RTE slams "secret" producer for telling the truth?

maudgonner

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »

Unless there's something sinister going on then no.

Nobody likes a Rat or a Stool Pigeon.

It's the most dishonourable thing a man could do.

I fúcking hate this attitude. If something is being done wrong then I think it's right, brave even, to call that out. The people who sit back and do nothing, just claim their fat paycheques, are the ones who should be examining their conscience.

ZeroThreat

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »

Unless there's something sinister going on then no.

Nobody likes a Rat or a Stool Pigeon.

It's the most dishonourable thing a man could do.

It's disgusting as a previous Garda commissioner put it.

Irish Guitarist

I'm a bigwig at RTE and I can tell you for a fact that everything he says is true. And that's only the half of it.

I remember the time Ryan Tubridy brought in a live wombat and he and Anne Doyle started using it as a football. I don't know if you've ever heard a wombat cry but it's one of the most sickening things you can imagine.

Hammer89

3/ Stumpy was written out of Love/Hate because the actor in real life called Ray D'arcy a f*ggot.

Billy86

From this morning (several tweets pasted together):

RTE are considering hiring a PI to find out who I am. Consider that. The national broadcaster, using licence fee money, to track a whistleblower. Who is just trying to show what needs to change to save the organisation. How does @rtenews view unmasking whistleblowers? How does the NUJ? Rather than address the issues, just destroy the person airing them. So I have been busy, there is a second account with 500 tweets written, ready to send. If I lose access to this account. All I want to do is show the things that need to change to save a broadcaster that is vital for Ireland. Profound disloyalty is staying quiet. I'm disgusted. I would ask if anyone values this, to contact rte, or their local reps. I have been contacted by over 50 people inside RTE. I have been contacted by people in news, current affairs, sport, entertainment, it, editing, lighting, radio, internet. With stories and supporting me. Are they all profoundly disloyal - we who have given our lives to an organisation? Who care about it? I am heartbroken.

Bolded emphasis is my own. Good to know the TV licence money RTE want more of isn't being p*ssed away on their own pride.

Kermit.de.frog

It's RTE giving this legs. A private investigator???

hatrickpatrick

Kermit.de.frog wrote: »

It's RTE giving this legs. A private investigator???

The Streisand Effect, as always. If they hadn't commented, people could easily have dismissed this guy as a crank. Now they've all but confirmed that his allegations are legitimate - and that they're obviously incredibly embarrassed by them.

Muppetry and eejitism.

mzungu

MilesMorales1 wrote: »

I'd love to see them dish the dirt on Fair City.

Fair City is a scandal in itself tbf!

George White

I hope that this leads to some kind of Yewtree-type conspiracy that brings down the old guard at RTE. Destroys the boys' club.

buried

If they really are hiring a private investigator to find out who this person is, that just makes it even more hilarious.
Can't utilize one of their own investigative journalists to find out what's going on due to the fact they can't investigate anything at all.

George White

I wish I'd work at RTE, but the only family connections I have are my grandad was animal arranger on various films and shows, including Hall's Pictorial Weekly and the Irish RM, and my other grandad's cousin was Norman Metcalf, the organist from Quicksilver.
I also think RTE needs to release their shows on DVD, but the IFI have tried, run into problems relating to RTE's unwillingness to pay residuals. I put some of the major UK archive TV companies in touch with RTE, so they can squeeze it out of RTE.

Ash.J.Williams

Arturo Handsome Arrowhead wrote: »

I couldn't make head nor tail of that.

It's really not that complicated.. Interesting actually

Billy86

"I had hoped in the years since I left that RTE had improved. It saddens me to hear that many things I tried to improve are still in place."
"I know for a fact that RTE use its own investigators to track down anonymous dissenters. They also came to BBC investigators for help."
- Helen O'Rahilly, former RTE director of television and current BBC One deputy controller.

