(; ; RTÃÂ) is an Irish public service broadcaster. It produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, with regular television broadcasts beginning on 31 December 1961, making it one of the oldest continuously operating public service broadcasters in the world. It is headquartered in Donnybrook in Dublin, with offices across Ireland.
RTÃÂ is a statutory body, overseen by a board appointed by the Irish government, with general management in the hands of a committee of senior managers, currently an interim leadership team, headed by the Director General. RTÃÂ is regulated by . It is financed by the television licence fee and through advertising, with some of its services funded solely by advertising, while others are funded solely by the licence fee.
The current network consists of four main television channels (RTàOne, RTÃÂ2, RTàKIDSjr and RTàNews) and four FM radio stations (RTàRadio 1, RTà2fm, RTàLyric FM and RTàRaidió na Gaeltachta). RTàalso has a number of digital radio services, with RTàGold being its only online station with a full schedule. The broadcaster operates a number of online services including a news website and app, as well as streaming service RTàPlayer. RTàpreviously owned 50% of sports broadcaster GAAGO, which in turn operated LOI TV.
Radio ÃÂireann, RTÃÂ's predecessor and at the time a section of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs, was one of 23 founding organisations of the European Broadcasting Union in 1950. RTÃÂ also publishes weekly listings and lifestyle magazine, the RTÃÂ Guide.
Broadcasting in Ireland began in 1926 with 2RN in Dublin. From that date until June 1960 the broadcasting service (2RN, later Radio ÃÂireann) operated as a section of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs. Those working for the service were directly employed by the Irish Government and regarded as civil servants.
RTÃÂ was established on 1 June 1960 (as the Radio ÃÂireann Authority) under the Broadcasting Authority Act 1960, the principal legislation under which it still operates. The existing Radio ÃÂireann service was transferred to the new authority, which was also made responsible for the new television service (TelefÃÂs ÃÂireann). The television service started broadcasting on 31 December 1961, from the Kippure transmitter site near Dublin. Eamonn Andrews was the first Chairman of Radio ÃÂireann, the first director-general was Edward Roth. The name of the authority was changed, at the suggestion of ÃÂine NÃÂ Cheanainn, to Radio TelefÃÂs ÃÂireann by the Broadcasting Authority (Amendment) Act 1966, and both the radio and television services became known as RTÃÂ in that year.
Section 113 of the Broadcasting Act 2009 changed the name of the organisation from "Radio TelefÃÂs ÃÂireann" to " ÃÂireann", to reflect the current standard spelling of the name in Irish.
The "ÃÂ" in RTÃÂ is often pronounced as the English letter "E". However, in the Irish language "ÃÂ" is pronounced .
Under Section 31 of the Broadcasting Authority Act 1960, the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs of the day could direct RTà"not to broadcast any matter, or any matter of any particular class". In 1971 the first such directive was issued by Gerry Collins, directing RTànot to broadcast "any matter that could be calculated to promote the aims or activities of any organisation which engages in, promotes, encourages or advocates the attaining of any particular objective by violent means". A year later Collins dismissed the entire RTàAuthority over a report of an interview with Seán Mac StÃÂofáin, the chief of staff of the Provisional IRA. RTàreporter Kevin O'Kelly had reported, not broadcast, his taped interview with Mac Stiofáin. He was jailed briefly for contempt in a court case arising out of the interview when Mac Stiofáin was charged with IRA membership. O'Kelly refused to identify Mac Stiofáin's as the voice on his unbroadcast interview. The tape had been seized from his house by the (police).
In 1976, Section 31 was amended by Conor Cruise O'Brien as 1973âÂÂ77 Minister for Posts & Telegraphs. He issued a new annually-based directive to the RTàauthority, prohibiting the broadcast of interviews or reports of interviews with spokespersons for, or representatives of, Sinn Féin, the IRA and other named organisations. RTàwas also banned from broadcasting interviews or reports of interviews with spokespersons for any organisation banned in Northern Ireland under the UK's Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1973. The directives were reissued on an annual basis, up to January 1993.
During the late 1970s, RTàwas accused of extending the censorship rules into a system of self-censorship. A small minority of programme-makers also emerged who approved of Section 31, particularly supporters of the Workers' Party (formerly Sinn Féin the Workers' Party), including Eoghan Harris, and Gerry Gregg who opposed that party's official policy. Opponents of censorship were portrayed as secret IRA sympathizers, including then reporter, later Irish President, Mary McAleese. She described the experience as, "the most difficult, the darkest, the worst time of my life".
The effect of the Section 31 ban was more severe than the censorship provision introduced in 1988 in the United Kingdom. The UK ban prevented the direct speech of censored individuals. Broadcasters then used actors' voices to dub the recorded speech of censored persons. This was not permissible on RTÃÂ, which was prevented from broadcasting 'reports' of interviews. British broadcasters interpreted the term 'spokesperson' more loosely than RTÃÂ, which banned all Sinn Féin members whether or not they were speaking on behalf of the party. The BBC interviewed Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams as MP for West Belfast on 1 October 1990, speaking on unemployment in his constituency. Larry O'Toole, then an ordinary Sinn Féin member, mentioned this in a letter to RTàDirector of News Joe Mulholland on 30 October 1990, after O'Toole was banned by RTàas a spokesperson for striking bakery workers. O'Toole then challenged the RTàban in the High Court. In 1992âÂÂ93, in O'Toole vs RTÃÂ, RTàwas found by the High Court and Supreme Court to have illegally and unconstitutionally extended the censorship ban to Sinn Féin members who were not speaking on behalf of Sinn Féin. The RTàban did not affect UK stations broadcasting in the Republic of Ireland as, until 1988 at least, viewers in the Republic were still able to hear the voices of Sinn Féin representatives.
