Tired of RTE & John Bowman- Q&A

xniamhx

Is it too much to ask, for John Bowman to be professional and act as an impartial adjudicator? Im tired of fianna fail politicians being given ample time to talk and yet, Richard Bruton or Joan Burton are barely allowed to get a sentence out without Michael wanker Martin cutting in agressively.

Martin never cuts in on Gormley, cause why would he, he's a total plank himself and turned a supposedly 'green' party into a shambles by going to bed with FF.

Opposition parties should perhaps boycott RTE and debate on stations such as TV3 as nothing will ever be fair game on fianna fail infested rte.

mike65

Good news for you, the programme is ending tonight (or next week?) for good.

Dr. Baltar

Yeah was just watching it there and couldn't agree more. RTE needs to become a hell of a lot more independent.

dave-higgz

I wonder what Pat Kenny will be like on the Q&A replacement. Does he adjudicate well??

Also how will Tuberty do on LL show? Brother is a FFer, can we rely on him to take debates independently?

Bottle_of_Smoke

Michael Martin was so annoying, kept asking Bruton a question then started talking whilst he was beginning to answer.

Think he's been watching Bill O'Reilly to be honest.

Mr.Micro

Sir Baralot wrote: »

Yeah was just watching it there and couldn't agree more. RTE needs to become a hell of a lot more independent.

Agreed but with the almost recent apology to Biffo over his badly drawn portrait from RTE don't expect any change soon. It needs a shake up. Q&A is definitely tired, stilted no chance of a proper debate ever breaking out. Good riddance.

Dr. Baltar

Mr.Micro wrote: »

Agreed but with the almost recent apology to Biffo over his badly drawn portrait from RTE don't expect any change soon. It needs a shake up. Q&A is definitely tired, stilted no chance of a proper debate ever breaking out. Good riddance.

Questions & Answers:

Presenter Asks a Question
Person tries to answer and is interupted by Presenter
Que shouting and "please.. can I just jump in there..." for the rest of the show.

Johnny_the_fox

Tonight’s show was a disaster.

It shows clearly how far out of sync politicians are and that the cant find common ground to work together to help everyone here... instead of themselves and their parties.

lostexpectation

bowmen is commentator now not a moderator

paddyland

Many thanks for this thread, I was considering opening one myself.

Questions & Answers under Bowman has been sinking in recent times, but never lower than tonight. It was terrible.

The central tenet of this election, more than anything else, was how ordinary voters, for the first time in years, really came together and made a loud statement about politics in this country.

On the show, we had a panel of tired old politicians, spinning the same tired old lines, offering nothing but negative politics, too busy firing salvos at each other to actually try to communicate with their disaffected electorate.

Tired, arrogant politicians, telling US why we voted how we did. Where were the ordinary voters in the audience? Not the 'party activists.' Where were the ordinary voters in the audience, to tell THEM why we voted how we did?

An hour of Martin, Bruton, and Burton, shouting each other down, listening to nobody. A broken Gormley sitting there with nothing to offer. And of course, Mary Lou, a waste of space and airtime, with no credibility whatsoever.

This is just a TV debate show. Sadly, it reflects the whole political system in this country. A shouting match, everyone with something to say, nobody willing to listen to anything, the electorate treated as an irrelevance, and nothing of substance at the end.

Q&A finishes this season, to be replaced with a whole new format in the autumn. Pity it weren't the government, and the whole political system...

Ludo

I sat down tonight to watch Q&A for the first time in ages. I was horrified by what I saw. Bowman was useless. Martin was an ignorant bully-boy and let away with it by Bowman. Gormley was...well, gormless. Burton was like a little girl way out of her depth.

The audience...oh gawd...political activists spouting the party line...isnt that what the panel are for???

After about 15 mins I actually found myself fully agreeing with whatever Mary Lou said (in a sensible manner) about the need for an election...I quickly turned the crap off before I heard anymore and turned into a shinnner out of sheer annoyance at the rest of them

sovtek

Ludo wrote: »

I sat down tonight to watch Q&A for the first time in ages. I was horrified by what I saw. Bowman was useless. Martin was an ignorant bully-boy and let away with it by Bowman. Gormley was...well, gormless. Burton was like a little girl way out of her depth.

The audience...oh gawd...political activists spouting the party line...isnt that what the panel are for???

