Madam, – What a contrast there was between the clear prose of The Irish Times of March 1859 and the waffle about the the Cowen cartoons in The Irish Times of March 2009. Brevity is the soul of wit. – Yours, etc,
Madam, — In your otherwise fine magazine commemorating the 150th anniversary of the founding of The Irish Times, I find it incredible that throughout the 82 pages there was not a mention of, or tribute paid, to the composing and printing sections, both integral parts of your newspaper down the years.
Going through the copy of your 1859 first edition, I could not but be struck at the dexterity, not to talk of keen eyesight, of those compositors of long ago who type-set these densely packed pages. Laboriously, they had to pick each individual character of six-point type out of their cases, justify lines in their sticks, and lock the whole shebang into a chase. And when printing was finished, all this type had to be dissed singly back into respective case boxes.
Now of course we have PCs and laptops to do the job – no trade has seen such a technical revolution as that of printing. What a pity then that you chose to ignore the vital part those intrepid, nimble fingered compositors – and the hot- metal operators who came after them – played in the success of your newspaper. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Congratulations on the celebration of the 150th birthday of The Irish Times and, more immediately, on the splendid supplement which you printed with Friday’s paper (March 27th) to mark the occasion.
As a matter of historical accuracy, however, I would like to point out an error in Conor O’Clery’s otherwise excellent article on the growth of foreign coverage in the paper.
He is correct in attributing the expansion of foreign news coverage in The Irish Times to Douglas Gageby’s time as Editor. However, it was in 1968 rather than 1971 that the first foreign bureau outside London was opened.
The first appointee as staff correspondent in Paris was Dermot Mullane rather than Fergus Pyle. Dermot Mullane was responsible for coverage of the tumultuous political events of that year in France as well as the opening of peace negotiations between the United States and North Vietnam before becoming ill for some months.
This necessitated his replacement and he was succeeded by Fergus Pyle who, after Irish accession to the European Economic Community, moved the bureau to Brussels. Fergus Pyle, of course, later became Editor of The Irish Times. Dermot Mullane, after his recovery, reported for The Irish Times from London, Dublin and Northern Ireland before leaving The Irish Times to join RTÉ from which he retired some years ago. – Yours etc,
HELEN GYGAX,
St Assam’s Road East,
Raheny,
Dublin 5.
Madam, – I know that it is easy in hindsight to have 20/20 vision, but were all of your readers blessed with ocular perfection in 1859? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Congratulations and best wishes to all at The Irish Times on the occasion your 150th anniversary. Comparing your fine Editorial comment of Saturday last with that of your very first day, the term “independent” is a common feature.
How ironic therefore to read Noel Whelan, unsuccessful Fianna Fáil candidate and weekly columnist side by side with your anniversary editorial. Mr Whelan, ever consistent and robust in his defence of his Fianna Fáil colleagues, chooses on the matter of the saga of the Taoiseach’s portraits, to attack Fine Gael and myself as its spokesperson.
While you properly acknowledge that The Irish Times has changed and reinvented itself over the years, Mr Whelan’s column continues to remind us of leopards and spots. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Congratulations on your 150th anniversary issue (March 28th). Nothing much seems to have changed. The modern version includes a prominent obituary to an obscure British tabloid and reality TV person, while the facsimile depicts your newspapers same attitudes and allegiances. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Shame on Fintan OToole for failing to record the great contribution that Irish Times photographers made to the paper (150th Anniversary Magazine, March 27th), from the first photographer, George Leech (who was a pilot with the royal flying corps), to the present talented team whose educated eyes have informed and entertained the readers with award-winning work. Their job required them to be direct witnesses to political and social events which they gathered in the field and not on bar stools. – Yours, etc,