The account which started yesterday I think, is now on nearly 18,000 followers.

hawkwind23

A lot of subsidized organisations are like this and plenty have tried to make changes but what happens is they all close ranks and build a solid wall of defence and then attack , so all these private messengers the account is getting will vanish into the mist when they realise their paycheck is in jeopardy as will anyone who has anything of substance to offer , they will be threatened or paid off.
Be a few resignations on full pensions and a few promotions that raise eyebrows.
The whistleblower might try to carry this forward and will be stressed 24hrs a day for years and eventually be worn down after finding out the entire system is rigged , will end up taking an enhanced package to sign a disclaimer.
The top tier management celebrate and share the 80k salaries around the inner circle

Ash.J.Williams

The Craig Doyle tweets were very interesting

Billy86

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

The Craig Doyle tweets were very interesting

And finally answers that years-old AH thread about 'why is Craig Doyle absolutely everywhere these days?'

Ash.J.Williams

Billy86 wrote: »

And finally answers that years-old AH thread about 'why is Craig Doyle absolutely everywhere these days?'

And no zig and zag

Dr Brown

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

The Craig Doyle tweets were very interesting

What did he say ?

liam7831

And he one that went out with Brian McFadden for a while

buried

Darkglasses wrote: »

Honestly if you can't understand the links or think it's unintelligible - cop yourself on, and learn how twitter works. It's a more important tool of communication than you realise, clearly.

That's not really fair DG. I know what twitter is but I don't want to sign up to the thing either, and I can't see what this secret producer is saying without doing so. Every time I click on the link I get the 'sign in' page. I won't be doing that. Can't someone just give a general run down on what this character is trying to claim and what Craig Doyle is saying too?

Billy86

Darkglasses wrote: »

Honestly if you can't understand the links or think it's unintelligible - cop yourself on, and learn how twitter works. It's a more important tool of communication than you realise, clearly.

To be fair, the layout of Twitter posts can be quite confusing to people who never use it, especially if multi-tweet posts are not 'threaded' (which has been the case for some on this account). I don't use it myself and the first number of times I clicked on any links to Twitter beyond a single, standalone Tweet I couldn't head nor tails of what the hell was going on, e.g threads/conversations/etc.

Erik Shin

Dr Brown wrote: »

What did he say ?

Nothing...it's the tweets about him being the new RTE heads darling and him getting so many vehicles to show his... talent?

Terri26

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote:

Sorry, I just realised that this individual is still working with RTE.

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote:

That makes it worse.

You have a problem with this person doing this if they left RTE and a problem that they did it still working for them? What other way is okay/possible?

brooke 2

super_furry wrote: »

Ryan Tubridy is actually two greyhounds stapled to a child.

:D

Ash.J.Williams

Dr Brown wrote: »

What did he say ?

The jist of it is... Somebody muscled in on podge and Rodge just to get his name on it, made life difficult and then replaced them and failed 3 times with Craig Doyle and not really trying to hard to succeed....


What I find interesting about this is I have no bad feelings in regard to Mr Doyle, I always found him positive and good natured on tv. I think if this is true then RTÉs ineptitude helped ruin Craig Doyle. Now I know Doyle has a marmite affect etc but it's a valid point. I recall he left RTÉ quite vocally at the time.

Edit:
I just Googled it... Craig said working in RTÉ is like having sex with an old friend and the sex was appalling...

TallGlass

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

The jist of it is... Somebody muscled in on podge and Rodge just to get his name on it, made life difficult and then replaced them and failed 3 times with Craig Doyle and not really trying to hard to succeed....


What I find interesting about this is I have no bad feelings in regard to Mr Doyle, I always found him positive and good natured on tv. I think if this is true then RTÉs ineptitude helped ruin Craig Doyle. Now I know Doyle has a marmite affect etc but it's a valid point. I recall he left RTÉ quite vocally at the time.

Edit:
I just Googled it... Craig said working in RTÉ is like having sex with an old friend and the sex was appalling...

And the camera men in RTE are lazy as foook.

Ash.J.Williams

TallGlass wrote: »

And the camera men in RTE are lazy as foook.

And rich!

