DE | EN
Psyche

Service: How Can ORF Promote Mental Health?

A survey of 7,000 students revealed that 67% have depressive symptoms and 27% have suicidal thoughts. The Austrian Broadcasting Corporation has expanded its support offerings in relation to mental health, especially for young people; particularly, the radio programs FM4 and Hitradio Ö3 organized "Mental Health Days" or supported them. Ö3 presenter Susi Zuschmann:
"The Ö3 Mental Health Talk reaches out to young people where they are in their daily lives: in a tense field between exam and work stress, questions about the future and fears, high expectations and prejudices, constant comparison on social media, or the feeling of having to always function. Many experience pressure, self-doubt, or exhaustion, but often don't know how to deal with it. The talk addresses exactly this. Together with psychologist Elke Prochazka and psychologist Alexander Tiesenhausen, we discuss on Ö3 every Tuesday evening from 10 PM to midnight what lies behind stress, anxiety, or inner emptiness – without dramatizing or lecturing. We talk about diagnoses such as ADHD and compulsions, but deliberately avoid complicated jargon. Instead, there are clear answers to questions that concern many. Mental health should not be a taboo topic, no exceptional state, and we try to convey on the program that talking helps – always. The social value of the Ö3 Mental Health Talk lies in its proximity to the reality of life for young people and the broad and low-threshold contact via the Ö3 channels. According to the Ö3 Youth Study 2025, 69% of 16–25-year-olds would not hesitate to seek support and help if faced with psychological problems. However, since 31% of GenZ still think they have to deal with psychological problems on their own, the Ö3 Mental Health Talk can be a first step towards providing orientation and self-reflection. And for the courage to seek support."

You can find the entire interview with Susi Zuschmann here:


26i0066


In the context of health topics, public media must exercise special caution, as Christian Haslinger and Maria Mayrhofer demand in their article "Ein resilienter ORF für eine wehrhafte Demokratie" in relation to the obligation for balance.

"Balance is not without reason a basic requirement for us citizens. However, the category of 'balance' is absurd when extreme positions or conspiracy myths are given as much space as scientifically based facts – just to report 'balanced.' This is especially problematic with topics like climate change, health, or migration. If ORF invites people with extreme positions to discussion programs, they can spread their ideas or false information unhindered to a large audience – and in the worst case, endanger lives."


Service as a Public Value Category

The "Service" category outlines the ORF's performance in areas such as life assistance, consumer protection & advisory programs, or traffic services. This category is based on passages from ORF regulations, including:

ORF Law

§ 4. (1) The Austrian Broadcasting Corporation is responsible for providing information on health, nature, environmental, and consumer protection topics, taking into account the understanding of sustainability principles.


ORF Quality Profile

The aim of service and information programs is to reflect the immediate living environment in Austria and offer tips and suggestions for daily life.


ORF Mission Statement

ORF provides objective, trustworthy, and reliable information as well as a variety of service offerings to help manage everyday life.


Figures & Data

Below are exemplary numbers documenting the fulfillment of the public service mandate and the associated media quality. These primarily relate to information performance on television, radio, but also online and in TELETEXT. Julia Gessl is responsible for this medium. (Numbers & Data are only available in german).
Further information can be found in ORF's annual report to the Federal Chancellor and regulatory authority, the transparency report, to the Federal Chancellor and regulatory authority, the transparency report, the business and sustainability report, as well as reports on equality, the actiontion plan for accessibility or the ORF's annual and consolidated financial statements.


Exemplary Figures


Consumer Protection

"Konkret" - Top 3
Sendungsname Sender Datum Tsd.
Studiogespräch ORF 2 01.04. 394
Teurer Alltag begleitend zur Umfrage ORF 2 26.05. 341
Neuer Ford macht Probleme ORF 2 27.05. 304


"Bewusst gesund" - Top3
Sendungsname Sender Datum Tsd.
Studiogespräch mit Prim. Dr. Johannes Zeiler-Meraner, Psychiater ORF 2 11.01. 405
Verstecktes Natrium ORF 2 04.01. 404
Gespräch Myokarditis ORF 2 15.02. 363


Verkehrsinformation

ORF Verkehrsredaktion
Meldungen pro Jahr 1,25 Mio.
Verkehrseinstige im Jahr 2025 in allen ORF-Radioprogrammen 159.000
Verkehrseinstige im Jahr auf Ö3 26.000
Verkehrseinstiege im Jahr in den Regionalprogrammen 133.000


Ö3-Geisterfahrerstatistik
Geisterfahrer-Meldungen im Hitradio Ö3 2025 425
Anstieg von 2024 um 25 Meldungen (6%)
Steiermark 84 Meldungen
Niederösterreich 77 Meldungen
Kärnten 93 Meldungen
Oberösterreich 69 Meldungen
Tirol 25 Meldungen
Salzburg 26 Meldungen
Burgenland 16 Meldungen
Vorarlberg 24 Meldungen
Wien 11 Meldungen


Wetter im ORF
Wettermoderationen im TV 4.000
Wettereinstige in den zentralen Radioprogrammen 70
Prognosen auf wetter.ORF.at und im ORF TELETEXT 11.000
Wetterwarnungen auf Ö3, wetter.ORF.at und ORF TELETEXT 74
Beiträge für ORF.at 24


Gesundheit auf ORF II
„Meryns Sprechzimmer“ 13x
„Meryn am Montag“ 31x
„Treffpunkt Medizin“ 40X

#service



Download as PDF