nepotism in state broadcaster..

Evan DietrichSmith

Very surprised to see that attitude some people have to nepotism which is rampant in Irish industry.

What happens is that firms,take Guinness in the old days for example.

You got a very incestuos workforce with somewhat restricted gene pool and the result was poor productivity and a lack of drive and ambition.
The main aim is to get in the door and become a 'lifer' after that.

Usually a bull goose will emerge from this and with family contacts can control a workforce to an extent which is sometimes not at all healthy.
Very dangerous to let a family 'dynasty' to get a huge foothold in anything, I don't need to point out the obvious examples.

So those who dismiss nepotism as something harmless and not worthy of inspection would do well to lift the veil of naievity from their eyes and wise up to reality.

You know who you are.

A.J.Plumb

Clean Headshot there Evan !

Agree with your analysis on Guinness...but on the other hand they are a private company and can hire whole families if they have a mind to.

Any adverse consequences only hurt the company in the main.

RTE though is a public service broadcasting company which should have no truck with providing nice little sinecures for families of the inner circle.

And should cease providing post retirement roles for the likes of Byrne ,Gogan,Bowman,Balfe et all.

The wooses in management need to stand up to the so called "stars" and unwind the obscene and unwarranted pay packages that they are trousering for the past number of years.

end of the road

A.J.Plumb wrote: »

providing post retirement roles for the likes of Byrne ,Gogan,Bowman,Balfe et all.

are they? and here was i thinking that as a public service their job is to cater to all audiences including older audiences, radio 1 and lyric for example are targeted at older audiences all though i know some young people who like classical and other associated styles of music, i also like radio 1 the odd time and i'm a younger listener, 2fm isn't and never will be a youth station so going for the older audiences with broadcasters like larry gogan and so on is the way to go. but of course don't let your agest attitude get in the way of the actual facts that gogan, gaybo and so on bring in the audiences, end of story, don't listen if they bother you, simple as

A.J.Plumb wrote: »

The wooses in management need to stand up to the so called "stars" and unwind the obscene and unwarranted pay packages that they are trousering for the past number of years.

why would and should they? the stars are big names well respected and bring in the listeners, many have taken large pay cuts all ready, maybe they will agree to more who knows, RTE aren't going to risk losing some if they can, just because pat kenny going may not have caused a collapse in audiences as far as we know doesn't mean that won't happen if others left, you didn't get a gig chap, maybe time to pick another industry

Evan DietrichSmith

end of the road wrote: »

are they? and here was i thinking that as a public service their job is to cater to all audiences including older audiences, radio 1 and lyric for example are targeted at older audiences all though i know some young people who like classical and other associated styles of music, i also like radio 1 the odd time and i'm a younger listener, 2fm isn't and never will be a youth station so going for the older audiences with broadcasters like larry gogan and so on is the way to go. but of course don't let your agest attitude get in the way of the actual facts that gogan, gaybo and so on bring in the audiences, end of story, don't listen if they bother you, simple as

why would and should they? the stars are big names well respected and bring in the listeners, many have taken large pay cuts all ready, maybe they will agree to more who knows, RTE aren't going to risk losing some if they can, just because pat kenny going may not have caused a colapse in audiences as far as we know doesn't mean that won't happen if others left, you didn't get a gig chap, maybe time to pick another industry

What others had you in mind?

A.J.Plumb

but of course don't let your agest attitude get in the way of the actual facts that gogan, gaybo and so on bring in the audiences, end of story, don't listen if they bother you, simple as

I say again Buddy I am not ageist...I have no problem with people working in RTE up to normal retirement age....what I have said in many previous posts is that I object to RTE keeping on these people long after normal retiring age...to the detriment of younger broadcasting talent.

why would and should they? the stars are big names well respected and bring in the listeners, many have taken large pay cuts all ready, maybe they will agree to more who knows, RTE aren't going to risk losing some if they can, just because pat kenny going may not have caused a collapse in audiences as far as we know doesn't mean that won't happen if others left, you didn't get a gig chap, maybe time to pick another industry

The fact that they have taken large pay cuts and may take further cuts proves my point...they were and are grossly overpaid...RTE'S defence to those obscene salaries was that they wanted to keep their "Stars".

