EBU President, and CEO of France Télévisions

It is my pleasure and honour to present this very first Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) casebook produced by the EBU team with highly valuable contributions from Members. 

Public service media (PSM) have demonstrated their unique value in times of crisis and uncertainty: the high level of trust in our news coverage is a strong signal. Breaking barriers is indeed what PSM are challenged to do every day, as they keep up with their ever-evolving audiences. Therefore, it is our core mission to address all audiences fairly, and to share their vision, aspirations and inspirations.  

Online news and digital conversations have brought us to a whole new level of interactions. Our responsibility as PSM is to use this space as an opportunity for all voices to be heard rather than for misunderstanding to grow. 

Studies show that diversity in business rewards creativity and innovation. As PSM work to transform, we believe that the value of DEI allows for useful answers to embrace the challenges ahead: the challenge of relevance, the challenge of making a difference and the challenge of preparing for the new future of work. 

This multimedia casebook showcases public service media initiatives that address the EBU’s primary DEI categories: gender equality, race and ethnic diversity, disabilities, generational diversity and LGBTQI+. Together they offer advice across different areas including content, workforce, skilling and technology. 

I thank all the contributors for their insights and hope you’ll feel inspired by a new generation of decision-makers, role models, digital storytellers, content producers, educators, journalists and entertainers, thinking outside of the box and beyond barriers.

Chair of EBU DEI Steering Group, and RUV Director General

This casebook will show the work that many public service media (PSM) organizations are already doing to further Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), which is already an intrinsic part of our DNA. As PSM, we have an important role to play in making our content accessible to all and reflective of the communities and societies we serve. In putting the casebook together, we have gathered a myriad of examples of PSM at work. Yet our work is far from done. 

DEI, is from my point of view, at the heart of our role as PSM. It is therefore essential for us to deliver and progress.  At the same time this is a learning experience. We have and we will make mistakes in our effort to improve, and that’s part of the journey. 

Therefore, it is very important to share knowledge, on our achievements and mistakes as well. What worked well? How did we develop good ideas into great ones? And what difference did that make in our work, both internally and in our programmes as well? Let’s share, listen and learn from each other to make our PSM even better and more relevant for all. And please, grab all these great ideas, make them your own and even try your best to improve them for the benefit of us all. 

Finally, I would like to underline the importance of a strong focus on diversity, equity and inclusion in our strategy now and for the future. Our commitment as leaders in all positions must be clear and visible as well. We all have the power to make a difference.