An Comchoiste um Iompar agus Cumarsáid/Joint Committee on Transport
and Communications
28 January 2015
Cathaoirleach, I thank you and the members of the Joint Committee for inviting me to meet
you today. I will begin by introducing myself and then address the approach I will take in my
proposed role and my view of the challenges facing the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland.
I am a native of Donegal. Following education locally, I attended UCD where I completed a
BA and MA in History, and the Australian National University where I completed a PhD on
the Administration of Ireland in the early twentieth century. A historian and educationalist,
my career has been spent largely in the public service in Ireland. As President/CEO of St
Patrick’s College, Drumcondra for thirteen years between 1999 and 2012, I had
responsibility for 250 full-time staff and an annual budget of c. €30 million. I was previously
lecturer and head of department at the College and Dean of the Joint Faculty of Humanities
in St Patrick’s College/DCU.
I have wide experience as a member of boards and statutory bodies in the educational and
cultural field. I served as a director of the CAO and as a member of the Teaching Council. I
was a member of the Governing Authority of DCU for fourteen years. As a founding director
and vice chair of the Centre for Cross-Border Studies in Armagh for more than a decade, I
played an active role in promoting North-South cooperation. I was also a founding member
and chairman of the Standing Committee on Teacher Education, North and South,
established under the Good Friday agreement.
As a historian, I have taught, researched and published on modern Irish history, emigration
and the diaspora. I have lectured widely in Ireland, Britain, the US and Australia. My
publications include works on Parnell, Eamon de Valera, emigration, Irish culture and
nationalism. I was founding director of the Parnell Summer School and am currently chair of
the Parnell Society. I am a member of the Universities Ireland Historians’ Committee on the
Decade of Commemoration. I have been editor and chair of the editorial board of Studia
Hibernica, the Irish studies journal, and have served on the board of a number of other
journals.
As an educationalist, I have been involved in the promotion of blended learning and digital
technologies in teaching. I played a leading role in the establishment of TEACHNET, the online community for teachers, and served as its chair for many years. An honorary life
member of the Irish Association of Teachers in Special Education, I have had an ongoing
interest in access and disability issues. I have had experience of industrial relations and
trade union affairs in a number of capacities. In recent months at the request of the
secondary teacher unions and the Minister for Education, I have been acting as mediator in
the dispute on Junior Certificate reform.
I am honoured to have been nominated to chair the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. The
BAI has, of course, an able CEO and experienced staff who have responsibility for
operational matters. I look forward to working constructively with them. I also look
forward to working with the new Board which will have an appropriate balance of skills and
experience for the fulfilment of its mandate.
The duties of the chair and of the Board are clearly outlined in part 2 of the Broadcasting Act
(2009). The role of the Board is focussed on governance, policy and strategy; the role of the
chair is to manage the Board. I would like to acknowledge the work of Bob Collins and the
outgoing Board in establishing new structures, introducing key policies and regulating and
promoting the sector..
I have a deep commitment to public service and a long standing interest in the educational
and historical dimensions of broadcasting. In October 1958, Edward R Murrow the doyen of
broadcast journalists said in relation to television:
This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can
do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends.
Otherwise it is only wires and lights in a box.
Morrow was speaking to radio and TV directors. His speech was a challenge to fulfil the
potential of the broadcasting medium. That challenge remains as relevant today as it was
sixty years ago. If anything, with dramatic social change in Ireland and the impact of
globalisation and new technology, it is even more so. A healthy, vibrant democratic republic
is in part dependant on a healthy, vibrant and diverse broadcasting sector.
The BAI has an important strategic as well as a regulatory function. The outgoing Board has
adopted a strategic plan for the years 2014-2016 which I enthusiastically endorse. My role is
to ensure that it is implemented. That strategy focusses on serving the needs of Irish
society and ensuring that viewers and listeners have access to a diverse range of
broadcasting voices and services. The underlying core values include protection of the public
interest; fairness and proportionality; independence and impartiality; professionalism and
commitment to learning; accountability, transparency and cost-effectiveness; and cultural
and linguistic diversity. The overall vision is that the BAI should be trusted by the public,
broadcasters and legislators to service the viewing and listening needs of Irish society.
Inevitably there will be significant challenges In implementing this strategy. Internally the
Authority contains two statutory committees – Contract Awards and Compliance – each
with its own remit prescribed by the Act. Mindful of the independence of these
committees, it is my responsibility to ensure that the Board as a whole works together as a
strong, cohesive organisation.
If the Authority is to be a trusted and informed voice on broadcasting and other media
matters, it will need to engage more with the public and with other stakeholders. In fulfilling
its regulatory brief, it will need to be adaptable and reduce unnecessary bureaucratic and
administrative burdens, both on those who make programmes and those who view or listen
to them. Following extensive consultation, the Authority has developed a series of codes for
the guidance of programme makers including the Code of Fairness and Impartiality and,
most recently, the Code of Programme Standards and the BAI Access Rules which were
launched yesterday. I welcome the Access Rules as they begin to address the needs of
those who are deaf or have a hearing impairment, and those who are blind or partially
sighted, with a view to enhancing their enjoyment of programmes. The Code of Programme
Standards to be observed by programme makers is also an important landmark. In ensuring
that such rules and codes are fair and appropriate, the Authority will need to ensure a
balance between viewer and listener expectation and the wider global media market where
lesser regulation may exist.
The Authority’s overall strategy is predicated on ensuring the strength of public, commercial
and community broadcasting sectors in the face of a challenging financial environment and
significant external competition. The BAI is committed to maintaining a strong, public
service broadcaster while at the same time vindicating the requirement for accountability
and transparency in the use of public funds.
The Authority will continue to encourage and support high quality programmes through the
Sound and Vision scheme which is having a significant cumulative impact. More than €70
million has been allocated under this scheme over the last five years. Notable recent
examples of programmes supported are One Million Dubliners, Charlie, Red Rock, The
Guarantee, Corp agus Anam and Song of the Sea. The latter which has recently been
nominated for an Oscar, received €500,000 from the Sound and Vision scheme. The
Authority will continue to support learning and development initiatives which build
expertise locally and enhance the quality and diversity of programming.
The broadcasting environment is changing and challenging. The difficult economic context,
diminishing advertising revenue, increased competition particularly from abroad, new
technology and media all inhibit initiative and development. However the paradoxical
pattern of ever increasing choice and diminishing quality is not inevitable. Ed Morrow threw
down the gauntlet to broadcasters and regulators in his own day. He challenged them to
ensure that TV and radio educated, illuminated and inspired. Otherwise, it was just wires
and lights in a box. We should not hesitate to embrace Morrow’s challenge while reshaping
it for an Irish context.
To that end, I look forward to working with the Board, the broadcasters, the Minister and
the Department and the members of this committee. Go raibh míle maith agaibh.