In 2004, RTÃÂ and the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources agreed that in the future, RTÃÂ would operate under a Public Service Broadcasting Charter.
On 29 June 2005, the Minister appointed the members of a new RTÃÂ Authority, replacing the previous one appointed in June 2000. Fintan Drury, chairman of Platinum Sports Management, and also chairman of Paddy Power plc, was appointed chairman of RTÃÂ. The other members of the Authority are Maria Killian, Patricia King, Ian Malcolm, Patrick Marron, Una NÃÂ Chonaire, Emer Finnan, Stephen O'Byrnes and Joe O'Brien. The new Authority would hold office for not more than three years. On 11 January 2006, Fintan Drury resigned as chairman of RTÃÂ, citing a potential conflict of interest in his role as an advisor to the organisers of the Ryder Cup golf tournament and as chairman of a broadcaster involved in a row over broadcasting rights. This occurred after Irish government proposals to add the tournament to the list of sports events that must be broadcast on free-to-air terrestrial television, to which British Sky Broadcasting, the rights holders, were objecting. On 22 February 2006, Mary Finan was appointed Chairperson of the RTÃÂ Authority.
In 2006, RTÃÂ was involved in a High Court case relating to referential bidding in relation to sponsoring weather forecasts: Smart Telecom PLC trading as Smart Telecom v and by order Glanbia PLC.
In September 2006, the Government published the proposed text of the Broadcasting Bill 2006. It proposed that RTàand TG4 would become separate companies limited by guarantee, with the Minister as the sole member of both companies (CLGs do not have shareholders). RTàwould be legally obliged to agree on a charter every five years publish a statement of commitments every year, and be under the jurisdiction of the proposed Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. The bill was delayed but was finally introduced into Dáil ÃÂireann on 14 April 2008. The Broadcasting Act 2009 retains RTàas a statutory corporation, but renamed the RTàAuthority as the RTàBoard and made changes to the way it is appointed. It also renamed the corporation Raidió TeilifÃÂs ÃÂireann. with the Irish Times noting that this thereby fixed a "spelling error that lasted 40 years". In the meantime, the Broadcasting (Amendment) Act 2007 awarded RTàcontrol of one multiplex for digital terrestrial television and gave it responsibilities in relation to broadcasting outside the state. In line with this, RTàand the government were currently in discussions with regard to a new channel proposed to launch outside the Republic, which initially had the working titles of Diaspora TV, and later RTàInternational. In April 2007, TG4 became an independent statutory corporation, having previously been a wholly owned subsidiary of RTàsince its inception. RTàcontinues to contribute programmes to the channel, including Nuacht TG4.
In July 2007, RTàbegan participating in an HD trial in Dublin, showing programmes such as Planet Earth and Gaelic Athletic Association matches. RTàannounced its plan to launch two further television channels; one general entertainment channel â RTàThree (working name) â and a timeshift service for RTàOne â RTàOne +1 (working name).
On 24 February 2009 the Minister for Communications, Energy, and Natural Resources, appointed the members of a new RTàAuthority, replacing the previous one appointed in June 2006. Tom Savage of the Communications Clinic was appointed chairman of RTÃÂ. The other members of the Authority were Patricia Quinn, Karlin Lillington, Fergus Armstrong, Alan Gilsenan, Seán O'Sullivan, Emer Finnan. Cathal Goan then Director General, RTàas an ex-officio member of the Authority. The new Authority held office for not more than six months, due to changes planned under the Broadcasting Act 2009 which became law on 12 July 2009, dissolving the authority, and replacing it with an RTàBoard. Under Section 179 (3) of the Act, any person who was a member of the Authority when the Act was signed into law continues as a member of the Board until the end of their term of office on 24 August 2009. Unlike the RTàAuthority, the RTàBoard has not a self-regulatory function over RTÃÂ, as this was transferred to a newly appointed Broadcasting Authority of Ireland that replaces the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland regulating commercial TV and radio. This helps assuage any concerns of the potential for bias that could be perceived under previous self-regulation by having a single regulator of public service and commercial Irish broadcasters into the future.
In 2009, RTÃÂ apologised to the then Taoiseach Brian Cowen for its role in the Brian Cowen nude portraits controversy. Future Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Charles Flanagan called RTÃÂ's backtracking a restriction on freedom of expression, and Liz McManus of the Labour Party criticised RTÃÂ for "bow[ing] to political pressure".
