site.btaLIK Magazine Dedicates Issue to BNR’s 90th Anniversary

The February issue of LIK, dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR), was presented on Tuesday in the Marble Hall of BNR. Guests at press clubs of the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) both in Bulgaria and abroad also joined the event via video conference.

The issue is titled "BNR 90 Years Later." It marks the anniversary of the decree issued by King Boris III on January 25, 1935, to make radio broadcasting in Bulgaria became state property.  The premiere of LIK was accompanied by the opening of an exhibition, "90 Years of BNR – The Radio of Generations of Bulgarians." The exhibition features photos and archival documents from the State Archives Agency and BTA. It was opened by BNR Director General Milen Mitev, and Archives Agency head Mihail Gruev.

The issue was presented by BTA Director General Kiril Valchev, and the Chief Editor of LIK, Associate Professor Georgi Lozanov.

"I believe that these 90 years behind us are just the beginning and that our strongest years are yet to come,” said Bulgarian National Radio Director General Milen Mitev. “We must embrace this optimism because, as a media organization, it is our duty to inspire the entire Bulgarian society with it. We need to show that our existence has meaning, that the values we uphold matter, and that together, we can strive for a better future for the whole society," said Mitev. He thanked the leadership of the State Archives Agency and BTA for the opportunity to organize the exhibition.

“Today, the Bulgarian National Radio and the Bulgarian New Agency are setting an example of cooperation between the media in Bulgaria, because the public interest puts cooperation before competition,” said BTA Director General Kiril Valchev, adding that the latest example is Radio LIK.

“There is nothing accidental about the fact that media issues are part of the content scope of BTA’s LIK magazine, which includes literature, art and culture,” said LIK Editor-in-Chief Assoc. Prof. Georgi Lozanov ."There is now a big transformation in our understanding of the world, where it is the media, rather than literature and art, that contribute to the transformation of our social perceptions. Understanding the media as part of culture and cultural identity, which define who we truly are, is the key feature. In this regard, the radio is a very fortunate medium because it has lived through the entire 20th century, through all the internal twists of that century, and has managed to hold its ground. Overall, the media outlet which has handled historical challenges with dignity, is BNR," he added.

Speaking from BTA's National Press Club on the Bulgarian naval research vessel Sv. Sv. Kiril i Metodii (RSV 421), Marina Velikova, music editor at the Bulgarian National Radio, said: "We have all heard people say, ‘They said it on the radio,’ which means listeners trust the National Radio." Velikova is on the 33rd Bulgarian Antarctic Expedition and is working on research projects in Antarctica.

"The national radio boasts an exceptional Golden Fund archive and one of the largest phonographic collections in Bulgaria. As music editor, I am grateful and happy every day to step into the National Radio building. It is an honour for me to work at BNR," Velikova added.

The event was also joined via video conference by BTA correspondents from Blagoevgrad, Varna, Veliko Tarnovo, Skopje, Odessa, Ruse, and Sliven.