In the 1970s Hugo Banzer, then president of the Republic of Bolivia,[1] appointed Raúl Garafulic Gutiérrez as general manager of Bolivian TV,[2] who owned most of the shares of the Pucro mining group.

Notified that it was dangerous to open a pirate TV channel in the heart of the city, he moved to Ciudad Satélite in the Telecine studios to make his first broadcast on the air.

The new TV studios gave more space to the channel's productions and Vicky Suazo and Miguel Maldonado joined the group of presenters with Clip Show in the afternoons.

At the end of that year, those responsible for channel 9 issued a press release in which they notified their clients and viewers that the Red Nacional would begin in May in the cities of Oruro and Cochabamba.

In 1987, ATB and Teleoriente, owned by Grupo Monasterio, signed an agreement by which Canal 9 de Santa Cruz was added to the Red Nacional as a partner.

Johnny Nogales resigns and Carlos Mesa temporarily assumes the leadership of the central newscast In 1988, ATB expanded to the south, reaching the departments of Potosí, Sucre and Tarija.

Broadcasts began in Trinidad in 1989, but the link was very complicated due to the number of rivers and jungles that cross the route between the departments of Beni and Cochabamba, called Isiboro Sécure.

Together with Ernesto Asbún, ex-owner of the Taquiña brewery, they buy the ABC network from Banco Mercantil and in this way ATB can broadcast again in Santa Cruz.

With his sights set on La Razón, Raúl Garafulic makes a proposal to the owners, the Canelas family, and takes over the largest newspaper in the country.

[6] Garafulic made huge investments in his communications group, such as the purchase and installation of a gigantic Goss printing press that was barely brought up to the Alto Auquisamaña neighborhood.

But the loss of control over ATB and La Razón occurred because he lost the support of ADN due to his confrontation with Minister Guiteras; the surprising growth of Unitel; the problems caused by the Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano and the sale of its Pucro mine.

Garafulic had debts with PRISA and this Spanish company, faced with a lack of cash, took over the entire stock package of La Razón and ATB Red Nacional.

[11] Once owners of the two largest media outlets of Grupo Garafulic, due more than anything to an economic factor and not to interest in the company and not in the Bolivian market, PRISA managed for about four years with more desire to sell all the shares and recovering the money invested than continuing to grow.

[13][14] RTP and Radio Metropolitana once again belonged to Mónica Medina; Things was sold to a former government minister; LAB went bankrupt and Ernesto Asbún fled the country by selling his shares in Bolivisión to a group of Mexican shareholders Albavisión; Bolivian Times returned to the hands of its previous owners.

It expanded its operations in Santa Cruz, bet on national production, implementing ATB Documents, the only journalistic investigation program in the form of reportage and documentary.

During this period, this and other media such as La Razón and PAT, were accused by social sectors opposed to Evo Morales of being a parastatal and having a biased editorial line with the regime, in addition to being managed by businessmen linked to Álvaro García Linera.

On 10 May (coinciding with the anniversary of RTP) the romantic comedy film Deception at first sight premiered on national television in co-production/distribution with Latin Actors, directed by and starring the brothers Yecid Jr. and Johanan Benavides.

On 21 September and as part of its renewal after its deteriorated image and its relationship with the old regime, it premieres the telenovela Con el corazón, the children's program Creetelo, the politician Encuentro 2020, among others.

The government of Jeanine Áñez began criminal proceedings against the shareholders of ATB, PAT and La Razón for illicit economic acts.

An arrest warrant was also issued against Iturri for alleged irregularities in the acquisition of the television networks ATB and PAT,[22] denounced by senators Oscar Ortiz and Carmen Eva Gonzales,[23] but he left the country for Argentina, assuring that "he will return if the investigations are carried out in accordance with the law" and that he has no ties with the MAS-IPSP.

[24][25] On 7 May 2020, Isabel Fernández (Minister of Communication of the Áñez government) revealed that between 2011 and 2019 all national signal media received payments for propaganda of the previous regime, with an amount of 107 million bolivianos between 2017 and 2019 for ATB.

The channel's general manager, Luis Nemtala, denied the accusations and said that he will verify the data, affirming that said issue corresponds to the "editorial part".

ATB and La Razón take up the editorial line in favor of the Luis Arce government and its policies, and Hurtado again assumes the presidency of the channel.