RTÉ admits paying Tubridy €345,000 more than declared

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295261#Comment_121295261

There may also be a demographics problem for Tubridy in that a lot of people who supposedly listen to radio shows at that time of morning may not generally listen to podcasts. (Broadcasting being push in that it is directed at the audience. Podcasts being pull in that the audience has to actively select the podcast.) Advertisers love controversy but they absolutely hate being associated with failure.

Regards...jmcc

Hyperbollix

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295359#Comment_121295359

While I agree about his toxicity, I think it only relates to sponsorship deals and the licence fee issue. I don't really believe anyone within RTE will have any problem with "the great man" returning. Not today or tomorrow maybe, but I think there will be a place for him down the road when this is no longer a recurring news item.

Tubridy is a piece of RTE furniture and from a FF lineage as well. To be brutally honest, "Official Ireland" sees him as bigger than this grubby little payments fiasco. Many in influential positions would believe it is right and just that he eventually be restored to the national broadcaster. He's in limbo now because this keeps rolling without a satisfactory conclusion and the license fee problem continues to get bigger. But in a year or two, could he be back in some capacity. I'd be shocked if he wasn't, honestly.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295493#Comment_121295493

In a year or two, FFG may not be in government. And things might be a bit more frosty for FFers like Tubridy. It will be hard to effect a cultural change within RTE but the people there will not want to be associated with those who derailed the gravy train. That's why Tubridy will probably be a necessary sacrifice especially if the next government is an SF-led one.

Regards...jmcc

NIMAN

Personally, I don't see Tubs ever being back in a high paying job in rte.

Too much sh1t has stuck to him. He's bad news, even 2 or 3 years down the line. Especially if a few hundred rte employees end up getting the door due to the scandal many of them were not involved in.

Caquas

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295073#Comment_121295073

Are you seriously arguing that FF and FG respectively were happy to see Cowen and Hogan taken out?

I'm not claiming any great insights, On the contrary, I specifically asked if anyone here knew what was going on with Indo/RTE/Noel Kelly.

hotmail.com

I wouldn't trust anything RTE management says at all.

Adrian Lynch is still on the executive board.

These f*ckers still want the tax payer to bail them out early next year. They've made no job cuts or pay reductions.

NIMAN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295864#Comment_121295864

If this was any other business, with such debts, there would be an immediate chat to the staff, with everyone having to accept a pay cut of 10% or whatever, to help the company survive.

Tow

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295907#Comment_121295907

They have already done that. Everyone took a cut except Tubbs. At this stage they need to cut staff. There are between 1,800 and 2,500 staff, depending on the source. The question is how many.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295855#Comment_121295855

Cowen was a liability because he was arranging a leadership challenge to Mehole Martin with Jim O'Callaghan being the replacement. Covid made it necessary to have Zoom meetings rather than face to face meetings. Hogan had become a liability for FG due to his antics over the Water Tax scam. His usual arrogance landed him in trouble over Covid restrictions. It made FFG look bad in Brussels.

Regards...jmcc

hotmail.com

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295907#Comment_121295907

Exactly.

It has to be underlined that RTE is in debt for years and years now.

And they still give ludicrous salaries to mediocre presenters. Claire Byrne on nearly 300 grand a year.

Brendan Bendar

Very simply the problem with RTE is this.

The public will see €50-60 million spaffed to bail them out, money which would be much better used to help those in real need.

The will see the fact that paying ‘the talent ‘way in excess of the wedge they might normally achieve “to hold onto them”is blown out of the water by Tubridys experience, and shown that managements from way back especially the most recent one were quite content to keep this myth going.

I would predict that any Govt who doled out that kind of money to RTE without addressing those issues properly, would suffer bigtime at the polls…and they know it.

robwen

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295542#Comment_121295542

SF could give Tubridy's cousin Catherine Martin's job make everything rosy for him

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296297#Comment_121296297

Possibly. :) But SF isn't FF.

Regards...jmcc

robwen

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296383#Comment_121296383

Not yet but give them time

podgeandrodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296117#Comment_121296117

Mediocre?? Ahh here, she's not THAT good!