TallGlass

Basically. It's a toxic work place. People go in go home get paid and **** anyone or anything that wants to change it. You don't go forward or back and the only way is out the door. Want change, or show/want inspiration then you can also go out the door.

What a sorry place to work, sounds like no one at the top has passion for the job anymore and anyone who does is put in there place and silenced, knowing at this stage in the game leaving isn't an option.

Personally that would drive me nuts.

Ash.J.Williams

They do have egg and chips on Friday though... That's usually the best time to find people on site

sligojoek

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

They do have egg and chips on Friday though... That's usually the best time to find people on site

That's just to attract guests for the chat shows.

RTE Secret Producer

For anyone interested who can't access it on twitter or make head nor tail of it in the twitter format. This is compiled of tweets over a 10 day period...

RTE Secret Producer wrote:

I'm an RTE producer, I've worked in, or in conjunction with a lot of different areas. Primarily TV. Kids, Daytime & Lifestyle, Entertainment, Docs, comedy, a little radio. If there's anything you want to know about ‪#rte‬, feel free to ask and if I can, and wish to, I'll answer. It should go without saying, but this account is not affiliated with the station, merely my own personal views and observations.

Things I have been enjoying this year :

- working with the studio crew, who have more arcane working practices than a coven of witches.

- Reporting to a genre head (that's what we call commissioning editors) who is so lazy they put on an out-of-office with no return date ‪#rte‬.

-Work with fellow staff members my bosses have told me are such hr nuisances they are trying to find a way to get them to take the package.

-Working on a show no one, including presenters, want to make.

So, ‪#AMA‬ about ‪#RTE‬

For the most part I will not tweet during work hours.
Decided to eat outside of ‪#rte‬ rather than brave friday canteen. When i started I learnt most people skip the canteen because it's bad except on friday - when everyone comes out of the woodwork for the culinary highlight of the ‪#rte‬ week. The only thing that gets people excited. What is that - it's chips, beans and eggs for 3.50. Yeah, that's literally the most exciting for us in rte.

Lunch brings me to the working day of production teams. Now, before I start this, there are production teams that work hard. But most don't. Start time: 10 am...ish. Normally people queue for our first coffee and scone in the oasis (thats the coffee shop in the rte tv building). First break - 11am - time for another coffee. 20 mins minimum. I know we just had coffee, but hey. Lunch 1-2. Although usually 1245-215. There are hour long exercise, running and yoga classes everyday. So people do them, and eat lunch.‪ ‬Second break around half three or four. That's another 20 minutes. People start leaving around half five. by 6 the place is deserted.

Having spent years running/pa in independents, I couldn't believe ‪#rte‬ hours when I started. I thought it was amazing. And it is. But...It's like that because the vast majority of people in here, think what they are doing, is pointless. Since the recession hit a decade ago, there have been basically no promotions. The same people are in the same jobs they were in 2008. So you have 50 year old researchers, 60 year old BCO's. Everyone frustrated and pissed off, and fundamentally not arsed. Genre heads, our bosses-are the exact same people as 10 years ago. 15 in many cases. & people wonder why ‪#rte‬ makes the same shows always.

So, people complaining about the way the ‪#latelate‬ is filmed... Here's why everything shot in RTE studios looks like it's stuck in the 70s. ‪#rte‬ is very heavily unionised and the camera department (and studios in general) have used this power to make it hard to make good looking tv. Work practices are implemented not for safety, or staff protection, but to discourage innovation because innovation is hard work. So here's some of the fun rules: Want to go handheld? In any other studio a cameraman picks up the camera and a trainee looks after the cabling. In RTE you can't use a trainee (10 euro per hour) you have to use ANOTHER CAMERAMAN (50 euro PH). Why? Because the union wants you to. No safety reason. Just protectionism. RTE has a one-man jib. In RTE you have to have 2 people for it which makes it harder to use properly. Why? Jobs for the boys.

