“This is not some fanciful romantic notion but a conviction that the work we do should be grounded in what we believe in and brings fulfilment and should be aimed at making a sustained contribution to the common good.” Painting a stark picture of the media industry, Doherty told the committee: “The creative industries which RTÉ is at the centre of are at the forefront of a workplace upheaval, a revolution driven by a new understanding that if the first industrial revolution was driven by brawn and physical work and the second and third industrial revolutions by brain and intellect, then the fourth revolution in which we find ourselves will be driven by an economy of the heart. This is a lost opportunity on a grand scale – and we are all the poorer for it.”
“Imagine the jobs that could have been created, the creativity and talent that could have been nurtured. “Pause for a moment and imagine what the Irish creative sector, the arts, the independent sector and RTÉ could have created,” she said. That model, she said, was causing a €65 million loss each year. While she stressed the important work of the broadcaster during the Covid-19 pandemic, something praised by most TDs and senators, she warned: “The traditional licence model for funding is clearly broken.” The broadcaster is currently awaiting the publication of the report from The Future of Media Commission, a body charged with considering the challenges facing Irish media, and RTÉ representatives today vented frustrations at the delay in publishing the report.ĭoherty, who has spent eight years as chair of the RTÉ board, said that this debate cannot “shy away from uncomfortable truths” and said that “matters of funding public service broadcasting and our broken licence fee system” need to be discussed. She called for a national debate on the future of public service broadcasting.
Representatives from RTÉ, including director general Dee Forbes, faced questions from politicians on Irish language programming, funding and the future of the TV licence.ĭoherty, who is entering her final year as chair, told the Oireachtas Media committee that the public service broadcaster was facing a “confluence” of factors including the rise of Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple TV, as well as the “relentless advance of social media into the personal lives of audiences”.ĭoherty warned politicians: “These profound shifts outline both the difficulties created for the national broadcaster and the increased importance of public service media at a time of unprecedented disruption.” Moya Doherty, the chair of the RTÉ board, warned that time is running out to find a solution to the dire financial fortunes of the Irish broadcaster. PUBLIC SERVICE BROADCASTING in Ireland is facing a “genuinely existential moment”, an Oireachtas committee has heard.