Loafing Oaf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121295677#Comment_121295677

While his banishment may not be for all eternity, I find it hard to see Tubs returning in any substantial way while Bakhurst is running the show. IMO doing that would severely undermine KB's authority and credibility as the man to lead RTE to a bright new future

fritzelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296691#Comment_121296691

His credibility is already out the window - nothing has changed in RTE in all the months he's been in power bar a recruitment freeze (that isn't really a freeze)

NIMAN

I think KB has already shown that he hasn't the credibility or authority to be that man.

plastic glass

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296117#Comment_121296117

I like Claire Byrne and she works hard. 300k is a lot of money but I’m not sure what the cap should be on one of the best current affairs presenters in the country.

rte radio in particular have a lot of good presenters. Let’s not tar everyone with the same brush as tubs. He did absolutely no work, had a team of researchers and his show was light entertainment. He never really had to as “the difficult questions” or even moderate a debate

dubrov

The equivalent presenter on Virgin is probably on 100k and has a fraction of the support staff.

If they were to have RTÉ top presenter salaries, I don't think the lineup would be much different

mariaalice

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296191#Comment_121296191

It's peculiar but for a bunch of media people or maybe it's the navel gazing. The vast majority of the public are entirley uninterested in RTE or even The indo, it's yesterdays news.

head82

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121294282#Comment_121294282

I haven't read the entire article due to a paywall. I just watched the 2 minute video clip but I'm just as baffled as you are by these 'new revelations'.

It's highly likely that my take on the €120,000 'Loyalty' payment has been wrong all this time but here's my understanding of it:

1. RTEs' and NKM definition of 'Loyalty' fee are conflicting. RTE would pay the fee at the end of the 2019 contract if they had required Tubridys' services for more than the agreed hours in his regular contract. As no additional services were required, RTE felt they didn't have to pay the additional fee. NKM however, defined the fee as a 'use it or lose it'. Essentially a 'retainer'.
2. Tubridy and NK were not prepared to forego this payment despite Tubridys claim of waiving it (with no credible explanation given as to why) at the PAC hearings. RTE had to somehow find a way to get this payment to Tubridy without officially declaring it as it would have increased his fee above the officially stated amount. Hence, the payments made to NKM for 'consultancy' as invoiced thru the barter account during the pandemic years.

Admittedly, there maybe some holes in my theory but in my defense, there's an awful lot of feckin' holes in RTEs' explanation as well! As for the Indo's take on the matter.. well it's difficult to know what to believe considering their recently adopted pro Tubridy agenda.

Loafing Oaf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121296775#Comment_121296775

Maybe Bakhurst himself doesn't truly believe he is capable of delivering significant reform at RTE and may not even be seriously trying to do that. But as we move towards a general election, his political masters have to be able to make the case to Joe Public, even in a fairly threadbare way, that serious change is under way at RTE under Bakhurst and that's why the optics of bringing back Tubridy in a full-time basis, for the nexr couple of years anyway, would be disastrous...

MrMusician18

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121297218#Comment_121297218

There doesn't need to be a cap, what there needs to be is an actual realignment with Irish media market rates. Do we really think there is another media organisation out there willing to pay €295k for Claire Byrne's services.

I think not.

The big salaries in RTE for the "talent" were ego driven on behalf of management, not market driven.

Higgins5473

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121297967#Comment_121297967

Isn’t all this slightly irrelevant? Tubs spin team/indo seem to be forgetting completely that tubs didn’t get sacked or scapegoated by RTE because of his dodgy dealings and who did what, he got sacked because of his own idiocy and shat all over the hand that feeds him. They’ve lost sight completely of the fact that he was walking back into the job without even so much as a slap on the wrist, who cares who knew or who did what.

arctictree

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121298938#Comment_121298938

Maybe pedantic but since Tubridy is not an employee he wasnt really sacked, just his contract wasnt renewed. And hes supposed to have other clients anyway!

hotmail.com

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121297218#Comment_121297218

We all work hard .

She gets about 12 weeks off a year. She's been off the last week or more.

She's not worth almost 300 grand.

seanrambo87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121299111#Comment_121299111

I'm a sole trader. So in the same sphere. If it happened to me it is still a sacking just with a different tax setup and related obligations. I'd say you're being pedantic.

MrMusician18

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121299644#Comment_121299644

She's only worth whatever someone else is willing to pay her.

What do you think Byrne would get at newstalk, which is really her only other home.

hotmail.com

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121299843#Comment_121299843

Not more than 100k.