On this page we’ve compiled info related to all the different media outlets you can find in Vienna.
Austrian Television
The state-owned bradcasting company ORFoffers the two channels ORF1 and ORF2. While ORF1 features mostly mainstream movies, sitcoms, sports, different shows and news, ORF2 is more culture-oriented, offering Austrian movies, documentaries, talk shows as well as concerts and operas.
Basically all student residences and most of the privately rented apartments in Vienna feature either cable or satellite TV, thus offering a multitude of channels (generally a mixture of European – mostly German – formats and a couple of international news and sports channels).
Hint: The website of TV-Media gives you a good online program overview for more than 50 channels.
Radio Stations in Vienna
While privately owned radio has been introduced just a couple of years ago, the ORF formats still enjoy a large market share. A bundle of private stations adds to a pretty diverse program portfolio – just to name a few:
- Ö1 @ 87.8 FM
focus on classical music, literature, science, news and politics - Ö3 @ 99.9 FM
young commercial mainstream pop and rock, news on the hour - FM4 @ 103.8 FM
alternative music and english program as well as hourly news - Radio Wien @ 89.9 FM
mix of oldies and Austrian folk music, traditional & special - Radio 88.6 @ 88.6 FM (private)
mix of everything (slogan: Wir spielen was wir wollen ) - Antenne Wien @ 102.5 FM (private)
classical adult contemporary format, focus on 70ies and 80ies - Radio NRG @ 104.2 FM (private)
catering to the younger club crowd: top 40, rnb, hip hop, soul
Austrian Press
Austria generally (and Vienna as the largest city in particular) has a very high printmedia density catering to every gusto and (political) direction – just to name a few of the most popular papers refer to the following listing:
Daily newspapers
- Die Presse
traditional paper with loads of political and economic news and good editorials, catering rather to the politically medium/right - Der Standard
serious quality paper with economic focus at the left side of the spectrum – featuring a good online-version - Kronen Zeitung
largest tabloid in Austria, less politics in exchange for more sports and regional news, sometimes critisized for populist content
On weekends, newspapers are dispensed from bags attached to lamp posts or traffic poles with a small box to chip in your coins.
Special hint
- For a good event guide as well as gastro and entertainment listings, get yourself the weekly Falter, which as well includes precise and humoristic political and social columns.
- Free of charge and yet stunningly useful and of good content is the daily Heute that is distributed in subway stations.
- Want to get yourself a nice piece of alternative Viennese news and do a good deed? Then grab a copy of the Augustin sold by homeless people on the street and in pubs and restaurants (they keep a portion of the proceeds, but nevertheless it doesn’t hurt to hand over an extra tip!).
International papers
Apart from local newspapers, foreign-language papers are widely available in town and at virtually every news-stand in the first district. You will be most likely to find German, English, American, French, Italian and Spanish papers.