Now their biggest star - Kenny - has moved with scarcely a blip in the listnership figures so that argument is shown to be groundless.

Add to to that the blatent nepotism by giving the daughter of a well known presenter a prime week end slot and you have an organisation with a lot of questions to answer.

Yvonne23R

A.J.Plumb wrote: »

I say again Buddy I am not ageist...I have no problem with people working in RTE up to normal retirement age....what I have said in many previous posts is that I object to RTE keeping on these people long after normal retiring age...to the detriment of younger broadcasting talent.



The fact that they have taken large pay cuts and may take further cuts proves my point...they were and are grossly overpaid...RTE'S defence to those obscene salaries was that they wanted to keep their "Stars".

Now their biggest star - Kenny - has moved with scarcely a blip in the listnership figures so that argument is shown to be groundless.

Add to to that the blatent nepotism by giving the daughter of a well known presenter a prime week end slot and you have an organisation with a lot of questions to answer.

I suppose the answer to how RTE Radio One survived without Pat is that Sean O'Rourke was waiting in the wings. It was a very handy way to move on a generation and give up and coming talent a chance to flourish. The down side to this is that Sean is now not appearing on TV where he was carving up a good career and making a name for himself.

And then it fitted for getting Aine Lawlor up onto the One o'clock where she has made a great splash. What RTE has I suppose is talent in reserve that it can call on. But if you pay peanuts you will get monkeys. That's what I always say.

Evan DietrichSmith

Yvonne23R wrote: »

I suppose the answer to how RTE Radio One survived without Pat is that Sean O'Rourke was waiting in the wings. It was a very handy way to move on a generation and give up and coming talent a chance to flourish. The down side to this is that Sean is now not appearing on TV where he was carving up a good career and making a name for himself.

And then it fitted for getting Aine Lawlor up onto the One o'clock where she has made a great splash. What RTE has I suppose is talent in reserve that it can call on. But if you pay peanuts you will get monkeys. That's what I always say.

What I always say is if you pay over the commercial odds ,based on State subsidies,you get nepotism, lifers, and a bloated sense of entitlement not in line with commercial values.

end of the road

A.J.Plumb wrote: »

I say again Buddy I am not ageist...I have no problem with people working in RTE up to normal retirement age....

what difference does it make, they bring in the listeners, why should RTE let them go to bring in a younger unknown? RTE is a public broadcasting service who has to cater to everyone, that means having young and old broadcasters (which they do) . i've explained this, "normal" retirement age doesn't apply to RTE and rightly so, the police, fire services, and other emergency services need the retirement age as its unreasonable to expect older people to be running around after criminals or fighting fires at 60 and over.

A.J.Plumb wrote: »

what I have said in many previous posts is that I object to RTE keeping on these people long after normal retiring age...to the detriment of younger broadcasting talent.

but it isn't to the detriment of younger broadcasting talent at all, if their good enough they will get a chance simple as, thats the radio industry, RTE isn't a platform for young broadcasters, its a platform for all types, community and the youth regional radio stations are platforms for younger broadcasters who if they stand out may be hired by RTE, the radio industry is so small in ireland so not everyone is going to get a chance, thats life.

Yvonne23R

Evan DietrichSmith wrote: »

What I always say is if you pay over the commercial odds ,based on State subsidies,you get nepotism, lifers, and a bloated sense of entitlement not in line with commercial values.

I think this is the knub of the thing. You see the pirates and the rest are commercial but RTE isn't. It prides itself on being about quality instead of profit. There are upsides and some downs from this of course but the overall balance is on the upside. Think of all we've had from Wanderly Wagon, Dathi Lacha, Halls Pictorial, the GB Show and so on right up to Hector, the Late Show, Brendan O'Connor. It's because RTE is able to take a chance on difficult things that gives it it's special palce.

