The importance of social commitment for public broadcasting

For over 50 years, ORF has been a key supporter of humanitarian causes. Its most prominent initiative, LICHT INS DUNKEL, Austria’s largest charity campaign, has been running since 1973, raising millions annually for people with disabilities and families in need. In 2024 alone, over €17 million was collected, contributing to a total of more than €450 million. Beyond LICHT INS DUNKEL, ORF leads other major initiatives: NACHBAR IN NOT (a global disaster relief fund) and ÖSTERREICH HILFT ÖSTERREICH (supporting those affected by crises within Austria). These efforts underscore ORF’s commitment to both fundraising and raising awareness on critical social issues.

It is just as important to ORF that as many people as possible can take part in social discourse, especially with offers in Easy Language. Around 1.3 million people in Austria need support in understanding information for various reasons: People with learning difficulties, older people and people with little knowledge of German. In this Fireside Chat we inform about a new initiative. ORF started together with partners from Slovenia, Spain, Italy, Latvia the EU project ENACT (Easy-to-understand News for Collaborative Transformation). The aim is to develop Europe-wide guidelines for news in Easy Language and to make a contribution to raising awareness of the importance of this topic.

[Alt text: Zero Project Conference 2025 banner. A green and white design featuring a digital globe with network lines on the left and the Zero Project logo with green leaves on the right]

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/1DzChbbQPDE?si=sc-zPeAxuMxK1HlF