Norway's inclusive "TV Bra" features programming created by and featuring people with learning disabilities. The channel is available nationwide and has become so well-known that prominent politicians and celebrities appear in its shows.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00A tongue-in-cheek publicity stunt. Norwegian politician Jonas Gar Støre, who now heads
00:08the government, is kidnapped outside the country's parliament. He's forced to give an interview,
00:15and promises to campaign for greater equality for people with disabilities.
00:25This 2021 stunt made broadcaster TV Brå, Norwegian for TV Good, a household name across
00:31the nation. It's a station created for and operated by people with learning disabilities.
00:39Verdgard Luland works as a TV Brå journalist in the Norwegian city of Bergen. Today he's
00:45doing a studio interview, talking to two musicians from an inclusive band.
00:53You can get a bit nervous when you have to take on an important job so suddenly.
01:01The editor-in-chief helps him ask the interview questions.
01:07I see myself as a normal person. Yes, I have Down syndrome, but I don't make a big deal
01:15out of it. I'm honest with myself.
01:21Camilla Kvalheim, the station's editor-in-chief and founder, appreciates her colleagues' honesty
01:25and openness.
01:29People work here who have no training. Others can't read or write well. They need help crafting
01:35their messages. Aside from that, we're as professional as any other TV station and we're
01:45being taken more seriously.
01:56Whether it's covering Special Olympics or cultural festivals, TV Brå's weekly hour-long
02:01show is all about diversity. It's broadcast by a private television station and funded
02:07by the Norwegian government and the city of Bergen. TV Brå has correspondents all over
02:12the country and manages to clinch TV interviews with most politicians and association representatives.
02:19We're in Bergen, Norway's second biggest city. Lullen grew up here.
02:29The social welfare authority has given him his own three-room apartment with a modern-fitted
02:34kitchen. Lullen says he usually eats pizza.
02:39Living independently is pretty important. I am 37 years old. Before that, I lived with
02:47my father for a long time. You could say he was protecting me.
02:54On his way to work, Lullen shows off some of his dance moves. If he hadn't become a
02:59journalist, he would have become a dancer, he tells us.
03:07Today an inclusive school class is visiting TV Brå. The teachers say the station's journalists
03:13are role models to their students, who've all got the TV Brå app on their phones.
03:21When parliamentary elections are held in Norway next year, TV Brå will be an important source
03:26of information for our students. There is too much talk in other media and that is overwhelming.
03:34We depend on TV Brå. Today the students are allowed to stand in
03:40front and behind the camera. Editor-in-chief Kamilla Kvalheim loves their enthusiasm.
03:48If we want everyone to participate in democracy and want this group of people to stop facing
03:52discrimination and stigmatization, then we have to show their potential. Show what they
03:57can give to society. That's what we do at TV Brå.
04:05Lullen is out in town with a cameraman. Many people with learning difficulties are denied
04:10IDs for online banking transactions by Norway's banks. Lullen wants to know what passers-by
04:16think of that. Most tell him it's not fair. Back at the station, Lullen is busy with editorial
04:24work. Index cards with large letters make it easier for him.
04:30It's exhausting, but I enjoy my work. You can also meet people here.
04:37We managed to get nationwide recognition in Norway, and now other countries are interested
04:42in us too. So it's possible we'll be expanding in the near future.
04:51So we can expect plenty more coverage from journalist Vedgard Lulland and his colleagues
04:55at TV Brå in the future.