Next: training - there isn't any. People from other areas like staging are promoted, have a few chats with other camera people, and then, a week later are on set shooting. Even though they can't shoot to save their lives. If a camera person is bad. And a lot of them are. There is no way to make them better. If you complain, the union goes nuts. You can't request the good camera people, so every time you turn up in studio, you have different camera ops, some good, some bad. Our ‪#RTE‬ camera ops treat rehearsals like a joke. Routinely pulling up chairs and having a read of the paper, or take a break, so when you move between shots they routinely miss them. Meaning the rehearsal has to stop and go back. So they can put down their magazine. That is why the Late Late, Ray Darcy, Prime Time and everything else we make look awful - we cant go handheld, cant use jibs properly and can't get the same crew every week.

I was working on a kids show a couple of years ago and one of the ops complained because of the complexity of the shots (not very complex) because and I quote "it's too much work". And it's not the camera ops individual fault. It's the view, in studio, that what is important is doing things THE WAY they want to rather than the way it should be done, for the best show, the happiest crew, and most satisfied viewers. But no, better to make mediocrity.

But that's just one department. I can tell worse stories for staging, sound, electricians. And, most of all, my department - production.
DMd a question about ‪#rte‬ studio quirks. Well, one quirk is the careful structuring of certain studio workers work hours.

So Staging. Work past a certain hour, or weekends, it's double time. Work late and weekends, triple time. Work past midnight, and it's overtime payments that'd blow your mind. I've no problem with being paid overtime etc. but tv shows are made at night and weekends...why should you hit the bonusball jackpot for turning up for your job? I'm just bitter because researchers/producers etc. don't have any overtime. Anyway that means that there are times when people from ‪#rte‬ staging have earned over 100k a year. Staging, for those who don't know, are the people who move sets. Of course, there are a lot more people on 100K+ in the admin and management staff. And a lot of them do a lot less than moving stuff around.
Any other qs about ‪#rte‬? I'd rather be asked them out in the open, but if you're shy, DMs are fine.

When you walk in to stage 7, which is the tv production team building, the first thing you walked by, for years, was Young People's (Programming). It always was busy, bursting with the youngest, and usually most enthusiastic people in ‪#rte‬. Now - the lights are off. Only a genre head, executive producer and the odd straggler. It had been diminished for the last 15 years. When I joined it had the den, even after zig and zag left there was dustin, socky. But the commissioning editor cancelled that, and replaced it with stuff that kids didn't want to watch. Stuff parents would approve of, rather than kids would want to watch. Gradually everyone in the dept got old. Then they decided to take…(the following tweet seems to be missing)…pretty much, but it didn't happen as reported. It wasn't a surprise suddenly dumped on the dept by the DG (director general). The top end of the dept knew or so everyone in here reckons. It smells of the politics you get in here. There's no way it was a surprise to middle mgmt, who have been here 30 years longer than the DG. But hey, either way, it managed to go from here to zero in 20 years.

Of course it's not just YPP (Young People's Programming) Look at the amount of internal content on RTE 2 today. One show - Soccer Republic. A show that is only on air because it's part of our deal with the FAI. Otherwise, nothing. No internal production. Prime time is just a film, followed by one Irish programme. And that's it. Look back at the listings 5, 10, 15 years ago and Monday was the big night of the week. Now, an old film.

Sorry about the typos. I'm typing this outside and feeling vaguely paranoid.
Don't get me wrong, YPP was a pretty good place to work. It just suffered from the same problem most of the rest of this place does. The comm eds forget that it's about making tv for viewers. Spend time trying to out politic each other instead. Programmes made for optics rather than for the sake of the programmes. Or made by people who agree with you, rather than those who make the best tv.

Any questions on ‪#rte‬?

Right, time to go and work.

I'll try and tweet at lunch or after work, so let me know any ‪#RTE‬ stuff you want to know about. questions make it easier.

Hello to all the new followers. It's ironic that most of you are in ‪#RTE‬. so you already know the things I'll be talking about.

I'd also like to thank the dozens of colleagues who have DM'd me, sure they know who I am.

Special hi to the ‪#latelate‬, ‪#rtesport‬, half of ‪#primetime‬ and a lot of people who spent too long in lifestyle. Which should I talk about?