And some of that comes from having in place people with background. Like Michelle Mac Caughron who's father worked for many years long hours. Where they have seen it from the inside. Or Jimmy Magee and his daughter Eileen Dunne. Even Gay himself came in through his brother originally according to legends. If it's all done by open interviews you mightn't get the same committment.

foxtrot101

Yvonne23R wrote: »

You see the pirates and the rest are commercial but RTE isn't. It prides itself on being about quality.

If that truely was the case, then Lottie Ryan wouldn't currently be presenting a radio programme on 2fm. I've listened to Lottie, she's dreadful. She has no aptitude for the job whatsoever. I've heard far more talented people presenting on college and hospital radio. The fact that she was handed a career, just because she was taken on by her late fathers very powerful agent, is a disgrace.

And some of that comes from having in place people with background. Like Michelle Mac Caughron who's father worked for many years long hours. Where they have seen it from the inside. Or Jimmy Magee and his daughter Eileen Dunne. Even Gay himself came in through his brother originally according to legends. If it's all done by open interviews you mightn't get the same committment.

This may come as a shock to you, but Ireland does actually have equality opportunity legislation in the workplace enacted. The Employment Equality Acts 1998 and 2004 have clearly defined nine areas of discrimination (gender, family status, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, race, travelling community). The fact that the national broadcaster is so clearly flaunting this legistration is just wrong.

Evan DietrichSmith

Yvonne23R wrote: »

I think this is the knub of the thing. You see the pirates and the rest are commercial but RTE isn't. It prides itself on being about quality instead of profit. There are upsides and some downs from this of course but the overall balance is on the upside. Think of all we've had from Wanderly Wagon, Dathi Lacha, Halls Pictorial, the GB Show and so on right up to Hector, the Late Show, Brendan O'Connor. It's because RTE is able to take a chance on difficult things that gives it it's special palce.

And some of that comes from having in place people with background. Like Michelle Mac Caughron who's father worked for many years long hours. Where they have seen it from the inside. Or Jimmy Magee and his daughter Eileen Dunne. Even Gay himself came in through his brother originally according to legends. If it's all done by open interviews you mightn't get the same committment.

Eileen Dunne might be a tad surprised to find she is Jimmy Magee's daughter.:rolleyes:

A.J.Plumb

Indeed she would Evan...she is the daughter of Mick Dunne who was a well known GAA commentator with the station.

And is ,it must be said, an excellent newscaster.

Yvonne23R

A.J.Plumb wrote: »

Indeed she would Evan...she is the daughter of Mick Dunne who was a well known GAA commentator with the station.

And is ,it must be said, an excellent newscaster.

Oh, I knew it was one of them.

It's probably indivious to be commenting on Lottie though because of the tragedy of Gerry who was such a great broadcaster in every way. Cut off in the prime of a great career. He could have gone anywhere. And Lottie will come into her own too given time. Settling in is hard to do in a demanding role like that.

It's very hard though to think of other cases where family members come as good as the original of the species. Sometimes broadcasting is dog-eat-dog of course. And people need a few advantages to get a leg up and over the career ladder hump. Otherwise nobody would get to the top.

A.J.Plumb

The issue I have with Lottie though is that she is given the opportunity to "settle in " on National radio.!

Surely she should come from a smaller station with a proven track record and with a particular broadcasting style.

RTE should have no need to recruit untried broadcasters..they should pick the most suitable from the many commercial and local stations out there.

But of course Lottie is "different"...any slots for Rex and Babette I wonder.?

Yvonne23R

Think of Anton Savage though whose working on one of the other stations. It's not just on the home station that people come good if they're good enough.

serfboard

Yvonne23R wrote: »

Think of Anton Savage though whose working on one of the other stations. It's not just on the home station that people come good if they're good enough are given a chance because of their connections.

FYP. Anton Savage? Whose Mammy and Daddy are very-well connected people in Irish media, and who's father in particular is chairman of the RTÉ board?

Yvonne23R

serfboard wrote: »

FYP. Anton Savage? Whose Mammy and Daddy are very-well connected people in Irish media, and who's father in particular is chairman of the RTÉ board?

