BRING CHARLIE BIRD & MARGARET WARD RTE HOME

vinvon

This is a serious suggestion.

In light of budget constaints why are we paying to keep Charlie Bird in the US. It seems crazy. In this day and age bring him home.

Before anyone responds with that this is money well spent and let's hope he stays in the US etc., etc., we need to look at all expenditure. This is our money being spent.

Also, for what it is worth, Margaret Ward, "RTE's Foreign Editor" seems to be based in China. Why? Bring her home as well.

The time for wasteful spending is over.

RTE Management - please note.

Basq

Hmmmm.. should I just move it here?

jimmmy

vinvon wrote: »

This is a serious suggestion.

In light of budget constaints why are we paying to keep Charlie Bird in the US. It seems crazy. In this day and age bring him home.

Before anyone responds with that this is money well spent and let's hope he stays in the US etc., etc., we need to look at all expenditure. This is our money being spent.

Also, for what it is worth, Margaret Ward, "RTE's Foreign Editor" seems to be based in China. Why? Bring her home as well.

The time for wasteful spending is over.

RTE Management - please note.

I agree. I bet with expenses etc its costing over a million to keep them there. Our children + grandchildren will be trying to pay off enough debts from Ireland without telling them that the country effictively borrowed a million a year for them two nitwits to sit around most of the day doing nothing.

MoominPapa

Bring them home and then sack them. Is that what you mean? Otherwise how will this save money?

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

diverdriver

RTE is paid for by the licence payers and advertising. Not PAYE. In any case are you seriously suggesting that our national station shouldn't have a reporter in the most important country in the world? Maybe all the regional outstations should be closed too and bring back all those reporters back from London and Brussels?

In future RTE should just get the caretaker to read out all the newsagency reports at six o'clock. Who needs news anyway, it's all bad.

Where do all these daft suggestions come from? Has anyone got a list of all the stupid so called money saving ideas people have come out with?

Why don't we try something, cancel the licence fees and leave RTE to sink or swim. Oh wait, someone already tried that: TV bloody 3!:rolleyes:

jimmmy

donegalfella wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

Watch the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves. Self-important Charlie bird is paid more than many Prime ministers in the world, and God knows what his expense sheet looks like. A country the size of a decent city in Europe or America should cut its cloth according to its measure.

oscarBravo

Moved from Politics.

lostexpectation

did anyone see hilalry clinton interviewscharlie bird, (yes that's what i said)

did you see that interview abosultly was gleaned from apart from the fact that charlie bird got the first sit down interview with hillary.

and this
http://www.herald.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/forget-obama-rte-focus-on-birds-100-days-1684154.html
forget-obama-rte-focus-on-birds-100-days

markkeane

Let's stick to the facts guys. RTE is a public service broadcaster.
Therefore it pays public sector wages to all its journalists. Before you mention Pat Kenny and Gerry Ryan and a few others, they are all contracted to present particular programmes.
Charlie Bird and Margaret Ward were based in the newsroom in Dublin. They are not earning more money than some prime ministers and neither are their expenses huge.
In fact, I would wager they each earn around €75k.

lostexpectation

who's making the doc about charlie bird in washington?

Elmo

Why? It would just cost them the flight home. This wouldn't save RTÉ any real money. Do you want to replace them with someone else?

jdivision

markkeane wrote: »

Let's stick to the facts guys. RTE is a public service broadcaster.
Therefore it pays public sector wages to all its journalists. Before you mention Pat Kenny and Gerry Ryan and a few others, they are all contracted to present particular programmes.
Charlie Bird and Margaret Ward were based in the newsroom in Dublin. They are not earning more money than some prime ministers and neither are their expenses huge.
In fact, I would wager they each earn around €75k.

You're well off with Charlie Bird who like most RTE people is vastly overpaid. he was on nearly E150k a year in 2000 http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/archive/index.php/t-157829.html
He earned nearly E140k in 2003
http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/2005/05/20/story282451145.asp
He's probably on a good bit more now because RTE pay him to go on holidays and film them.

Elmo

I am sorry but I think is this a moot point. Charlie Bird should take a pay cut, but why should he return home to save money? how would it save money?

He was not part of the top 10 most paid this year.

GSF

Bird should be brought home as he in an embarrasment. Hotel room reporting & pseudo reporting at its finest.

Elmo

GSF wrote: »

Bird should be brought home as he in an embarrasment. Hotel room reporting & pseudo reporting at its finest.

I don't know he is far away which is a good thing, perhaps he should go to a non-English speaking country so we wouldn't have to be embarrassed (I don't think Embarrassment factors translate into other languages).

lostexpectation

look mary mcaleese is interviewing charlie bird on http:/www.rte.ie

lostexpectation

charlie bird in cuba :P

http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0731/1news_av.html?2588338,null,230

is that it?

is that the best he can do?

how about he question the whole purpose of Guantanamo,

how about after asking about the released deatinenees being checked he ask about the tales that some have gone back to attacking US interests...

how about he ask how they got there in the first place?


best charlie bird can do is call Guantanamo'controversial' how about crime against international law/crime against humanity?

how about rte reflect the reality of what they report, they always report things without conviction. they report things as if what the people are saying is right and true...


http://www.herald.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/the-united-states-theres-nothing-much-going-on-there-says-charlie-1827235.html

apparently there's not much news to report in the US??

why doesn't he write or newspapers or do more online stuff?

Elmo

I might have said this already but It just occurred to me haha

RTÉ should have a world news on RTÉ TWO at 11pm Monday to Thursday, we don't need the same news again, RTÉ ONE show a bulletin around that time anyway.

RTÉ receive free world news from the EBU, they should use it to their advantage.

giftgrub

Charlie Bird is now a small fish in a VERY big pond

The recognition is gone, the man does nothing of note. Anyone who's interested could find better news coverage with a quick Google search

Plus the US isnt really on the agenda right now...the focus is on which builder is in court this week or the numbers on the Live Register

Margret Ward? Aren't the Olympics over?

Elmo

giftgrub wrote: »

Margret Ward? Aren't the Olympics over?

She did have a few good reports/ a good few reports (depending on your view) from China/Tibet (depending on your view) a few months back.

lostexpectation

all he ever did for last few years was sit in on gov press conferences, and repeat breathlessly what the gov said from outside the buildings