Someone asked in the DMs if I was taking the package. The package, for my handful of non-rte insiders, is a big wedge of money to leave. I won't. The package is fundamentally flawed. ‪#RTE‬ need to clear out the deadwood of middle management (hello genre heads and Execs) and unmotivated staffers (hello producers, SPs, old APs & researchers.) The problem is, people in those brackets know that they earn more in RTE then they would outside RTE. Also RTE offers a very nice lifestyle - frequent summers off, time off in lieu, very flexible hrs and finally a completely risk free environment. No matter what you do, you'll keep your job, or even get promoted if you are particularly…so the only people that leave are A) the most skilled-the people that you dont want to leave. Or People close to retirement - which saves you no money as they were leaving anyway. There are other reasons to stay in ‪#rte‬ obviously. And many good people work here. My point is that the package doesn't do what it should.

Apparently I've been doing threads wrong. Thanks to the person who messaged me the right way to do it. Don't normally use twitter. To clarify.There are committed & talented people here, but bad systems, petty infighting & disillusioned staff make it difficult to do good.

Sorry, i had a bit of a wobble. back now.
I walked in the door yesterday and someone immediately asked me if I was the secret producer. So I freaked out and deactivated the account. Then I went for a coffee and realised everyone was asking everyone else if they were the secret producer. so, yeah.

Getting a lot of DMs from RTE people, mostly either trying to guess who I am, or being vaguely aggressive. Thanks everyone. Won't be responding to that stuff. Those people saying I'm right but nitpicking tiny details- feel free to correct those details in public. I'm using twitter so people can correct me. Finally, people arguing that I'm making it harder for good people in RTE. Sorry about that but the whole point of this account is to show how hard it is for 'good' people to make good things. To make it a workplace I want to be in..

Someone asked-What's with RTE's narrow range of sports? Surely a public service broadcaster has a remit to cover all our games and endeavours. Well, you can only cover so much. If you go back 10-15 years, when Glen Killane ran sports, it was a centre of excellence. Not only did it have most sports, but the coverage was slick, and, if we didn't have the budget of the big UK channels, we still made a good stab at it. Look at it now. Soccer? Apart from an hour of the FAI mandated soccer republic - nothing. Good to see another show with any soccer coverage. But there isn't. Then course, Rugby - how much of that do we have? F1? Even losing part of the GAA coverage, Although that should be laid at the door of the GAA. The whole country participates for free in the GAA, and then they go and sell out to a foreign broadcaster most of the country doesn't have. Makes you proud to be Irish. Good forward thinking Croke park. Anyway…back to ‪#rtesports‬. Look what we have now, a fraction of what we have 15 years ago. And the coverage we do have is tired. Derivative. Same people in Sports, just 15 years older. No mission. No style. No joy. Still, Ryle gets to commentate on the odd rugby game.

That is the same across the board. A lack of innovation, no one being brave. Probably has something to do with the age profile. It's like the opposite of Logan's Run- there's nobody under 30 in RTE.

Any questions?

Our promo producers is another place to look. RTE Promos used to be this multi-award winning powerhouse, filled with the most creative 20 somethings on campus. It was budgeted, made ads better than most of the shows. Made viewers excited. Good place to work. Then the crash. Budget's gutted. no fun promos to make. Then opportunities to advance evaporated. And finally no new staff. So all the creatives in promo from 10 years ago, are, for the most part, still there. With no path for promotion. If they want to grow, they have to leave. The same story for us all through RTE TV. Do the same thing you have been doing, or leave. And the independent sector has been hit harder than the internal since the crash. A lot of my friends who I started with in the 90s out there, have had to leave the business.

Why does no one talk about YPP? Then Vs Now (with a photo of The Den in its prime beside a modern RTE kid's show Stu Redman doesn't recognize).

Well, I now have more twitter followers than facebook friends. Although i know most of that is hate-following.

Thanks to my colleagues for the DMs of support. Not to the ones telling me I really need to appreciate how flexible RTE's 13 point roster is.