I know! His father is in RTE (without pay I hear) but as a result he's had to make his way up the hard way by going to one of the less important private stations. Sometimes it's a handicap to have someone inside. Pull isn't what it was in this country since the tribunals and all that malarkey.

Radio5

Yvonne23R wrote: »

I know! His father is in RTE (without pay I hear) but as a result he's had to make his way up the hard way by going to one of the less important private stations. Sometimes it's a handicap to have someone inside. Pull isn't what it was in this country since the tribunals and all that malarkey.

Seriously? Never heard of the Communcations Clinic?

Calina

Yvonne23R wrote: »

Pull isn't what it was in this country since the tribunals and all that malarkey.

Pull should not be a factor in any state organisation related jobs.

foxtrot101

Radio5 wrote: »

Seriously?

No, I suspect Yvonne is not being serious at all. She's been on a wind-up since the start of the thread and in fairness to her - it has worked.

Evan DietrichSmith

foxtrot101 wrote: »

No, I suspect Yvonne is not being serious at all. She's been on a wind-up since the start of the thread and in fairness to her - it has worked.

Ah look fox , she might have fooled some of the more 'innocent' contributors,but I don't thinks she conned the hard core contributors .

Certainly not EDS

pjordan

Time to revise this thread methinks in light of recent developments:

Just to re kick start it I'll throw out a few Dynasties. Do feel free to add to the list

The Andrews/Tubridy: Todd Andrews, Ryan Tubridy, David McSavage.

The Ryans: Gerry (and godfather Eamonn Andrews) and Lottie

The Dunnes: Mick and Eileen

The McNallys: Ray, Conor, Aonghus and Andy presently of the NKM stable.

The Currans: Richard and Noel

The Murrays: Colm and Cathal

The D'arcys: Ray and Jenny Kelly

The Byrnes: Gay and Kathleen

The Agnews: Twink and David and Chloe

The Garrihys: Aoibhin, Doireann and Ailbhe

The Seoighes: Grainne and Sile

The Ashmawys: Baz and his mammy Nancy

The McNamaras: Frank and Theresa Lowe

The Keanes/O'Hagen: Colm and Una

The Duggan/Boucher Hayes: Myles and Colm

radiotrickster

This thread being revived has made me realise Lottie Ryan has been at RTE for at least nine years and she’s still woeful. It’s an utter disgrace that she’s been allowed to continue at 2Fm for this long

squonk

The Gogans. Larry shd I think he had a don, Gerry on air at 2FM at one stage.

ZaK23-54

The Mc Namara’s

Micky Mac and Conor Mc Namara..?

Man Vs ManUre

’Loddy’ R won the dancing show, she is an RTÉ legend!!

ford fiesta

gerry ryan's brother Mike started as a dj on rte 2fm in 1988 and remained there until around 1999.

he still works in rte radio as continuity announcer and on their broadcast systems.

steinbock123

Wasn’t there a couple of Cogleys in the sports department, father and son , years ago?

squonk

I may be imagining it but feel I’m not but I’m sure Teresa love’s sister was doing continuity on RTE2 at one point. It wasn’t for long and I may be wrong!

amlinopta

Aengus Cox, son of Valerie, presenting Morning Ireland this week. Judi Dench even passed on best wishes to the mother after his interview with her this morning. the same Valerie who took them for €50k at the WRC for discrimination on age grounds

plodder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816897#Comment_120816897

Off topic, but I thought that was a terrible interview with Judi Dench. He was talking to her like a doddery old granny in a care home.

steddyeddy

There's several camera men, women and technical support employees from the same family.

The problem is that substantial amounts of Irish people who have no problem with a family using the state broadcaster to provide the rest of their family with jobs.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120814610#Comment_120814610

so many times she has been shoehorned into different roles, now doing what should be the newsreaders job and is seen in the public eye as a source of ridicule...

rolling boh

You have to give Lottie some credit for having got away with turning up to 2fm for so long without actually doing anything worth while .She should have an award for her brass neck .

its_steve116

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120816506#Comment_120816506

Yep, Mary Lowe