Diversity: What Does Austria Think About God?

The majority of Austrians doubt that there is only one true religion - but what does Austria believe? This question has been explored by a study from the University of Vienna and a project by the main department for Religion and Ethics of ORF. Irene Klissenbauer, an award-winning ORF editor, states: "For years, a change in the beliefs and values of the people living in Austria has been noticeable. The ORF main department 'Religion and Ethics Multimedia' takes these results into account in its programming. Especially for young people, the video podcast 'Die entscheidende Frage' has been developed, which addresses ethically provocative questions and examines them from different perspectives. The new format 'kreuz & quer reportage' offers concise explainer pieces on various topics from the world of religions, such as the origins of different religions. The new formats 'cross & cross up close' and 'cross & cross report', following the approach of Constructive Journalism, show how people deal with challenges, what sustains them, and how good living together can succeed."

Diversity is not just a requirement for reporting on religion; diversity in actors, formats, and content is a mandate for ORF's overall programming. External research and expertise also play a significant role in diversity: "Public service and non-profit media secure spaces where diversity, minoritized and marginalized perspectives, and non-commercial content remain visible. They provide a counterbalance to trends of concentration, platform economies, and economic pressure," says Mag.a Claudia Isep from the Austrian UNESCO Commission in her contribution "Information als Recht, Ressource und öffentliches Gut" in "PUBLIC VALUE TEXTE 30", and further: "Diversity is not a decorative 'extra' of the program but a question of power distribution: Who gets to speak? Who is considered an expert? And who decides what is regarded as socially relevant? Without stable and reliable funding foundations, not only is editorial independence weakened, but especially the diversity of perspectives. Marginalized voices disappear first, as they are less easily commercially exploitable, less audience-attractive, and often involve higher investigative and production effort. For society, this means less critical and investigative journalism and weakened public control of power. For the individual, the chances of access to reliable, independent information and thereby informed social and political participation decrease."


Diversity as a Public Value Category

The category "Diversity" documents ORF's performance, among other things, in the perception of social, cultural, ethnic, and religious diversity. The category is based, among other things, on the following passages from ORF regulations:

ORF-Gesetz

§ 4. (1) The Austrian Broadcasting Corporation must ensure the appropriate consideration of all age groups, the appropriate consideration of the concerns of families and children, and the equality of women and men, as well as the appropriate consideration of the significance of legally recognized churches and religious societies.

§ 4. (2) The offer must be oriented towards the diversity of interests of all listeners and viewers and consider them in a balanced manner

§ 10. (6) The diversity of opinions represented in public life must be appropriately considered, and the dignity, personal rights, and privacy of individuals must be respected.



ORF Program Guidelines

In program design, all important social, political, social, economic, cultural, sports, scientific, intellectual, religious, and artistic developments must be considered. However, it is not enough to reproduce established views and directions; divergent or emerging developments must also be considered. Merely original problems cannot serve as justification for one-sided representation.

ORF Quality Profile

In terms of culture and religion, diversity is comprehensively interpreted in current reporting: Care is taken to let members of different religious communities-national and international-have their say. But non-believers in their engagement with the phenomenon of religion should also be given space. For culture, the following applies: In current reporting, reports on all art forms are possible, e.g., music and theater, literature and visual arts, film and architecture, design and dance, cabaret, and small art. In cultural reporting, there must also be room for "new" trends-even if they do not seem easily consumable.


Figures & Data

Below you will find exemplary numbers documenting the fulfillment of the public service mandate and the associated media quality. (Figures & Data only available in german.) Further information can be found in ORF's annual report to the Federal Chancellor and regulatory authority, the transparency report, the business and sustainability report, as well as the reports on equality (ORF Public Value - DOCUMENTS), the action plan on accessibility, or ORF's annual and consolidated financial statements.

Exemplary Figures

Diversity in the Program

"Dok 1" - Top 5 | 86x ausgestrahlt

Inhalt	Sender	Datum	Tsd.
Marcel	ORF 1	12.02.	511
Ambros	ORF 1	05.11.	411
Drei Wochen Handy Entzug – Das Experiment	ORF 1	10.09.	397
1 Tag ohne Ausländer:innen	ORF 1	26.02.	361
Wir Verschwender:innen	ORF 1	05.02.	352

"Dok.Film" - Top 5 | 42x ausgestrahlt

Inhalt	Sender	Datum	Tsd.
Weites Land	ORF 2	03.08.	240
Weites Land	ORF 2	27.07.	227
Österreichs Originale	ORF 2	31.08.	218
Mein Bozen	ORF 2	17.08.	211
Poolgeschichten – Der Traum vom kühlen Nass	ORF 2	06.07.	200

Sport im ORF

Gesamt

11.989 Stunden Sport im ORF gesamt

1.385 Stunden davon auf ORF 1 & ORF 2

1.843 Stunden davon Livestreams

8.760 Stunden davon auf ORF Sport +

Live-Sport

4.697 Stunden Live Sport im ORF gesamt

947 Stunden davon Live Sport auf ORF 1 & ORF 2

1.843 Stunden davon Livestreams

1.907 Stunden davon auf ORF Sport+

sport.ORF.at

10.256 redaktionelle Textbeiträge auf sport.ORF.at
37,6% Fußball	7,2% Ski Alpin	8,4% Tennis	3,6% Motorsport
3,8% Radsport	5,5% Ski Nordisch	2,2% Trendsportarten	5,6% Eishockey
3,9% Basketball	0,8% Schwimmen	2,4% US-Sport	1,2% Chronik
17,6% Sonstiges

Sportbeiträge aus den Bundesländern

	ORF 1 & ORF 2 Stream	ORF Sport +	Gesamt
Wien	13	21	34
Niederösterreich	109	618	727
Burgenland	47	300	347
Steiermark	93	253	346
Kärnten	47	174	221
Oberösterreich	71	272	343
Salzburg	57	153	210
Tirol	78	301	379
Vorarlberg	149	295	444

Religion & Ethik

"Kreuz und quer" - Top 3 | 152x ausgestrahlt

Sendungsname	Sender	Datum	Tsd.
Die großen Fragen – Was ist der Sinn des Lebens?	ORF 2	11.02.	237
Die großen Fragen – Gibt es Gott?	ORF 2	04.02.	219
Das Geheimnis der hundertjährigen Sarden	ORF 2	22.07.	211

"Orientierung" - Top 3 | 105x ausgestrahlt

Sendungsname	Sender	Datum	Tsd.
Hospizfinanzierung / Sperm-Freezing / Sparen	ORF 2	16.02.	144
Kinderarbeit auf Kakaoplantagen in Ghana	ORF 2	05.01.	118
Josefstadtpremiere / Albert Schweitzer /Trump-Konflikt	ORF 2	12.02.	108

"Feierabend" - Top 3 | 24x ausgestrahlt

Sendungsname	Sender	Datum	Tsd.
Der Astronom des Papstes	ORF 2	06.01.	874
Glauben; Kinder in Malawi	ORF 2	08.12.	789
Papst Franziskus - Ein Mann der Hoffnung	ORF 2	21.04.	784

Themen - Anzahl der Treffer im TV-Archiv

925x Papst	793x Judentum
1.024x Islam	235x Evangelisches Christentum
71x Buddhismus	80x Hinduismus

Religion und Ethik in den ORF-Radios | in Minuten/Woche

91 Radio Burgenland	87 Radio Kärnten	83 Radio Steiermark
80 Radio Niederösterreich	87 Radio Oberösterreich	84 Salzburg
132 Radio Tirol	78 Radio Vorarlberg	0 Radio Wien
61 Ö1
8 Ö3
8 FM4

#diversity

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