The Irish secretary of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) has expressed “grave concern” regarding Sinn Féin’s manifesto pledge to commission a review of RTÉ's objectivity in its international coverage, saying the move would set a “dangerous precedent”.
Séamus Dooley, Irish secretary of the NUJ, said he will be writing to Mary Lou McDonald and Sinn Féin’s director of elections Matt Carthy about the proposal.
“It is extremely unfortunate that this issue should be raised as part of a general election campaign,” he said.
“I believe the implied criticism of RTÉ and individual journalists is unjustified. Individual journalists and indeed RTÉ itself are placed in an extremely difficult position in that, if they seek to defend their record, they could stand accused of becoming engaged in a political campaign.”
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Mr Dooley said the move would “certainly undermine” the role and function of Ireland’s media regulator Coimisiún na Meán and “set a dangerous precedent”.
The Sinn Féin manifesto commits to commissioning an “independent human rights and journalist expert review into the objectivity of coverage by RTÉ of the Israeli genocide in Gaza and other international conflicts”.
The pledge has been labelled as “extraordinarily concerning” by Taoiseach Simon Harris and “a sinister development” by Tánaiste Micheál Martin.
Mr Martin described the proposed review as “threatening behaviour”, saying he was “genuinely shocked” that the commitment was in the party’s manifesto.
On Tuesday, party president Mary Lou McDonald insisted peer review processes were common in every professional walk of life and that the proposed review would not involve political interference.
[ Sinn Féin plan to review RTÉ’s objectivity ‘extraordinarily concerning’ – HarrisOpens in new window ]
Sinn Féin TD Louise O’Reilly defended the commitment on Wednesday, saying the national broadcaster has been open to criticism that its coverage of the Middle East was not “up to scratch”.
She said at times the broadcaster has “failed to recognise the scale and the gravity” of what is unfolding in Palestine.
Ms O’Reilly rejected accusations that it would have a “chilling effect” on the broadcaster and said the independent review would be similar to one recently undertaken at the BBC.
Former RTÉ broadcaster and journalist Bryan Dobson agreed with the NUJ, saying concerns or complaints about RTE’s coverage of any news story should be brought to the attention of Coimisiún na Meán.
“I don’t see the merit in a parallel process,” he said.
Fianna Fáil MEP and former RTÉ presenter Cynthia Ní Mhurchú said Sinn Féin’s manifesto pledge “should ring alarm bells for every right-minded democrat”, claiming the party has “no interest in accountability”.
Independent Ireland MEP and former RTÉ journalist Ciaran Mullooly, on the other hand, believes it is “quite right” that RTÉ's coverage of all political events – at home and abroad – should be the subject of “intensive scrutiny” by a panel of independent experts on an annual basis.
“In an environment where the state broadcaster relies heavily on Government funding, I believe we need to ensure this position is not abused by those in power,” he said.
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