After about 15 mins I actually found myself fully agreeing with whatever Mary Lou said (in a sensible manner) about the need for an election...I quickly turned the crap off before I heard anymore and turned into a shinnner out of sheer annoyance at the rest of them

In fairness I think people will miss it when its gone. There is nothing else like it on TV to replace. Closest is Vincent Browne but has too many commercials.

fred funk }{

sovtek wrote: »

In fairness I think people will miss it when its gone. There is nothing else like it on TV to replace. Closest is Vincent Browne but has too many commercials.

Pat Kenny's new current affairs show in the Autumn is basically the replacement for Q&A. Kenny is at his best when doing this kind of stuff.

Liam Byrne

One thought struck me - why was Mary Lou McDonald on it ? She's not even an elected representative at this stage, is she ?

And - from my perspective - there was "oh, crap" moment last night, when Joan Burton refused to rule out a coalition with Sinn Fein...

Now, as the Greens have proven, ruling out a coalition with someone isn't worth the air expended to say it when push comes to shove, but I was surprised.

aidan24326

dave-higgz wrote: »

I wonder what Pat Kenny will be like on the Q&A replacement. Does he adjudicate well??

Pat Kenny is ok at that kind of stuff, much better at political/current affairs than ligh-hearted chat.

Johnny_the_fox wrote: »

It shows clearly how far out of sync politicians are and that the cant find common ground to work together to help everyone here... instead of themselves and their parties.

That's the problem now, looking after the interests of the party seems to be more important to alot of them than representing the interests of the people who elected them.

Liam Byrne wrote: »

One thought struck me - why was Mary Lou McDonald on it ? She's not even an elected representative at this stage, is she ?

She isn't no, but they probably wanted an SF representative and she's one of their more high-profile faces.

Now, as the Greens have proven, ruling out a coalition with someone isn't worth the air expended to say it when push comes to shove, but I was surprised

Labour are desperate to get into power so they won't rule anything in or out. If you read between the lines they haven't explicitly ruled out a partnership with FF either. When it comes down to it none of the political parties have any integrity whatsoever, you dangle power in front of them and any thoughts of principles or doing the right thing (or any of that other silly stuff) goes right out the window.

sovtek

fred funk }{ wrote: »

Pat Kenny's new current affairs show in the Autumn is basically the replacement for Q&A. Kenny is at his best when doing this kind of stuff.

Pat Kenny is a joke.

Jason Mc

Yeah I was watching this last night and it was a farce.


These politicians seem to have mouths but no ears and the presenter was useless

Best debates are on Today FM everyday with Matt Cooper.

There is something amiss too with that vincent browne, he is one odd individual

xniamhx

dave-higgz wrote: »

I wonder what Pat Kenny will be like on the Q&A replacement. Does he adjudicate well??

Are you kidding? Dont catch Pat Kenny right before a general election, docile pat plays the FF bully boy well and turns into an agressive bastard.

This is an email I sent to Pat and RTE after their appalling behaviour during the last general election campaign.

Dear Mr. Kenny,
Let me start by saying that I am a young student who will be using my constitutional right to vote on Thursday as a vote for change and a vote for justice.I am from a family of six, with a lot of very diverse opinions on many topics. However having listened to your radio program on Friday and having watched the Late Late on that night we were all unanimous in our outrage in the unbalanced manner in which both programs were conducted, particularly the Late Late by you the supposedly unbiased presenter. RTÉ is mandated to provide balance and this clearly did not happen on Friday.

The biggest question is why Eoghan Harris had any right to be on a prime time show the final weekend before the election. He is nothing more than aloud mouth, and is typical of the rust that still diseases Irish politics and journalism.

Eamonn Dunphy the only man sitting in one of the four seats who can clearly think for himself, was chosen to defend the alternative parties, a man whose strong opinions and public record can irritate many people.

With the opinion polls making an incredible coincidental U-turn, this past weekend has been nothing more than the biggest PR stunt in Irish history, to ensure the Fianna Fáil bullies get back into power.
Before I proceed any further I would like to make reference to some quotes from your Late Late show website.

"In Ireland today there is a culture of greed," says Pat. "Every inch has got to be developed.

