its audience (Cabero, 2012). Additionally, it should allow faculty, students, and administrative and service staff to participate. Its mission is aimed at innovation, experimentation, and the creation and production of new television genres, formats and aesthetics, characteristic of a pedagogical communication tool (Martínez Recio & Conde Ortega, 2012). The role of a new educational medium was reinforced in the wake of the pandemic (Takač & Vegar, 2021).

According to Cabero (2015), university TV must continually reinvent itself to produce high-quality television programs spanning educational, documentary, cultural, scientific, and institutional content. In essence, the defining features of this television medium include its plurality, educational and creative aspects, robust cultural mission, and dedication to promoting media literacy.

Adapting content and technology to the university audience, deeply immersed in a multi-screen and transmedia society, is imperative. Particularly in the case of young audiences, as there is a noticeable consumption of audiovisual content, mainly through digital platforms and mediums (Navarro-Robles & Vázquez-Barrio, 2020). Moreover, new ways of distributing content are emerging, such as streaming, where users no longer need to download the file fully to view it (Gámiz Sánchez & Romero López, 2012). In this context, university television encounters new opportunities to explore new languages and formats, engage students as prosumers, and foster media literacy among citizens (Cabero, 2015). Moreover, it is social networks achieve visibility and promotion of their contents and encourage their consumption (Lopes-Davi-Medola & Frascareli-Lelis, 2019).

Indeed, in 2012, the Menéndez Pelayo International University provided a noteworthy example of successful television integration. Students had the opportunity to attend summer courses via streaming, follow them, and interact through the existing social networks of the time (De Castro-García & Del Molino, 2012).

It is no longer conceivable to create content for the Internet that does not include audio and video (Simpson & Greenfield, 2009). Moreover, university television should serve as a reference point for the institution itself and be a catalyst for its academic and social life (Aguaded & Macías-Gómez, 2008, p. 682).

According to Camarero’s (2012) research, the university television model prevalent in the first decade of the 21st century can be categorized into four business models:

Despite numerous initiatives, many university television projects have struggled to gain traction and minimal consolidation, ending up as mere attempts or project illusions, and some even ceased to exist. In the current landscape of Spanish universities, there does not seem to be a cohesive movement of university educational television with consolidated projects. Instead, what prevails are disparate experiences with a diverse array of operating guidelines. In this regard, the offerings in Spain are much poorer than those observed in Latin America or Europe, contexts with their own educational training channels, both on television and within universities.

According to Murillo-Guerrero and Caldera-Serrano (2014), Spanish universities that have launched their own television channels are not fully maximizing their potential. Instead, they use them as repositories of videos on their YouTube channels. These authors criticize the lack of a clear commitment to transforming university TV into a genuine audiovisual channel for the widespread dissemination of pedagogical content targeted towards the university community. Generally, university televisions in Spain, hosted on university websites, follow three operational models:

The Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) has been a pioneer in this regard, positioning itself at the technological forefront by implementing a multicast system of 30 broadcast-quality television channels, reaching the entire university network (Frasquet-Pascual, 2015). The television department manages the radio-television service, comprising university staff, interns, scholarship students, and professors. Its objectives encompass providing information and communication to university community members, disseminating its activities to society, and educating students. It operates a 24-hour broadcast service and also has a YouTube channel. Additionally, universities such as Carlos III University of Madrid and the University of Vigo have had their own television channel for years, though these channels are only broadcast online.

The primary objective of this research is to examine and ascertain the current state of university television in Spain. The specific objectives it proposes are a.) To explore which institutions, have a university television through their university websites, b.) To analyse the university television channels and the fundamental characteristics of their design, content and services offered, c.) To determine the classification criteria and categorize the types of television each university offers.

Out of the 77 universities that belong to CRUE, 45 have university television channels or informational and corporate audiovisual repositories (Table 2). This indicates that 58.4% of the higher education institutions affiliated with this association have specific communication channels that bolster their brand and facilitate knowledge transfer and educational initiatives.

Table 2 shows the hosting platforms used by Spanish university television channels or audiovisual repositories on the Internet. It highlights the web as the primary channel for presenting and distributing content, with fewer web pages directly linking to social media platforms, which function as multimedia repositories. In all cases, the model referenced is Open Cast via the Web.

Regarding the capability of live streaming, out of the 45 cases studied, 14 offer this feature. In other words, as indicated in Figure 1, almost 70% do not have the resources or intention to conduct live broadcasts, which contradicts the conventional concept of television, regardless of its university nature.

The preeminence of the YouTube platform stands out as the primary hosting or resource for enhancing the visibility of audiovisual content for university television channels. Despite conducting additional searches on Vimeo or Dailymotion, Google’s repository emerges as a decisive element in the 45 cases that make up the sample.

Specifically, the following universities have designed their university TV solely on YouTube: University of Burgos, University of Cádiz, Europea University of Madrid, Europea University of Miguel de Cervantes, University of the Balearic Islands, University of Oviedo and University of Valladolid. This platform is an additional means for increasing reach in the remaining cases.

As indicated in Figure 2, content is presented and distributed on the websites of university television channels in the following way: almost 56% present a list of thematic categories in chronological order. In comparison, 22% prioritize temporal order without providing a thematic classification of published content.

Finally, social networks and platforms constitute crucial elements for expanding the reach and visibility of academic content. Figure 3 shows that while 11% of university TV channels have individual profiles on social networks, almost 38% use the institution’s educational profiles. However, it is more noteworthy that 51% of university websites do not use social networks, despite the widespread digitalization among young students, not to mention the current need for marketing and advertising to attract new students.

As a special note, it should be acknowledged that some of the cases studied are outdated. For instance, entry number 39 in Table 1, corresponding to the University of Salamanca (USAL), presents an issue where the USAL TV initiates with a Flash player that does not play the content (because it is a resource that the technology company no longer supports) and refers to a non-existent mobile app in the Google and Apple stores, which is also unavailable.

As explained in the methodological section, researchers’ opinions on the Spanish university communication process are also considered to determine critical elements regarding the current university TV model, its success through digital channels and platforms, and its mission in the current higher education context.