First human rights TV channel vows to ‘give voice to voiceless’

LONDON: The world’s first television channel dedicated to human rights was launched in London on Tuesday with a promise to deliver hidden stories ignored by mainstream media into people’s living rooms.

The International Observatory of Human Rights (IOHR) said its web-based channel would bring human rights issues to audiences in over 20 countries across Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.

“There are so many people in the world who cannot speak up, and it seems to be getting worse and worse,” IOHR director Valerie Peay told the Thomson Reuters Foundation at the official launch at London’s Frontline Club. “You have got a lot of niche channels out there, but so far not one dedicated to human rights. We want to bring this into people’s homes.”

Yalda Hakim, a presenter and journalist with the BBC, told the launch event that the channel aimed “to give a voice to the voiceless” and “to make human rights sexy” in a world where attention spans were shrinking and soundbites ruled.—Thomson Reuters Foundation

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