"I knew that Brendan Gleeson felt strongly about the health service," he says, "as indeed would anyone who has or has had a relative going through the system. With the best will in the world of the professionals involved, people are abused by the system. And the system abused Brendan's mother. When he spoke that night, he wasn't even as graphic as he might have been. She was of a generation where if she found a sweet wrapper outside her door, she would pick it up and put it in her own bin. So when she goes to hospital and finds a dirty toilet, she tries to clean it. To have your mother abused by the system in a Celtic Tiger economy is an obscenity."
It's not just the health service that angers Pat about the Celtic Tiger economy. "Our infrastructural deficit is such that you just wonder, who is running the country?" he declares. "

I would also like to remind you Mr Kenny of Janette Byrne who was on your show on 29/09/2006. How she described the A&E and her ward in the Mater will stay with me forever. In case you have forgotten Mr. Kenny she spoke of having to watch drug addicts shoot up beside her, the night before her surgery, having to wade through other peoples excrement to use the toilet, asking for water and being given a brown liquid, or how when her elderly mother was also admitted she was told she would have to vomit on the floor. Family members in tears when Janette read out the letter of Anne Lawlor who had died six weeks earlier, had to endure the same disgraceful treatment. Let me also remind you of Rosie from Kilkenny who had to wait so long for a colonoscopy that she is now terminal. She has been given a death sentence by this current Fianna Fáil/PD government. There are around 216 new patients waiting for colonoscopies at St. Lukes hospital for Carlow/Kilkenny. It enrages me to think that Berte Ahern can come on national television and say that he should be patted on the back for the current health service and that there is no crisis. As I have an autistic brother I can also tell you that he lied about the services available to autistic children. A man who claims to be the most qualified person for the job, yet it was he who falsely claimed to have been educated at University College Dublin and the London School of Economics, who say that there are no records of him ever attending their respective institutions. However Eoghan Harris does think that there are too many "college types" in the Fianna Fáil party as it is. I must be crazy to think that educated people should run the country.

I cannot understand the subtle and not so subtle bias that you displayed towards Fianna Fáil on the radio, and displayed in the format in which the Late Late show was conducted. I can only assume that you have some vested interest. It might be Labour's tax policies that Fianna Fáil are trying to twist, that are worrying you. However don't worry Mr. Kenny your investment are safe, to quote one of Labour's policies

"Labour believe that the most equitable reform of stamp duty is the introduction of a stamp duty allowance or tax credit which attaches to the family home or the principal private personal residence, i.e. it would not apply to second homes or investment properties."
A point reiterated by Enda Kenny today on your radio show.

I will finish by saying that your opinion that was at one time valued and respected in this household can no longer be, and that weekday mornings and Fridays nights will be a lot quieter. I will be voting for an alternative government on Thursday, as a vote for justice for people like Janette Byrne who had to suffer inhuman treatment, and people like Rosie in Kilkenny and Anne Lawlor for whom change is too late.

As you said yourself Pat it's still all to play for, I look forward to your direct response,

_________

paddyland

FF are the natural party for somebody like Pat Kenny to champion. The man glories in money. Every single interview I have ever heard him conduct, ends up being about money. In particular, guests on the Late Late Show, who have been particularly successful in life, are grilled about how much money they have, where they got all their money, how much more money they expect to make, etc. It begins to turn the stomach.

There are other more important values in this life, but unfortunately, this world, and this country in particular, promotes money values above all else.

Having said that, RTE in general are heavily biased towards FF. I am quite sure any other opinions besides FF opinions are about as welcome as Gary Glitter on Bosco.

Pat Kenny is a good political interviewer, and is well researched, but as a person, I find his values very distasteful, especially his constant harping about money and wealth. I do look forward to his new TV venture in the autumn, but I don't really hold out much hope of it being a completely unbiased and objective platform.

Poncherello

Its laughable that people think Micheal Martin was bullying anyone on last nights show. The opposition are so weak he came accross very well.
The quicker the likes of Ruairi Quinn get back on the front line the better.

madser

sovtek wrote: »

Pat Kenny is a joke.

Pat Kenny is excellent at current affairs, I listen to him in the morning and his commentry from domestic polictics to the coverage of the US elections was brilliant

madser

Poncherello wrote: »

Its laughable that people think Micheal Martin was bullying anyone on last nights show. The opposition are so weak he came accross very well.
The quicker the likes of Ruairi Quinn get back on the front line the better.

I thought Burton was good and I thought Mary Lou was great as well, Richard Bruton was dissapointing tough, he's usually very good.

Liam Byrne

Poncherello wrote: »

Its laughable that people think Micheal Martin was bullying anyone on last nights show. The opposition are so weak he came accross very well.
The quicker the likes of Ruairi Quinn get back on the front line the better.

Bullying....AND bull****ting.... :rolleyes:

mewso

madser wrote: »

I thought Burton was good and I thought Mary Lou was great as well, Richard Bruton was dissapointing tough, he's usually very good.