On 1 June 2009, the Sunday Independent reported that RTàwas on the brink of bankruptcy. Such reports are denied by RTÃÂ, though the organisation acknowledges how under the current financial structure there is "serious financial difficulty" and a review of its financial procedures is underway and to be completed by 2010. On 11 June 2009 the Director General of RTàCathal Goan reported to the Oireachtas that RTàwas not bankrupt and that it would break even by year end On 3 July 2009, the RTà2008 Annual Report was published. The organisation broke even in 2008. On 29 September 2009, RTàrevealed a proposal for the regeneration of its existing building estimated to cost â¬350 million. If approved, the project would see the gradual replacement over a 10- to 15-year period of most of the current 1960s and 1970s buildings on the Donnybrook site. The new building would accommodate the switch over to high-definition, additional channels and new studios. RTàhas since received planning consent from Dublin City Council for an application for the redevelopment of the station's Donnybrook site.The proposal for redevelopment of the site was accepted by local councillors last November 2009.The next stage of the planning process involves all parties having an opportunity to lodge appeals with An Bord Pleanála over the coming four weeks (by May 2010). The proposal would also involve building a new entrance onto the N11 Stillorgan dual carriageway.
The death of RTÃÂ broadcaster Gerry Ryan led to controversy for RTÃÂ when it emerged that traces of cocaine were the "likely trigger" of the star's sudden death on 30 April 2010. Drugs Minister Pat Carey said he was "a bit taken aback, first of all, by the whole attitude of RTÃÂ over the last while" concerning the circumstances of Ryan's death. Comparing Ryan's cocaine use to the 2007 death of model Katy French, Carey said that the media were "very judgmental" when French died but it had now "come home to roost in their own case".
In September 2010, RTàbroadcast a controversial nine-minute radio interview with Taoiseach Brian Cowen from a Fianna Fáil think-in in Galway. The interview led to increased pressure for Cowen to resign in the days that followed after it was thought he had been drunk on the radio.
Noel Curran was appointed Director-General of RTÃÂ from 1 February 2011 on 9 November 2010 for five years, replacing Cathal Goan who had decided not to seek an extension to the seven-year term which ended at end of January 2011. It was announced on 1 April 2016 that Dee Forbes would be the new Director General.
In 2011, RTÃÂ was sued for defamation after making false allegations about a priest. On 23 May 2011, RTÃÂ had aired a Prime Time Investigates programme called Mission to Prey, which falsely claimed that the priest had raped a woman and fathered her child while working as a missionary in Kenya. In October 2011, RTÃÂ issued a public apology, stating that the allegations were baseless and should never have been broadcast. The priest said he had been "living a nightmare" after the broadcaster made the allegations. The issue was serious enough to be discussed in both houses of the Oireachtas. In November 2011, the priest concerned reached an out-of-court settlement with RTÃÂ, in which RTÃÂ agreed that it had seriously libelled him, and paid the priest a significant amount of money in damages. As a consequence, managing director of news Ed Mulhall retired, current affairs editor Ken O'Shea was moved to another department, and reporter Aoife Kavanagh resigned. The affair was described as "one of the gravest editorial mistakes ever made" in RTÃÂ's history.
In October 2011, RTÃÂ was forced to stop a "share deal" scheme it had offered advertisers when TV3 complained to the Competition Authority.
On 24 October 2011, three days before the 2011 Irish presidential election, RTàhosted the final presidential debate on Pat Kenny's The Frontline, in which it controversially broadcast an unverified tweet mid-debate which was widely seen as damaging to the frontrunner candidate Seán Gallagher. Gallagher had been the frontrunner in an opinion poll at this point. On election day, Gallagher received 28.5% of first preference votes in the election, leaving him in second place behind Michael D. Higgins. The Guardian, chronicling the reasons for Gallagher's fall in support, reported that a final RTàpoll showed that 28% of Irish voters had changed their mind in the last week of the campaign, with 58% of those switching from Gallagher. On 7 March 2012, the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland upheld Gallagher's complaint about unfair treatment regarding how RTàhandled the unverified tweet on the final Pat Kenny debate. On 19 December 2017, it was reported that RTàhad agreed to pay Gallagher a sum of â¬130,000 as part of a confidential legal settlement arising from the debate.
Following the fallout from the RTàsecret payment scandal, the Irish Government agreed a programme of three years of funding; it agreed to fill the gap in collected licence fee revenue, which had seen evasion by the public rise sharply following the scandal. Combined funding from both the exchequer and the license fee for 2025, 2026 and 2027 will total â¬750 million (â¬225 million for 2025, â¬240 million in 2026 and â¬260 million in 2027), the funding will be shared between RTÃÂ, Coimisiún na Meán's Sound and Vision Fund and An Post for collection, with RTàtaking at least 85% of the total fund.
In 2023, RTàhad licence fee funding of â¬193.3 million and commercial revenues of â¬150.7 million, a total of â¬344 million.
In 2012 RTàreceived in total â¬180,894,000 in public funding from the licence fee, it also received â¬127,100,000 in commercial revenue. RTàtotal expenditure in 2012 was â¬327,023,000. They had restructuring costs of â¬46,161,000 in 2012. Losses for the year came to â¬65,147,000.
Profit and Loss across radio, television and online services for 2023: -
Breakdown TV and Radio
Breakdown of other activities
RTÃÂ receives income from three main sources:
Even though commercial quotas have been removed, commercial revenue and public funding each contribute roughly half of the organization's income. The licence fee does not fund RTÃÂ Guide.
RTà2fm was set up as a self-sufficient radio station in 1978, up until 2011 this was the case, since 2011 2FM has received a portion of the license fee. In 2023 it received â¬3.8m from the licence fee, or about 33% of its total cost base.
