Decent Radio Station for news?

johnnyivan

Hi All,
I got into the habit of listening to Newstalk over the last couple of years and listening less to RTE. There are things that always bothered me about Newstalk - their dubious motives, their owners, their business links, their bias, their business objectives etc.

Despite this, I found it refreshing to hear what I sensed to be more aggressive questioning of poiliticians etc. RTE seem a bit too polite sometimes. They certainly lack the persistance of Humphries or Paxman of the BBC. A bit too reverant I think.

Today I was reminded once again that NEWSTALK are indeed owned by Denis O'Brien. He's the top man. I'll miss Damien Kyberd's lunchtime show and Eamonn Dunphy's excellent Sunday show but I think I'm going to have to leave. Just feels wrong.

Living in Dublin, what are the alternatives, in addition to RTE? I see Today FM have Matt Cooper and Sam Smyth. I suppose I'll discover that D.Desmond or T.O'Reilly own that.

whatstherush

johnnyivan wrote: »

I see Today FM have Matt Cooper and Sam Smyth. I suppose I'll discover that D.Desmond or T.O'Reilly own that.

Nope Denis owns them as well.

johnnyivan

Are you serious? So is RTE the most independent good service we have?

Crap - you're right. Is there no Irish law that prevents business people gaining news monop... Oh, stupid question.

later12

I think the best current affairs programmes on Irish Radio are on RTE Radio 1 - Morning Ireland, Today with Pat Kenny, and News at One (with Sean O'Rourke).

Drive Time can be excellent but only depending on who is contributing - Mary Wilson's passive attitude to life itself and her insanely soft questions make me want to pull my hair out. I am fully convinced she doesn't read the papers and that she conducts the economic aspects of her broadcasts on autopilot. Thankfully, she has some very informative guests and reporters who manage to seep their knowledge through nevertheless.

johnnyivan

You know, a couple of days before the election, Drivetime promised expert advice on how PR works and how to make best use of your voting preferences. I eagerly waited.

But the guests seemed to be clueless! One guy's response to whether you should give a vote way down the bottom - or not - to someone you definitely want to lose said, "Er... well Mary, just because I run the count station (invigilating and adjudicating or whatever) doesn't mean I know how the system works."

I think she was embarrassed actually - by the lot of them. I was more confused than ever afterwards.

RichardAnd

RTE are useless for news, nothing that comes from that sation is worth heeding. I've actually found that Radio Nova are better for news in that they have no affiliations.

johnnyivan

Do Nova have news programmes or just bulletins?

GSF

So based on your opening post, you are looking for a radio station that is not owned by anybody? Cant help I'm afraid.

RichardAnd

johnnyivan wrote: »

Do Nova have news programmes or just bulletins?

Just bulletins, they're a music station but they have news reports on the hour (I think).

LordSutch

johnnyivan wrote: »

Living in Dublin, what are the alternatives, in addition to RTE? I see Today FM have Matt Cooper and Sam Smyth. I suppose I'll discover that D.Desmond or T.O'Reilly own that.

Depends on how you are listening?

Portable radio? Mains radio? moblle walkman type? or other?

If you have a dish (or a computer) you can listen to everything from outside the State!

johnnyivan

GSF wrote: »

So based on your opening post, you are looking for a radio station that is not owned by anybody? Cant help I'm afraid.

Nope - not as simplistic as that. One that is more independent of potential big-business interests. I'd say of the bunch, RTE's the best bet.

johnnyivan

LordSutch wrote: »

Depends on how you are listening?

Portable radio? Mains radio? moblle walkman type? or other?

If you have a dish (or a computer) you can listen to everything from outside the State!

Wireless or computer/internet. I used to listen to BBC a lot years ago. But it's less relevant really! I don't think BBC is the paragon of news broadcasting that people like to assume it is anyway. Superior to SKY obviously (tabloid newspaper with moving pictures) I prefer John Snow's CH4 news. But, all the same, with limited time - I prefer to get Irish news.

RichardAnd

Well there is always Alex Jones' radio station. You can listen to it online but it's more at home in the realm of conspiracy theories. No big buisness interests there though.

johnnyivan

RichardAnd wrote: »

Well there is always Alex Jones' radio station. You can listen to it online but it's more at home in the realm of conspiracy theories. No big buisness interests there though.

Oh heck - don't like the sound of that. Does Jim Corr work on it? :pac:

dan_d

Hum...I've been listening to Matt Cooper on Today FM in the evenings of late.
He seems to have the clout to get the major politicians onto the show.
However his show was wholly and completely anti-FF. His questions tend to be quite good, but he can be very aggressive and also, can be given to interrupting people quite rudely when they are making a point, with a completely unrelated question. Overall, I think he's not bad most of the time....I've noticed that since the election though, he's a bit lost in some ways!!!!

johnnyivan

dan_d wrote: »

Hum...I've been listening to Matt Cooper on Today FM in the evenings of late.
He seems to have the clout to get the major politicians onto the show.
However his show was wholly and completely anti-FF. His questions tend to be quite good, but he can be very aggressive and also, can be given to interrupting people quite rudely when they are making a point, with a completely unrelated question. Overall, I think he's not bad most of the time....I've noticed that since the election though, he's a bit lost in some ways!!!!

Interesting. What do you think of Vincent Browne then?

dan_d

johnnyivan wrote: »

Interesting. What do you think of Vincent Browne then?

Honest answer? Couldn't tell you, don't think I've ever really listened to him.Or at least, if I have, he didn't really register with me.

I should add that I don't really listen to the radio that much in the evenings anymore....Today FM have a couple of interesting slots with American journalists discussing (briefly) American politics, and a financial guy that comes on aswell (name escapes me). The variety tends to be pretty good, and I find it's a lot better to actually listen to the politicians themselves being questioned, rather than some DJ questioning experts/commentators about what the politicians are doing.

Having said that, as with all these things there's only so much you can take...

johnnyivan

I watch Vincent Browne a few nights a week on TV. I never heard the Radio show he used to do on RTE.

sollar

It seems quite a bit of our private media is owned or part owned by rich tax avoiders (perfectly legal btw). I don't trust these peoples motives.

They are unlikely to ctitisize big business, tax avoidance etc. Their journalists are more than happy to hammer the working people and the unemployed week in and week out in their papers other media outlet. Never a word on how much our country could do with them paying their taxes here.

johnnyivan

Remember all the praise O'Brien got for giving a few million to Irish Soccer? (funny how Staunton lost his job around the same time...). Someone said to me, "I'd be more impressed if he paid tax in Ireland."