Joan Burton was terrible last night and I'm a labour supporter. She kept spouting on about the 3 MEPs they got elected and so on. Made me think these politicians are probably highly trained by PR experts who instruct them to repeat certain catch-phrases ad nauseum. So much so that they are losing touch with voters. We are seen as consumers to be sold their political product.

When will these guys realise they are saying absolutely nothing of substance to any of us.

Lorcan 17

I thought last nights show was very poor . Martin tried to bully and dominate everybody . Gormley seemed like a broken man . Bruton was most disapointing . Burton refused to answer questions and most alarmingly for me as a Labour voter refused to say no to a coalition with FF . Mary Lou done well . The audience was filled with hacks from all parties spouting the line given to them by the PR men . Bowman allowed Martin to effectively run the show .

irish_bob

while i dont rate bowman on the tv , i think hes excellent on his radio shows , hes too much of an academic type for tv , he has no charisma whatsoever

as for michael martin , i thought he was quite good last night but then ive always found martin to be an impressive man , , i think hes the obvious choice for the next leader of FF

p.s

that fianna fail hack in the audience who ranted for about ten minutes , who appointed him spokesman for the entire country , he baschically said that the people were sick of the opposition complaining about the goverment , surely someone on the panel or bowman could have pointed out to the moron that the electorate had voted for the opposition at the expense of the goverment in overwhelming numbers , it was embarrasing to watch and the length the rant was allowed to go on just shows us why bowman is being put out to grass

aidan24326

musician wrote: »

Joan Burton was terrible last night and I'm a labour supporter. She kept spouting on about the 3 MEPs they got elected and so on. Made me think these politicians are probably highly trained by PR experts who instruct them to repeat certain catch-phrases ad nauseum. So much so that they are losing touch with voters. We are seen as consumers to be sold their political product.

When will these guys realise they are saying absolutely nothing of substance to any of us.

Burton has always been poor! Never has a woman spoken so much to say so little.

squonk

irish_bob wrote: »

that fianna fail hack in the audience who ranted for about ten minutes , who appointed him spokesman for the entire country , he baschically said that the people were sick of the opposition complaining about the goverment grass

Someone should have also pointed out to that tool that that is what the opposition are there to do, oppose the government, which is usualy registerd by complaints from the opposition! Maybe he didn't understand the word 'Opposition' because they've been in power for so long

Dannyboy83

irish_bob wrote: »

as for michael martin , i thought he was quite good last night but then ive always found martin to be an impressive man , , i think hes the obvious choice for the next leader of FF

Agreed, hes the only thing FF have going for them imo, plus I thought it was his right to cut in because he was just refuting allegations.

While I didn't disagree outright with anything that was said, a lot of it was plain boring repitition, the same stuff people have been saying on this forum since October/November 2008, but without any of the evidence.
If you can't get it together to make a strong case against this government and back it up with facts and sources, then you shouldn't really be in politics or on a political program at least.

If you post something here without a link or evidence, a mod will pull you on it.
Perhaps these political programs should be a bit stricter in this regard?
I think it would cut out some of the petty bickering and maybe make for more progressive debate.

CorkFenian

Dannyboy83 wrote: »

Agreed, hes the only thing FF have going for them imo, plus I thought it was his right to cut in because he was just refuting allegations.

While I didn't disagree outright with anything that was said, a lot of it was plain boring repitition, the same stuff people have been saying on this forum since October/November 2008, but without any of the evidence.
If you can't get it together to make a strong case against this government and back it up with facts and sources, then you shouldn't really be in politics or on a political program at least.

If you post something here without a link or evidence, a mod will pull you on it.
Perhaps these political programs should be a bit stricter in this regard?
I think it would cut out some of the petty bickering and maybe make for more progressive debate.

The Lenihan brothers, Willie O'Dea, Coughlan,Dempsey,Martin..(not everything he says is correct..Hes just confident which sells it)....Lets just say the whole FF party would be in trouble if a moderator came in to authenticate what they say on TV\radio discussion panels..

Red_Marauder

It was interesting to hear George Lee attacking journalistic freedom of reporting within RTE on the 6-1 news with Brian Dobson last weekend.

I'm not a believer in conspiracy theories, and don't believe there is much to see here, but that edition of Questions and Answers was uncharacteristically unbalanced in favour of FF. Bowman did make a bit of a screw of his chairmanship. Typically however, he is not the worst offender within RTE and I will be sorry to see him leaving the show in its curent format.

Pat Kenny has an ugly history with television but if he can bring his radio presence (i.e. his intelligent and insightful alter-ego) to the small screen next September, the loss of Q&A won't be noticed half as much, if at all.