RTàalso supports TG4 through an hour of TV per day. This has been the case since 1996. The vast majority of this is for News and current affairs programming. Other content received includes Irish Language repeats and children's programming. In 2008 the portion of the license fee set for "TG4 support" was â¬7.89 or 5%, by 2022 this had been cut to 3%.
In 2011, as part of government cuts, TG4 direct exchequer funding was cut, this resulted in a portion of the fee going directly to TG4, however this was reversed in 2018.
<nowiki>*</nowiki>In 2022 the National Concert Hall took control of National Symphony Orchestra (Ireland), along with cor na og, the Philharmonic Choir and RTÃÂ Quartet.
RTÃÂ's former Director General, Cathal Goan, in October 2009 said there was "no question that by today's standards" the salaries paid to its top presenters in 2008 "were excessive. I have to repeat that they were set at a different time in a different competitive reality where some of this talent might be up for poaching by other organisations and in RTÃÂ's view at the time, they delivered value for money ". Fine Gael said the high salaries were "rubbing salt in the wounds" for people who had lost their jobs or taken significant pay cuts. Labour criticised RTÃÂ for not releasing the data sooner and said "This information should be easily available and there should be no question of concealing it or making it in any way inaccessible ". Many of the highest-paid stars are not technically members of staff but are paid through separate companies, enabling them and the station to avoid paying tax on their salaries.
Former DG, Dee Forbes, tackled the question in 2022 by saying "Some 1% of our cost base goes towards our top-paid employees." She would later resigned due to an agreement she arranged to pay Ryan Tubridy â¬75,000 extra which would come from RTÃÂ's "Barter account", she agreed that RTàwould underwrite the payment and later had to pay out the fee to Mr. Tubridy. She also signed off on an exit for CFO Breda O'Keefe under the terms of a voluntary exit scheme at the broadcaster.
In February 2023, RTÃÂ published the list of salaries paid to its top 10 personalities in 2021:
The above presenters are treated by RTÃÂ as independent contractors, rather than as employees, meaning RTÃÂ does not have to pay the employer's Pay Related Social Insurance contribution.
It emerged publicly in June 2023, having been known to executive management since early March 2023, that the figures previously published relating to Ryan Tubridy's earnings were inaccurate; this had been supplied, at least in part, through a barter account, attracting substantial additional costs. In addition, costs of Tubridy hosting commercial events for advertising partner Renault were paid by RTÃÂ. The scandal caused by this was associated with massive public disquiet, political comment and the resignation of the Director General of RTÃÂ. The chair of the RTàBoard said that the scandal was a "serious breach of trust with the public", with more than â¬80,000 more spent on fees associated with the transfer of â¬150,000 of that extra money. It was revealed the next day that the outgoing Director General of RTàDee Forbes had been suspended from her employment a day prior to the controversy and issued a statement defending her record. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described the failure as a breach of trust and truth between RTàand the Government, the Oireachtas and the people. On 26 June 2023, Forbes tendered her resignation with immediate effect. Adrian Lynch, Director of Channels and Marketing, was appointed to the position of Deputy Director General and also assumed the role of interim Director-General following Forbes' suspension and resignation, and prior to the planned arrival of Kevin Bakhurst into that role on 11 July.
On 27 June, Acting RTÃÂ Director General Adrian Lynch issued a nine-page statement addressing the circumstances around the revelations, stating that no member of the Executive Board other than director general Forbes could have known figures publicly declared for Tubridy could have been wrong and that external legal advice found there was "no illegality" and "payments were made pursuant to an agreed contract", adding that while RTÃÂ Director of Content Jim Jennings signed off on the payments deal, he was "not aware" the broadcaster was "underwriting" any payments that were now under scrutiny and that there was "no finding of wrongdoing" against Tubridy or the commercial partner involved in what happened. Taoiseach Varadkar described the idea that only Forbes had this knowledge as "not credible". Meanwhile, at lunchtime, around 200 journalists, reporters and correspondents working for RTÃÂ joined a protest organised by the National Union of Journalists to speak of their hurt, disappointment and anger at the way a small number of managers had betrayed and badly damaged the organisation and those who worked for it.
Seven representatives from RTàattended a meeting of the Oireachtas Media Committee on 28 June, which heard that RTàBoard chair Siún NàRaghallaigh, after a recommendation from a board committee, but without consulting the relevant minister, asked Forbes to resign on 16 June, and Forbes refused, after which a disciplinary process was begun, and that Tubridy was due a â¬120,000 "loyalty bonus" which for some "unexplained reason" was credited against his earnings between 2017 and 2019. The committee asked why a fresh resignation tendered on 26 June was accepted, obstructing its work, and while the question was not fully answered, the chair did accept that the potential impact on investigation of the controversy was not noticed by the board prior to their acceptance of Forbes's resignation. Senior executives attended a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee the next day, which heard that RTàused its controversial barter account to pay â¬275,000 for tickets and travel for clients for the Rugby World Cup, 10-year IRFU tickets and the Champions League Final in 2019, which was described by the chair as "outrageous".
In the wake of the scandal, it was reported that income from the TV licence had fallen by over â¬14 million compared to 2022, a 31% drop, as people refused to renew their licences.
