RTÉ, The NewStandard RTÉ, The NewStandard and the Search for News in the and the Search for News in the Public Interest Public Interest Mark Cullinane PhD Candidate (Social Science) GREP, UCC
● Ireland's Public Service Broadcaster ● First radio broadcast- 1926 (2RN) ● 2 TV stations; 11 radio stations; publishing; network ● 2,151 staff ● €371m revenue (50/50 split commercial/license fee) ● Dominant in: TV/Radio online in reach/daily viewership/readership/trust
The NewStandard The NewStandard ● US-based online newspaper (newstandardnews.net) ● Operated from 2003-2007 ● Started with $10,000 ● 6 staff (at peak) + contributors
2 Funding and Independence Funding and Independence RTÉ: RTÉ: 'RTÉ derives approximately half of its income from commercial sources. However the ethos of RTÉ must always be public service broadcasting which is independent of commercial influences.' 'The viewer and listener must not feel that programme content has been influenced in any way by an advertiser.' RTÉ Programme Standards and Guidelines, 2008
2 Funding and Independence Funding and Independence The NewStandard: The NewStandard: 'We are committed to keeping our news advertisement- free. Because none of our funding is contingent on advertisements, we have no incentive to modify our news to target a particular class of consumers.' TNS Contributor's Handbook 'TNS was 100% reader funded. We did not run [ads.] Nor did we accept grants. We eschewed corporate and foundation money because we did not want any special interests to influence our reporting. We wanted to remain accountable only to ourselves and our readership.' TNS Obituary
'associating with the programme rather than with the commercial break... enables the sponsor to link itself to the values and themes of the programme'
The 'Public Interest' The 'Public Interest' RTÉ: RTÉ: 'The public interest from a journalistic perspective includes exposing crime and other anti-social activity, exposing corruption and other illegality, exposing incompetence and negligence and exposing threats to public health and safety. This is not an exhaustive list. Other areas of exposure such as hypocrisy in public figures, personal advancement at the expense of the public, etc. can also be in the public interest.' RTÉ Programme Standards and Guidelines, 2008
The 'Public Interest' The 'Public Interest' ● (I) Information Educational function ● (II) Investigation Watchdog function ● (III) Analysis Providing frameworks of meaning for understanding a complex world ● (IV) Social empathy Linking private troubles + public issues ● (V) Public forum Creating space for debate ● (VI) Mobilization Giving viewers a cause Schudson, M. 'Why Democracies Need an Unloveable Press' (2008)
The 'Public Interest' The 'Public Interest' The NewStandard: The NewStandard: 'The term “public interest” does not mean “what members of the public finds interesting.” Human-interest stories often masquerade as public interest in modern news journalism.' TNS Handbook 'For instance, when covering a coal-mine disaster, journalists should focus on the systemic issues of workplace safety and employer accountability over the dramatic moment-to-moment developments of the tragedy.' '...the big picture is what truly bears meaning for the public at large.' TNS Handbook
The 'Public Interest' The 'Public Interest' The NewStandard: The NewStandard: 'In every NewStandard news story, the public impact of an event or issue must remain unobscured by attention-grabbing angles or side issues.' 'The public interest does not include interests that cater to the motives of private individuals or institutions.
'What is this doing to 'What is this doing to Ireland, Inc.?' Ireland, Inc.?' Nine News, (16/1/09) Nine News, (16/1/09)
The 'Public Interest' The 'Public Interest' The NewStandard: The NewStandard: 'On the other hand, we recognize that there is no absolute definition of the public interest and believe that our role as a news organization is to stimulate debate and dialogue on what constitutes society’s best interests.' 'All news outlets have biases. The difference between us and other daily sources is that ours are explicit. Rather than hide behind the label of “objectivity” while serving the interests of investors and advertisers, our mission is to portray news from the perspective of people who are impacted by it.' TNS Handbook
'The Republic begins in a commonwealth of descriptions.'
The 'Public Interest' The 'Public Interest' ● (I) Information Educational function ● (II) Investigation Watchdog function ● (III) Analysis Providing frameworks of meaning for understanding a complex world ● (IV) Social empathy Linking private troubles + public issues ● (V) Public forum Creating space for debate ● (VI) Mobilization Giving viewers a cause Schudson, M. 'Why Democracies Need an Unloveable Press' (2008)
Participatory Economics Participatory Economics ● Participatory decision-making 'We use democratic procedures that ensure each staff member has decision-making power reflective of how mucha given decision impacts them.' ● Balanced job complexes 'We ensure that everyone in the staff collective does a proportionate amount of various types of work, including managerial, editorial, clerical and janitorial.' ● Payment based on effort+sacrifice 'We do not offer pay hierarchies based on job title, investment capital, educational background, race, age, gender or other essentially arbitrary criteria commonly rewarded or penalized in the corporate world. We believe in equal pay for equal effort.'
Pat Kenny: €950,976 (2008)
The End of The NewStandard The NewStandard The End of
The End of The NewStandard The NewStandard The End of ● ' News is a procession of the powerful...marvel at the orthodoxy of views and the lack of critical voices'. (Philo, 2008) ● ' News suits everybody because it confirms what they already know and, above all, leaves their mental structures intact.' (Bourdieu, 1998) ● 'Tell people something they know already and they will thank you for it. Tell them something new and they will hate you for it.' (Monbiot.com)
RTÉ, The NewStandard RTÉ, The NewStandard and the Search for News in the and the Search for News in the Public Interest Public Interest Mark Cullinane PhD Candidate (Social Science) GREP, UCC mark.cullinane@umail.ucc.ie
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