NORWAY’S GROUNDBREAKING TV CHANNEL BY AND FOR PEOPLE WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES

Tue 22 October 2024:

Norway has made history by launching the world’s first TV station run entirely by and for people with learning disabilities. Known as TV BRA, which translates to “TV Good,” the channel provides a platform where autistic individuals and those with learning disabilities report on news, entertainment, and sports. With a weekly program broadcast on TV BRA’s app, website, and the major streaming platform TV2 Play, the station reaches between 4,000 and 5,000 viewers each week.

The show is specially curated for its audience, presented at a slower pace and in simplified Norwegian to ensure it is accessible to people with disabilities. The station employs 10 reporters from across Norway, who work as local news correspondents. Emily Ann Riedel, a reporter with Down’s Syndrome, shared her experience: “I have to follow the script and not talk about personal stuff – because here is about the news. When I work here, I have to be very professional.”

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Challenges and Growth Behind the Scenes
Despite their abilities to travel independently and speak English fluently, the team still faces challenges. “Sometimes it can be difficult to say what’s in the cue cards, so we have to do it again and again,” said Camilla Kvalheim, managing editor of TV BRA. Kvalheim, who transitioned from teaching people with learning disabilities to pursuing her passion for filmmaking, provides on-the-job training to her team, many of whom didn’t study journalism before joining the station.

Reflecting on her journey with TV BRA, Kvalheim noted the transformation she witnessed in her team when they started working with the camera: “Suddenly, when we were working together on those films, we were a crew, we were a team. It wasn’t me over them – we were equal.”

Empowering a Marginalized Community
While the reporters at TV BRA are paid less than those at other networks, the station receives funding from the state and the revenue generated by the show. Still, operating on a tight budget is a challenge.

In Norway and beyond, individuals with learning disabilities face issues such as low employment rates and limited access to housing and support. TV BRA is breaking barriers, not only empowering its reporters but also raising awareness about the challenges faced by people with disabilities.

“TV BRA is very important,” said Svein Andre Hofsø, a reporter at the station. “Because we are talking about people with a disability, and what are our rights in real life.”

While there are similar channels in Denmark and Iceland, TV BRA stands out as the only one where the presenters themselves have learning disabilities, making it a vital source of accessible news for their community. “They explain things really well,” said Anne-Britt Ekerhovd, a viewer with a learning disability. “In different news like NRK, they explain it too hard for us to understand. TV BRA is much easier to understand.”

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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