Much controversy arose around the use of barter accounts to pay Tubridy's add-on monies, but they then became the subject of wider interest. However, in clarifying that substantial sums had been handled through multiple such "barter accounts", RTàdefended their use, claiming that they are a normal feature of the media market and that while it spent around â¬150,000 per annum on entertainment of advertising clients from barter accounts, it took in around â¬150 million in advertising revenue annually. At the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee, RTàstated that such accounts had been used to spend between â¬1 million and â¬1.25 million in the last 10 years, on such entertainment as a trip to the Rugby World Cup in 2019, Champions League final tickets, and 10-year tickets from the IRFU. It further gave an example of a sporting trip costing â¬111,000 which was for customers who had spent â¬38 million with the station in the previous year. RTàfeared that without such "gifts", they might not have been able to secure the advertising spend. No mention was made of tax treatment of such gifts.
In documents supplied to the Oireachtas, RTàlisted the earnings of its 100 highest-paid employees and contractors, all on pay in excess of â¬116,000, and 84 being employees. Including the members of the RTàExecutive Board, 69 are managers, and the other 31 are presenters and other technical or non-managerial staff. The Director General was paid â¬225,000 in 2021, along with a car allowance of â¬25,000 and pension contributions of â¬56,000, for a total package of â¬306,000, while the Chief Financial Officer earns around â¬200,000 plus car allowance of around â¬25,000 (any pension element not disclosed).
The total staff of the broadcaster is around 1,800, plus contractors. In 2022, 119 employees had basic pay of over â¬100,000, 22 of those having salaries of â¬150,000 â â¬250,000. 179 staff had salaries of â¬80,000 â â¬100,000, 550 between â¬60,000 and â¬80,000, and 740 â¬40,000 â â¬60,000.
It further emerged that aside from the high level of management posts, and their salary levels, there were exit schemes offered by RTE's Human Resources function, under which over â¬2.3 million was paid out to a number of departing managers and executives, with at least one payment rumoured to be on the order of â¬400,000. There were also schemes for ordinary staff. At least one executive package was not approved by or known to most executive board members, although it should have been approved by that panel.
RTàis a statutory corporation. Under its original governance arrangements (under the Broadcasting Authority Act 1960) its board was known as the RTàAuthority. The members of the RTàAuthority were appointed by the Cabinet upon the recommendation of the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. The RTàAuthority was both the legal owner of RTà(under the 1960 Act, it was RTÃÂ) and was also its regulator. Under the Broadcasting Act 2009, RTÃÂ's governance arrangements have changed. The statutory corporation form has been retained, but the new Act no longer refers to the board of RTàas an "Authority" and it is now simply known as the Board. Of the 12 members of the Board which replaced the RTàAuthority, the Minister appoints six, using input from the Public Appointments Service, the Oireachtas Committee on the Environment, Climate and Communications decides on four names to present to the Minister for appointment, one member is elected by the staff of RTÃÂ, and the Director General sits on the Board ex officio. The final members of the RTàAuthority were reappointed to the new Board in the interim. The provisions of the Act relating to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland were commenced on 1 October 2009 (under Statutory Instrument 389 of 2009 of the Broadcasting Act 2009). RTàis externally regulated by Coimisiún na Meán.
As of 2024, The RTÃÂ organisation is divided into six primary divisions: Commercial (incorporating the RTÃÂ Guide and the RTÃÂ Concert Orchestra), "Audience, Channels and Marketing", Content, News & Current Affairs, Network, and Operations & Production Services, as well as a Corporate Headquarters which is responsible for centralised activities. The Irish-language channel, TG4, was operated as a subsidiary of RTÃÂ (SeirbhÃÂsÃÂ TheilifÃÂs na Gaeilge Teoranta) prior to its separation from RTÃÂ on 1 April 2007.
The RTÃÂ Board appoints the Director-General of RTÃÂ who in effect fulfils the dual role of chief executive and of Editor in Chief. The Director-General heads the RTÃÂ Leadership Team, which comprises the company's top management and includes the directors of channels, content, news and current affairs, and commercial, the chief financial officer, and the heads of technology and operations, human resources and strategy.
The first voice broadcast of 2RN, the original radio callsign for Radio 1, took place on 14 November 1925 when Seamus Clandillon, the 2RN station director said, 'Seo Raidió 2RN, Baile ÃÂtha Cliath ag tástáil', Irish for 'This is Radio 2RN, Dublin calling'. Regular Irish radio-broadcasting began on 1 January 1926. Unfortunately, most Irish people could not receive 2RN's (1.5 kilowatt) signal. When faced with numerous complaints from Cork regarding the writers' inability to tune to the signal, Clandillon remarked in The Irish Radio Review, a magazine dedicated to the service, that they did not know how to operate their sets. 6CK was established in Cork in 1927; much of 6CK's output was simply a relay of the national service but it also had a significant input into the programmes of 2RN until it was closed down in the 1950s.
A high-power (initially 60 kW) station was established in Athlone, in 1932, to coincide with the staging of the Eucharistic Congress. 2RN, 6CK and Athlone became known as "Radio Athlone" () and were receivable across virtually the entire country. Radio Athlone became known as "Radio ÃÂireann" in 1938.
