13 September, 2011TVT is a television channel run by the ABC Metalworkers Union, affiliated to the CNM/CUT. TVT is the first trade union television channel in Brazil.
BRAZIL: During the Communicators' Forum organised by the IMF for Latin American and Caribbean affiliates, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, delegates visited TVT, a workers' television channel.
TVT is the first trade union television channel in Brazil. It is an initiative of the union's Society, Communication, Culture and Work Foundation (SCCT). The union is affiliated to the Confederación Nacional de Metalúrgicos, CNM-CUT.
The then president, Lula da Silva, signed a decree granting the channel a licence in October 2009.
SCCT's president, Valter Sanches, said that TVT's role is to counteract the power of the media in Brazil, which does not give space to trade unions. TVT is a space for the country's social movements, said Sanches.
He added that it is important to democratise information and give social movements and ordinary people the opportunity to express themselves. We should "give space to those who don't have space in the traditional media", he said.
The TVT team showed delegates round the installations, including the recording studios and the press room. Delegates congratulated the local union on the initiative.