Whoever keeps on trying to log in as me- My password is now random characters and verified through a pay as you go phone ‪#whistleblowing101‬

So, I stumbled over this on a 6 year old key-drive - made me all nostalgic. Here's a fun question - what do the following shows have in common…

Off The Rails
Podge & Rodge
Twotube
The Republic of Telly
The Den
Actually - they all have 2 things in common... Guesses?

Podge and Rodge, off the rails, republic, den, twotube - were all made internally and were cancelled without replacing them. All aimed at under 40s. All, apart from twotube maybe, things people were proud to work on. Not all good, but at least shows viewers gave a **** about. We have stopped making shows for the under 50s. Oh sorry, Vogue comes out of her mansion now and then to patronise marginalised communities. ‪#edgy‬. Sorry, that's bitchy. But I spent time making docs. Vogues 'docs' go against all the decent aspects of Rte. Selling its ethics for viewers.

Someone asked me if I think the licence fee is worth it. and why. My answer is yes it is, but a lot of it is being waster. Why is it worthit? First independent investigative journalism - He who cannot be named owns every media outlet worth talking about. Apart from RTE
We need someone to report the news that isn't owned by a billionaire. Secondly, irish output - TV3 make no kids, comedy, irish language, proper investigative journalism etc. Not their fault - they are driven only by market forces. Licence fee means RTE can do that which isn't driven by profit. RTE just need to do a better job of it.

CORRECTION Podge & Rodge wasn't replaced with nothing. I've just been DMd by an old friend in Ent. This is a great story- I had forgotten…

Podge & Rodge was massively successful. But there was a new commissioning editor. And that commissioning editor didn't like it because HE hadn't come up with it. This commissioning editor never liked things until he had put his finger in the pie. He was only happy if he could claim credit. So he forced P&R to reformat so he could either claim credit or cancel them. So, reluctantly, they did. It was a disaster - the new producer had made a mess. AND THEN the commissioning editor tried to make them abandon the format they had just been forced to adopt. BY HIM. Viewership dropped. The comm Ed cancelled the show and replaced it with a show he had been wanting to make for years "The Social with Craig Doyle" - Don't bother googling it, even the internet has forgotten it.

It was a 'social media' chat show even though Craig wasn't on Twitter, and neither were any of the producers, both of whom had been fired from other jobs - but the comm ed liked them because they would do anything he asked, to try and keep their gig. The show was one of the worst things ever made by RTE and that's a low bar. It was about twitter, and they got their own twitter handle wrong on the first night. So the same commissioning Editor cancelled it. He then commissioned another Craig Doyle Show called Craig Doyle Live, and then replaced that with another Craig Doyle show. Before canceling that. This was after the first craig doyle show he'd commissioned, on rte1, had bombed and he'd cancelled that. And how did he cancel Craig's last show? By never phoning him. 4 different Craig Doyle shows cancelled - that's not how you make Good TV. If you believe in Craig, then you give him a show, and let it run for a year, and make it better.

But no, the comm ed just did what he always did, and panicked, and burnt the place to the ground. So in the end there was no Craig Doyle Show. But what really is a shame is there was no Podge and Rodge. 10 years of them being the symbol of RTE - A prayer at Bedtime, then P&R show. After 10 years of them being zig and zag. All wrecked, so this comm ed could say it was his show. Podge & Rodge are gone, Craig Doyle has gone. The independent staff who worked hard to make those shows all gone. But the comm ed is still there. Still commissioning shows and cancelling them. I pass his office every day.

So, I'm bringing a new device into work so I can Tweet from this account occassionally. I will enjoy using RTE's Wi-Fi. Want to know how how secure RTE is? The Fair City Wi-fi log on name and password used to be "Fair City" and "Fair City".

That last long story - thanks to my new bff on the 3rd floor for the deets.

OK everyone is having a meltdown in here, bye for now
Walking around RTE, lot more people on Twitter than usual. Something happening?

The Indo is going to run an article about this. I haven't given any information or talked to them. When every news organisation in the country had water meters or he who cannot be named on front page, they'd mysteriously feature something else. That's not journalism.