Radio ÃÂireann tried to satisfy all tastes on a single channel (with very limited programming hours). However, this resulted in a rather conservative programming policy. It was barely tolerated by most Irish listeners, and usually trounced (particularly on the east coast and along the Northern Ireland border) by the BBC and later Radio Luxembourg. This did not really change until Radio ÃÂireann became free of direct government control in 1960.<br /> In 1971 the radio service started the move from the GPO in the centre of Dublin, where it had been housed since 1928, into a new purpose-built Radio Centre beside the existing Television Centre on the Donnybrook campus.
Now, RTàhas a nationwide communications network with an increasing emphasis on regional news-gathering and input. Broadcasting on Radio 1 provides comprehensive coverage of news, current affairs, music, drama and variety features, agriculture, education, religion and sport, mostly in English but also some Irish. RTà2fm is a popular music and chat channel which commenced broadcasting as RTàRadio 2 on 31 May 1979, Brendan Balfe being the first voice to be heard on the station at midday when he introduced the first presenter, Larry Gogan. RTàlyric fm serves the interests of classical music and the arts, coming on air in May 1999, and replacing FM3 Classical Music, which had catered for the same target audience and time-shared with RTàRaidió na Gaeltachta, an exclusively Irish language service, which first began broadcasting on Easter Sunday, 2 April 1972. Formerly RTàoperated RTàRadio Cork (previously 'Cork 89FM' and 'RTàCork Local Radio'), a local radio service in Cork, but this closed down in 2000.
A slightly adapted version of Radio 1 is broadcast as RTàEurope on Eurobird; the main difference between this and the main FM feed is the inclusion of several programmes taken from RTàRaidió na Gaeltachta. RTE Radio is available on the UK Freesat service.
DAB test broadcasts of RTÃÂ's four stations began on 1 January 2006, along the east coast of Ireland, also carrying the private Today FM and World Radio Network, to which RTàis a contributing broadcaster. DAB was launched to the public in late 2006 with six RTàdigital-only stations â RTà2XM, RTàChill, RTàGold, RTàJunior, RTàPulse and RTàRadio 1 Extra â as well as the four terrestrial services. There were also two other DAB Services, RTàDigital Radio News and RTàChoice. RTàceased its DAB services on 31 March 2021 due to declining usage. RTÃÂ's radio stations are also carried on digital cable and satellite platforms in Ireland, as well as on digital terrestrial television, and RTàRadio 1 has been carried on shortwave in DRM during specific events, including the All Ireland finals.
In August 2009, faced with falling audience listening figures, David Quinn, organiser of the religiously motivated Iona Institute pressure group, advised that RTÃÂ has "alienated some of the audience it ought to be going after" and should "try to be more even-handed in its treatment of the issues of the day instead of pushing every PC cause going."
With the closure of Saor Raidió Chonamara ("Free Radio Connemara"), it showed the importance and it showed awareness for the Irish language. With this in mind, it forced RTàto agree to join with Raidió na Gaeltachta, which is still present today.
In Ireland, RTÃÂ One and RTÃÂ2 are RTÃÂ's flagship channels and are broadcast on Saorview (Ireland's digital television system) along with RTÃÂ News, RTÃÂ KIDSjr and timeshift services, RTÃÂ One +1, and RTÃÂ2+1.
Ireland was one of the first countries in Europe to embrace the medium of radio, but was a relative latecomer to television. Unlike its European counterparts, the Government of Ireland did not use the medium of television until 31 December 1961. Countries such as the United Kingdom (1929), France (1935) and Italy (1954) embraced television long before Ireland. Prior to the launch of RTÃÂ as the national broadcaster, television services were available, though limited, from Northern Ireland through BBC Northern Ireland (1955) and UTV (1959) . The development of the Divis transmitter in Northern Ireland in July 1955 allowed overspill of these services into the Republic.
In the late 1950s, a Television Committee was formed; its goal was to set up an Irish television service with as little financial support as possible from the government. It initially recommended setting up a service along the lines of ITV, using five mountain tops as transmission sites, which were also equipped for FM radio transmission. However, since ÃÂamon de Valera was somewhat wary of television, nothing more of consequence was done until Seán Lemass succeeded him as Taoiseach in 1959. A year later, Radio ÃÂireann was converted from an arm of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs into a semi-state body and given responsibility for television. Eamonn Andrews was appointed as the new chairman. A site for a new Television Production Centre had been found in 1959, and its construction started in October 1960.
TelefÃÂs ÃÂireann began broadcasting at 19:00 on New Year's Eve, 1961. The channel was launched with opening address by the then President de Valera. There were other messages from Cardinal d'Alton and Lemass; following this, a live concert was broadcast from the Gresham Hotel in Dublin. The show, which was a countdown to the New Year, was hosted by Andrews, with appearances by tenor Patrick O'Hagan (father of Johnny Logan), the Artane Boys' Band and Michael O'Hehir. Television became an important force within Irish culture as it helped to explore topics often deemed controversial such as abortion and contraception. The development of entertainment show The Late Late Show, began in July 1962 and is still broadcasting today. Such programming helped to influence in the changing social structure of Ireland. TelefÃÂs ÃÂireann began to explore children's television at this point producing the groundbreaking show Wanderly Wagon which inspired a generation with characters like Judge and Mr Crow.
