Equality body criticises article

The Equality Authority has criticised a front-page article in yesterday's Sunday Independent newspaper as seriously demeaning…

The Equality Authority has criticised a front-page article in yesterday's Sunday Independent newspaper as seriously demeaning to elderly people.

The article, written by Brendan O'Connor, referred to the recent award of £8,000 against Ryanair for publishing an ageist advertisement. The case was taken by the Equality Authority, which has a statutory duty to promote equality of opportunity in employment, after Ryanair advertised for a director of regulatory affairs in The Irish Times in February 2000.

The advertisement said: "We need a young and dynamic professional" and "The ideal candidate will be young and dynamic".

The authority said the newspaper article was "an appalling attack on older people in Irish society". It misrepresented the importance of ageism in the workplace.

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A part of the article about which the authority complained said: "Who's that grandpa on the telly? Why, it's the new entertainment reporter on TV3. Who's the toothless old lady on the posters in the record shop? It's Louis Walsh's new non-ageist protege."

A statement from Mr Aengus Fanning, editor of the Sunday Independent, said the authority's statement was "an over-reaction. I would request people, young, old and not so old, to read Brendan O'Connor's article and come to their own conclusions".