TV Aratu

TV Aratu (channel 4) is a Brazilian television station based in Salvador, capital of the state of Bahia serving as an affiliate of SBT.

The station was opened without a name on March 15, 1969, by a group of shareholders involving São Paulo native Alberto Maluf and Bahians Carlos Alberto Jesuíno dos Santos, Luís Viana Neto, Humberto Castro and Nilton Nunes Tavares, as the second television station in the state of Bahia, which until then only had TV Itapoan, founded in 1960 by Diários Associados.

During its period as a Globo affiliate, TV Aratu gained “postgraduate” status for reporters who were starting their careers in southeastern cities.

Without sufficient funds, the broadcaster also ran out of money to update its already outdated equipment, and this was also reflected in the quality of the signal delivered to viewers, which dropped precipitously.

Under its affiliation with Manchete, one of the network's most glamorous events took place: the launch of Pantanal, its most successful production to date, held at Solar do Unhão, on Avenida Contorno.

On December 29, 2000, the broadcaster signed a contract with Embratel and now has a satellite signal to be used by retransmitters in the interior of the state, replacing the old microwave links that had been deactivated in the mid-2000s.