In 1978, the Government of Ireland approved the launch of a second public service channel to be operated by RTÃÂ. RTÃÂ2 (later rebranded as Network 2 in 1988 and renamed RTàTwo in 2004) had a public service remit providing Irish-language services, while also offering alternative services â mainly programming from the US and UK.
During the 1990s similar to other European broadcasters RTàbegan to expand its services to provide regional variations. RTàdeveloped its only major studio complex outside Dublin in Cork. RTàCork, opened in 1995 and became a huge success. It also became a large contributor to network output on both Radio One and RTàOne. Also in 1995, RTàopened a regional broadcasting studio in Limerick for broadcasts in the Limerick area. In 1996, an Irish-language television service was launched TG4 (previously TeilifÃÂs na Gaeilge) was launched from Galway. While RTàprovided Irish-language services such as news bulletins (Nuacht) and the long-running documentary series Léargas.
RTÃÂ Television began to expand its output through the development of digital television. RTÃÂ Television services became widely available in Northern Ireland via terrestrial overspill or on cable (coverage and inclusion on cable systems varies). Since 23 April 2002 (18 April 2005 in Northern Ireland) the channels have also been available via satellite on Sky; however, some sports programmes and other shows are blocked to Northern Ireland viewers due to rights issues that conflict with the UK.
In January 2007, RTÃÂ announced plans to launch a channel, with the working title of RTÃÂ International, which would offer programmes from RTÃÂ One and Two as well as TG4. however this service has still to materialise.
On 26 May 2011, RTÃÂ television launched the public service mux for digital terrestrial television known as Saorview and Saorsat. RTÃÂ also launched RTÃÂ Two HD, RTÃÂjr, RTÃÂ One+1 and RTÃÂ News Now on Saorview on the same day.
For the 50th anniversary of the start of RTàtelevision John Bowman produced a history of RTàTelevision titled: Window and Mirror. RTàTelevision: 1961âÂÂ2011, which was launched by Taoiseach Enda Kenny at the National Museum in Dublin on 23 November 2011.
At 10:00 am on 24 October 2012 all analogue television transmissions ended in Ireland, and RTÃÂ's television channels are now only available digitally on Saorview, satellite, and cable. Also on 24 October 2012, for the first time RTÃÂ 1 and RTÃÂ 2 were broadcast from transmitters within Northern Ireland on the UK Freeview system.
In December 2014, RTÃÂ made television advertising history by airing the first-ever native HD advert in the UK and Ireland. The commercial was part of the 3 Mobile Christmas campaign. It was created by Dublin creative agency Boys & Girls and was delivered by global delivery specialists IMD.
RTàNews and Current Affairs, or Nuacht agus CúrsaàReatha RTàin Irish, is a major division of Raidió TeilifÃÂs ÃÂireann responsible for news programming on television, radio and online within Ireland. It is, by far, the largest and most popular news source in Ireland â with 77% of the Irish public regarding it as their main source of both Irish and international news. It broadcasts in both the Irish and English languages, as well as Irish Sign Language.
RTÃÂ News and Current Affairs provides a range of national and international news and current affairs programming in Ireland. The organisation is also a source of commentary on current affairs. RTÃÂ News is based in the RTÃÂ Television Centre at Donnybrook, Dublin, Ireland.
RTÃÂ News faces competition from within Ireland and abroad. Within Ireland, competition is provided by Virgin Media News and Nuacht TG4 in the television sector and Bauer Media Audio Ireland in the radio sector. BBC Newsline and UTV Live provide alternative news services from Northern Ireland, whilst global news channels are widely available, such as Euronews, CNN International, CNBC, France 24, Bloomberg, BBC World News and Sky News among many others.
RTÃÂ News and Current Affairs produces over 1,000 hours of television programming and 2,000 hours of radio programming a year.
In the 1970s, Sinn Féin (the political wing of the Official IRA), were said to have progressively infiltrated RTÃÂ's Current Affairs Department, through the Ned Stapleton Cumman, which was organised by Eoghan Harris.
RTÃÂ's gaffe in January 2009 over the need for IMF intervention in the Republic was picked up by news wires. Bloomberg noted how German stocks fell sharply, while Reuters reported that the euro dipped by a cent against the dollar before it stabilised following a strong denial.
RTÃÂ's producers and researchers were accused by journalist Kevin Myers of imposing a liberal agenda, firstly on one another, and later on the airwaves, but without consciously intending to do so. RTÃÂ News has also been described by him as behaving like a press officer for public sector unions.
RTÃÂ is a major broadcaster of sports programming in Ireland. Gaelic football, hurling, football and rugby are all broadcast live on radio and television and increasingly online. The broadcaster also transmits live golf, boxing, athletics, horse-racing and show-jumping and other minority sports, usually when there is a significant Irish participant(s), or the event is in Ireland. The broadcaster has secured many events, free-to-air which might otherwise become pay-per-view. They also have the broadcasting rights to broadcast the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Weather forecasts are provided at the end of most news on radio and television. Met ÃÂireann have been providing the forecasts since 1948 to Radio ÃÂireann and from 1962 on television broadcasts.
