Letters

RTÉ in crisis – time for a broader review

Broadcasting as a public service

Tue Jun 27 2023 - 00:10

Sir, – What a pity that an RTÉ editorial decision has deprived us of the opportunity to have Ryan Tubridy on the wireless this week. The first half of the show, in which he invariably talks about himself, might, for a change, be interesting. – Yours, etc,

ANTHONY HARRIS,

Terenure,

Dublin 6W.

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Sir, – Who do I write to looking for a refund of my television licence? – Yours, etc,

DAVID CURRAN,

Knocknacarra,

Galway.

Sir, – Thanks to RTÉ for having me on. –Yours, etc,

BRENDAN MARREN,

Grange,

Co Sligo.

Sir, – I don’t believe the Government should even consider punishing both the staff of RTÉ nor the licence holders, who had nothing whatsoever to do with this sorry business, by withholding funding and support that may be necessary to keep our national broadcaster functioning and in a healthy state. – Yours, etc,

PAT O’REILLY,

Clonakilty,

Co Cork.

Sir, – The court of public opinion has it that Ryan Tubridy should have “out of decency and transparency” piped up that his remuneration was greater than what his employer disclosed. Become a whistleblower, in effect. About himself. That could have had severe implications for him and his future employment in RTÉ. So lay off the begrudgery and vilification, please. Examine the accounting practices instead. – Yours, etc,

CLARE MacCARTHY,

Gentofte,

Denmark.

Sir, – In light of the recent debacle at RTÉ, one thing is very clear, there is an immediate and urgent need to reform the license fee, as neither RTÉ, the Government nor the general public appear happy with it in its current guise. With the average age in Ireland at 39 (38.8) years of age and the majority of the population under 44 (CSO Census 2022), who consume their media from non-RTÉ sources, the licence fee requires serious reform and by extension RTÉ itself.

The Government should be planning a stepped-down reduction in the licence fee over the next number of years, eventually abolishing it altogether.

This would give RTÉ time to develop and implement a cohesive commercial strategy that sees them operate as a fully self-sufficient organisation independent of government (but still governed by the broadcasting rules).

If done correctly, this may even lead to a balancing of the market and ensure that the much-maligned top earners have key measurements in place to confirm they deliver value for money. – Yours, etc,

GERRY RYAN,

Ashbourne,

Co Meath.

Sir, – As a retired sound technician, having worked for RTÉ for over 40 years, I am so saddened to discover the awful scandal and breach of trust that has occurred in our national broadcaster.

I joined the station in 1979 and worked with some of the most creative and talented people one could imagine.

This covered news, current affairs, drama, Irish language, sport, children’s programmes, documentary, etc.

Is it possible that the TV licence payer can now ask to be reimbursed for the funds that have been misused and that this capital could be reimbursed into proper public broadcasting? – Yours, etc,

JM DOLAN,

Goatstown,

Dublin 14.

Sir,– Did Ryan Tubridy overdo the apologies?

“I should have asked questions. I didn’t . . .”

What employee ever asked their boss, “Why are you paying me so much?” – Yours, etc,

MATTIE LENNON,

Blessington,

Co Wicklow.

Sir, – The revelation of secret top-ups in RTÉ is a direct result of government policies for many years of under-resourcing public services while at the same time promoting a business ethos. The public service ethos has been undermined for years and has resulted in these hidden top-ups which I am quite sure are not confined to RTÉ.

The commercial policies of grossly overpaying top management and grossly underpaying the rest have been facilitated and normalised by governments for years. It is time for the Government to be held to account for the normalisation of the commercialisation of the public services. – Yours, etc,

ELAINE BYRNE,

Ballinteer,

Dublin 16.

Sir, – Brooms at the ready! The witch-hunt has begun! – Yours, etc,

LAURA O’MARA,

Stillorgan,

Co Dublin.

Sir , – The Minister for Media Catherine Martin has said that she was going to have an inquiry into the hidden payments scandal.

An external review is all very nice but the time has come for a full inquiry into the use of very expensive permanent contractors who all have good talent in their various fields but who are grossly overpaid.

Why has a semi-State body got so many contractors who are blocking the opportunities for young journalists and sports reporters because the positions of promotion are all occupied by contractors and in many cases these contractors are former staff members who have reached retirement age and are immediately recruited as contractors?

This is a seller’s market now. Everyone is a media personality – just look at Tiktok. – Yours, etc,

THOMAS J CLARKE,

Ayrfield,

Dublin 13.

Sir, – One of the most intriguing aspects of the RTÉ controversy is that RTÉ seems to have expected that its arrangements would remain hidden, even though so many people in RTÉ, in the advertising agencies and among the sponsors knew the truth.

Their expectation that the arrangements would not cause controversy when they were eventually outed also shows amazing naivety or foolish arrogance or both. – Yours, etc,

PAVEL MARIANSKI,

Dungarvan,

Co Waterford.

Sir, – Bartered pride! – Yours, etc,

OLIVER McGRANE,

Rathfarnham,

Dublin 16.

Sir, – Riding high in May, shot down in June, back on top in July? – Yours, etc,

KEVIN DEVITTE,

Westport,

Co Mayo.

Sir, – Once again I find I must apologise for being unable to apologise for not questioning payments not made to me by RTÉ.

Had RTÉ made secret payments to me, I would certainly have apologised, both abjectly and profusely, for receiving such payments.

My inability to apologise is the responsibility of those who failed to press secret payments on me. – Yours, etc,

BILLY HANNIGAN,

Limekiln,

Dublin 12.

Sir, – Media work is very highly paid, one might say inexplicably so, but that is surely not news. That we should all know exactly how much is involved in particular cases seems hard to rationalise.

But given the evident enthusiasm for what might be regarded as private information, should we perhaps consider the Norwegian system of putting everyone’s tax returns online? – Yours, etc,

BRIAN O’BRIEN,

Kinsale,

Co Cork.

Sir, – Does the current crisis within RTÉ not provide the ideal opportunity to reconfigure RTÉ's provision of public service broadcasting?

News, current affairs, sport, information and advice would be transmitted on a dedicated channel funded by the taxpayer by licence fee or some other method.

Entertainment and non-essential programming would be broadcast on an opt-in, on-demand streaming subscription television service.

Production standards, consumer demand and resultant commercial success would determine the salaries of entertainment presenters. – Yours, etc,

STEVE PETHERBRIDGE,

Swords,

Co Dublin.

Sir, – RTÉ does not need rock stars to present its output. Credible and authoritative personnel can present the news and news-related output.

The rest of the broadcast material is largely repeat content anyway. – Yours, etc,

CORMAC MEEHAN,

Bundoran,

Co Donegal.