THE chairman of the Independent Radio and Television Commission, Mr Niall Stokes, said yesterday he has never, since his appointment, supported or championed illegal pirate radio.
Mr Stokes was responding to comments by the chief executive of the Dublin independent station, FM 104, Mr Dermot Hanrahan, who said at an advertising industry conference at the weekend that Mr Stokes had been a champion of pirate radio through his magazine, Hot Press.
Last night Mr Stokes denied free supported pirate radio either through the editorial policy of Hot Press or by anything he had written. Hot Press was a newspaper, he said. It covered developments in the music, entertainment and media industries and its writers reflected many views.
Coverage of developments and news did not imply support, any more than suggesting that The Irish Times supported every issue covered by the newspaper.
Hot Press let its readers know what was happening, he said.
Speaking at the annual media conference of the Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland, Mr Hanrahan attacked the IRTC itself, accusing it of being "restrictive and dictatorial", when it should be "expansive and developmental". Rather than allow for commercial development, the IRTC was imposing the views of politicians who were bent on holding back the tide, he said.
It would be possible for him to purchase a radio station in France or England, but in Ireland restrictions forbade stations developing by expanding. He was also critical of the policy of limiting the number of licences and suggested the number of stations should be decided by the market rather than by a regulatory body.
Commercial radio was restricted by two quotas the 20 per cent requirement for news and current affairs, and the 30 per cent quota for Irish music. Such restrictions might be suited to public service stations such as RTE, but were not appropriate for a commercial station, he said.
FM 104 was forced to operate an "elaborate and costly" news operation. If it operated with greater freedom it might do things differently, he said.
The 30 per cent quota for Irish Music was, he said, offensive. Listeners should be able to listen to what they want.
Mr Hanrahan was part of an unsuccessful bid for the national radio licence. The Irish Times was part of the consortium.
The chief executive of the IRTC, Mr Michael O'Keeffe, said it was possible to deregulate Irish radio and issue more licences. That would be a very different approach and he was not convinced it would be good for radio in Ireland.
He predicted that the community radio sector would grow.
Last night Mr Hanrahan said he could not accept that Hot Press acted as an ordinary newspaper. He claimed that the tone of many articles concerning illegal radio was such that their illegality was not made clear
Hot Press was the only medium covering these stations. In effect it was their only marketing tool.
Mr Stokes, as the chairman of the IRTC, was the custodian of legal radio. It was objectionable that the magazine he edited should cover developments in illegal radio.