Everyone here is going nuts.

Thanks to my colleagues who have DMd me stories. I'll be verifying before posting the ones I don't have direct experience of.

Thanks for the 100 Dms asking. Sorry but won't be talking about which presenters are playing away or that kinda stuff.

Profoundly Disloyal.

Sorry I was away, someone was trying to hack me.

This is now being input by a colleague in a different jurisdiction and routed through TOR. Ridiculous.

RTE are considering hiring a PI to find out who I am. Consider that. The national broadcaster, using licence fee money, to track a whistleblower. Who is just trying to show what needs to change to save the organisation. How does ‪@rtenews‬; view unmasking whistleblowers? How does the NUJ? Rather than address the issues, just destroy the person airing them. So I have been busy, there is a second account with 500 tweets written, ready to send. If I lose access to this account. All I want to do is show the things that need to change to save a broadcaster that is vital for Ireland. Profound disloyalty is staying quiet. I'm disgusted. I would ask if anyone values this, to contact rte, or their local reps. I have been contacted by over 50 people inside RTE. I have been contaced by people in news, current affairs, sport, entertainment, it, editing, lighting, radio, internet with stories and supporting me. Are they all profoundly disloyal - we who have given our lives to an organisation? Who care about it? I am heartbroken.

I am sad and scared.

TallGlass

Just thinking, on a side note isn't the director general an outsider? If she can't change RTEs culture.

What good is an outsider going to do in trying to change the Garda culture?

HSE is another state organisation. Outsider running it. Still a shambles. The union's are the real people in charge in this state.

steddyeddy

If even half of that is true then we need to question where our money's being spent.

hatrickpatrick

Deleted User wrote: »

For anyone interested who can't access it on twitter or make head nor tail of it in the twitter format. This is compiled of tweets over a 10 day period...

Thanks for this. I've been wishing he'd use Twitlonger or one of those services, 140-character separations make reading long stories a pain in the hole. Fascinating stuff.

Wanderer2010

Even if you dismiss the author of these tweets as a grudge-holding bitter employee who has an axe to grind, the fact is what he explains and the cold hard truth are closely aligned. I mean, RTE is filled with the same tired old heads for decades now. Look at RTE news- same old heads Eileen Dunne etc for years now, nobody new nobody interesting. Yes, you need experience but you need younger and a more diversified staff to appeal to young people and offer a different view.

The old dinosaurs Bryan Dobson, Ray Darcy, Marian Finnucane, Joe Duffy need to get a severe wage cut. There is absolutely no reason why they are on a salary of hundreds of thousands a year, Donald Trump isn't even on that and they don't even produce enough work to justify it. I mean, who signed off on these salaries? Enough bullsh!t about the "board" setting wages, get the human being who made that signature to appear in public and explain to the license payers how they can justify that figure and how they even came to it.

Then you have the likes of Blathnaid Treacy and Carol from Fair City- both were in shows in RTE as kids therefore they have jobs for life. They will still have that cushy number until the day they retire, 100%. Whereas their co stars who don't have connections have to move on.

valoren

So RTE is like the civil service and all the well worn clichés associated with it basically. Nothing will change whatsoever so.

suicide_circus

I thought we weren't allowed to question the way in which tax payers money is being spent?

McCrack

I take my hat off to this person

It's hard to take this seriously.

The RTE SP has stated so much around what they've done that they should be easily identifiable at this point. So either they're very stupid or they're just an amalgam of a lot of different people and different experiences, put together under one "character" which doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

We can all narrate the various negative stories and experiences of ourselves and our colleagues but that doesn't reflect the true reality of the situation.
But what part do I believe and what part do I leave to one-side as a false scent to distract from his/her identity? As a result, I'm left believing none of it.

trishasaffron

After a windy night 9 months ago I was unable to access the Irish stations on my tv. I haven't felt the need to get it sorted. That's a measure of how relevant RTE is.

