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Channel 4 prides itself on the wide range of people it employs. Not only does this reflect its audience more accurately, it also promotes the variety of creative thinking and programming that have made Channel 4 what it is today. It's only by attracting people from the widest possible backgrounds with the most diverse range of attitudes, opinions and beliefs that we can keep producing the kind of challenging, engaging output you've come to expect from us. In essence, we want to respect people for who not what they are. People should be judged on how they do their job and what they bring to the table, which is why we strive to create an atmosphere where everyone feels free to contribute without fear. This way, we can get the very best for everyone, whichever side of the screen you sit. 
Cultural diversity has always been one of Channel 4's core values, which is why every commissioning department at Channel 4 has Onscreen Diversity targets to ensure we're reflecting modern Britain. We've committed over £500,000 to training and supporting ethnic minorities within the television industry and funded over 30 entry-level and AP level researchers with the Channel 4 Researcher Training Programme, aimed to bring new voices into the industry from a range of diverse backgrounds. And it's not just inside the organisation that we strive for diversity - Channel 4 has recently developed a directory of ethnic minority contributors to help production companies locate ethnic minorities for their programmes. We've also supported a Black writers' group at Talawa Theatre Company and funded a writers' programme at the National Youth Theatre to help culturally diverse talent create short plays to be show cased at the Soho Theatre later this year. We've also sponsored two places on City University's Postgraduate course in Television and Current Affairs Journalism from Sept 2005, including 6 months work experience with an independent production company 
Channel 4 wants to fully reflect disabled people's participation in society. This approach has resulted in programmes such as the multi-award-winning documentary The Boy Whose Skin Fell Off and the Rose D'Or-winning dance drama DV8: The Cost of Living, to list just two. We also aim to give disabled people a voice on subjects beyond their experience of disability - disabled comic Francesca Martinez gave us her opinions on The New 10 Commandments. Our Editorial Manager for Disability has developed and managed a number of initiatives to increase opportunities for disabled people both on and off screen. We believe the two should not be seen in isolation: if there's a person with a disability working on a production it is more likely that the programme will feature people with disabilities on screen. We also fund a training scheme for disabled actors, offering master classes, practical workshops and networking opportunities with agents, producers and casting directors. Our job is to bring particular or exceptional experiences to a wide audience - this is what diversity means to us. In short, we go out of our way to bring in people from every walk of life to give our schedules the kind of life and vibrancy that has made Channel 4 what it is today. |
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