Living Black’s Karla Grant on giving voice to First Nations stories

In a year as significant as 2023, Living Black is in a unique position to talk about the voice to parliament.

Linda Burney is a guest on the second episode of Living Black. Picture: NITV/SBS

In a year with so much focus on the voices of First Nations Australians, NITV current affairs series Living Black is still in a unique position.

Living Black has just returned for its 20th year on air and in the two decades since presenter and executive producer Karla Grant started on the program, one thing has always remained true: Indigenous Australians telling their own stories.

With the upcoming referendum on whether to enshrine in the constitution an Indigenous voice to parliament, Living Black will be in the thick of it.

“People are talking about it every single day, you can’t get away from it,” Grant told news.com.au. “Living Black has a huge role to play in making sure that First Nation voices are front and centre of the debate.

“That’s how NITV and SBS are different to the rest of the media. We have the ability to be make sure their voices are heard and the diversity of perspectives and views are heard as well. Because First Nations people don’t all agree on everything, we all have different views.

“We’re all going to be voting on it later this year so people need to get as much information as possible so they can make an informed decision.

“Living Black is the perfect vehicle for First Nations Australians to have a voice, to have their say and to be a platform for various issues, not just the voice to parliament.”

Karla Grant is celebrating 20 years with Living Black. Picture: NITV/SBS

Grant said she and the team knew that when planning for the season, 2023 would be a bumper year with the confluence of the referendum and the show’s 20th anniversary. The season kicked off with a special one-hour episode which addressed the issue dominating national conversation.

But as SBS is a public broadcaster with a charter, the network and its programming cannot advocate for a specific perspective or position.

“We have to be very fair and balanced, and have all the perspectives,” Grant explained. “We will be speaking with [“No” campaigner] Warren Mundine later and we might try and get the opposition leader as well.”

But the core mission is to ensure that those various perspectives will be coming from First Nations people. “It’s really important because this [referendum] is about First Nations people, it’s about our future and what’s going to happen.”

If Grant, a proud Arrernte woman, has a perspective on the voice to parliament, she’s not sharing it.

“I don’t find it hard [to not express my personal view], she said. “I have to put my journalist hat on and give everyone a go. They get to have their say and put their point across.

“It’s not about me, it’s not about what I think. It’s about giving other people the time to be able to express themselves and express their views and just to ask the questions. It’s up to the audience to make up their minds.”

Living Black’s first episode this year was an hour-long special with guests including Ken Wyatt. Picture: NITV/SBS

Of course, even though the voice to parliament is foremost this year, Living Black will continue to do what it’s always done, and that’s to cover a gamut of stories affecting Indigenous communities, from deaths in custody and child removals to heritage protection.

Grant is cognisant that heavier issues have to be balanced out with celebrating excellence and achievement in the community, and there are planned conversations with actor and presenter Luke Carroll, musician Christine Anu and Bangarra Dance Theatre’s Frances Rings.

Living Black wants to reflect the richness of the First Nations experience.

“We’ve got to give people a break speaking about the voice as well. If you do death too much, then people are going to turn off.”

And while the program’s primary focus is on its First Nations audience, Living Black’s ambition is that it will reach a wider audience too.

“Obviously the program is for First Nations people to experience themselves and to be a platform for talking about the issues that affect them, but it’s also been a program that has reached out to wider audiences because we don’t want to be just preaching to ourselves or to the converted,” Grant said.

“It’s for the wider, non-Indigenous Australian audience to learn from as well.

“So, we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing, highlighting the issues and bringing governments and organisations to account. We’re really proud we’ve made it this far.”

Living Black is on NITV and SBS On Demand on Mondays at 8.30pm