VinLieger

They are threatening to publish the stories being sent by other staff if RTE dont stop hounding them. These stories might be a bit more specific and about specific situations so will be very interesting to see if the RTE management are stupid enough to try push them to that

AndrewJRenko

Deleted User wrote: »

It's hard to take this seriously.

The RTE SP has stated so much around what they've done that they should be easily identifiable at this point. So either they're very stupid or they're just an amalgam of a lot of different people and different experiences, put together under one "character" which doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

We can all narrate the various negative stories and experiences of ourselves and our colleagues but that doesn't reflect the true reality of the situation.
But what part do I believe and what part do I leave to one-side as a false scent to distract from his/her identity? As a result, I'm left believing none of it.

I had a similar thought - lots of people in lots of organisations bear grudges, though the inside perspective is mildly titillating. It is just one personal view, and doesn't give a balanced view of why certain decisions are made. However, he does seem to be moving onto more meaty and verifiable stuff today, like the abuse of taxis.

VinLieger wrote: »

They are threatening to publish the stories being sent by other staff if RTE dont stop hounding them. These stories might be a bit more specific and about specific situations so will be very interesting to see if the RTE management are stupid enough to try push them to that

Funny thing is, if they had kept their mouths shut about, they could just plead ignorance and pretend they didn't know what was going on - but having come out with all guns blazing (though no idea of where their target is), they can't claim ignorance now, which makes it much harder to back away now.

Classic Striesand Effect in action.

Billy86

Deleted User wrote: »

We can all narrate the various negative stories and experiences of ourselves and our colleagues but that doesn't reflect the true reality of the situation.
But what part do I believe and what part do I leave to one-side as a false scent to distract from his/her identity? As a result, I'm left believing none of it.

You've got high profile, well known people like Graeme Linehan and former higher ups like Helen O'Rahilly* also saying this is exactly as it was when she was there, not sure why they'd lie?

*She is now Deputy Controller of BBC One, a big step up, so wouldn't qualify as someone bitter who just couldn't cut it or whantot.

Junkyard Tom

I just don't get why they're allowed to waste taxpayers' money on UK TV over 90% of the population can get for free - that needs to be stopped pronto.

If the whistle-blower is anything to go by RTE needs to be nuked from orbit and rebuilt as a completely different outfit.

Billy86

Junkyard Tom wrote: »

I just don't get why they're allowed to waste taxpayers' money on UK TV over 90% of the population can get for free - that needs to be stopped pronto.

If the whistle-blower is anything to go by RTE needs to be nuked from orbit and rebuilt as a completely different outfit.

Now now, they don't spend as much on UK TV as they do on outbidding TV3 for US shows I would imagine!

A huge gripe of mine with RTE is the lack of home content, and this twitter account has basically said the reason why is a certain commissioning editor's fragile ego and sheer lack of giving a f*** around the place in general.

Ash.J.Williams

Lol at the big shot who has his " out of office" on permanently... If we could all get away with that ha

Ash.J.Williams

Any advice on how to get these reports investigated?

Ash.J.Williams

Just read this on rte.ie...

Carrigstown's answer to Burton and Taylor are back in each other's arms on Fair City this week as Paul and Niamh give in to passion once again.

Fixed :
Carraigstowns lifers are back in each other's arms because they are tied into longterm contracts and the unions won't let them do any other work so we're essentially stuck with then until they decide to retire

steddyeddy

I knew a camera woman who works there who told me that they hire certain cameras and equipment for big events like Eurovision. She said they refuse to buy them in and save money in the long run. Also like a lot of the Irish public service, nepotisim is rife. Whose vagina you came out of supercedes talent.

cml387

steddyeddy wrote: »

I knew a camera woman who works there who told me that they hire certain cameras and equipment for big events like Eurovision. She said they refuse to buy them in and save money in the long run. Also like a lot of the Irish public service, nepotisim is rife. Whose vagina you came out of supercedes talent.

All the OB's are now outsourced, a lot to TVM.

The behaviour of the tech ops sounds a lot like the BBC in the seventies (and RTE inherited most of its practices from the BBC in the sixties).