The URL is the brand name and home of RTÃÂ's online activities. The site began publishing on 26 May 1996. It operates on an entirely commercial basis, receiving none of the licence fee which funds much of RTÃÂ's activity. The site is funded by advertising and section sponsorship. , it is among the top 5,000 most visited websites globally, by Alexa rankings and among the top 20 sites in Ireland, with certified impressions of almost 40 million per month and more than 1.5 million unique users.
On Tuesday 21 April 2009, RTÃÂ launched its on-demand service the RTÃÂ Player. The service allows broadband users in Ireland to view some of RTÃÂ's top rated homegrown (i.e. RTÃÂ News, The Late Late Show) and international (i.e. Home and Away, Grey's Anatomy) TV series for free. A cut-down version is available outside Ireland. Director General Kevin Bakhurst stated there would be another revamp of the website and apps in 2026.
On 13 September 2012 RTÃÂ Digital confirmed that it has signed a deal with Netflix to host its programming. Episodes of RTÃÂ television dramas and comedies, including The Clinic, Trivia, Killinaskully, and Mattie, will be added to Netflix and available outside Ireland under a new deal between the broadcaster and the online subscription service.
RTÃÂ Digital division replaced the RTÃÂ Publishing division in 2012 and operates six media services
Areas of responsibility
Since 2022 RTÃÂ has supported just one orchestra, the RTÃÂ Concert Orchestra. The rest of the performing groups now reside with the National Concert Hall.
RTàOrchestras Quartet & Choirs supported two full-time orchestrasâÂÂthe RTàConcert Orchestra and RTàNational Symphony OrchestraâÂÂas well as the RTàVanbrugh Quartet, RTàPhilharmonic Choir, and RTàCór na nÃÂg.
In 2021, RTàand the National Concert Hall (NCH) were given the go-ahead to move the RTàNational Symphony OrchestraâÂÂas well as the RTàVanbrugh Quartet, RTàPhilharmonic Choir, and RTàCór na nÃÂg.
These groups continue to perform regularly in the National Concert Hall in Dublin.
RTÃÂ Transmission Network DAC (branded as 2RN and formerly RTÃÂ NL) is a wholly owned subsidiary and provides transmission services for all of RTÃÂ's own channels and also for competing stations such as Virgin Media Ireland, TG4 and Today FM.
Saorview, founded by 2rn, is the name for the Irish FTA DTT. The service was launched as a trial service on 31 October 2010 to 90% of the population and it was officially launched on 26 May 2011. Set-top boxes for the service are available The service is free although a MPEG-4 DVB-T box and a UHF aerial are required. 2RN can provide for commercial DTT capacity on its network for any pay TV service that can agree terms with it and Coimisiún na Meán (formerly the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland), however there has been little bidding for this. <br /> Analogue television transmission was ended on 24 October 2012 and Saorview became the primary source of Irish terrestrial television.
Saorsat is the free-to-air digital satellite television service in Ireland operated by 2rn. It provides TV services to the 2% of Irish households unable to access Saorview services.
In 1995, the logo dropped the Brigid's cross, and for the first time placed an accent () on the letter E. RTÃÂ also formally branded Network Two on screen as part of RTÃÂ until 1997, when the channel was once more re-branded on screen as N2. The three letters are a modern take on Celtic scripting. The Brigid's cross was seen on many RTÃÂ One television idents until 2003 and remains on the headed paper of RTÃÂ, while a variation of the 1966 cross is used by RTÃÂ's Graphic Design Department. Since 2004 all RTÃÂ service use the 1996 logo as part of their Identity.
In September 2014, RTÃÂ re-branded its network following a tending process introduced in February 2014. In 2015 RTÃÂ Archives launched a new logo which incorporated the 1969 branding for the word "Archive".
The Late Late Show has been involved in a number of controversies since first being broadcast on TV in July 1962, particularly during Gay Byrne's tenure, with the "Bishop and the Nightie Affair" in 1966 and a 1985 interview with a pair of lesbian former nuns which led to protesters picketing the studio with hymns and rosary beads after a High Court case during which there were calls for the chat show to be outlawed over fears it would "greatly undermine Christian moral values" and "the respect of the general public for nuns". Notorious incidents during Pat Kenny's tenure included a satanic dance troupe performance and the tearing up of two tickets for The Late Late Toy Show live on air.
The first sex scandal on Irish TV surrounded a sketch-drawing advert for Bri-Nylon underwear, involving a "lewd and lascivious" cartoon of Antony and Cleopatra.
Wesley Burroughs received a dressing down from RTÃÂ authorities after it became apparent actress Biddy White Lennon, who portrayed the character Maggie Riordan, was becoming increasingly more pregnant looking every week on The Riordans, an RTÃÂ soap opera he wrote for. Maggie Riordan was an unmarried woman. Burroughs was forced to consult medical texts to provide Maggie with an alternative illness.
The TV drama series The Spike, broadcast on RTÃÂ in 1978, was involved in a sex scandal.
In 1986, Mandy Smith was to be interviewed on TV's Saturday Live until RTÃÂ decided she should be downgraded to being a mere member of the audience. She was axed entirely when her manager disagreed, with RTÃÂ saying she was "not important enough" and that she might "give a bad example to young teenage girls". The story appeared in the international media.
In 2017, RTÃÂ sports producer Kieran Creaven was convicted on multiple counts of child sexual abuse in the UK. He had worked with RTÃÂ since 2002.