Dr.Elaine Byrne will be sadly missed!

Xenophile

Elaine Byrne will be sadly missed as she is leaving next week to take up an appointment in Australia. A very frequent guest on the Vincent Browne show did not give a definite answer on the question of when she intends to return to Ireland.

She has made a wonderful contribution in exposing corruption in Ireland and to my mind she has gone some way in dealing with this disease.

Political Corruption in Ireland 1922-2010, A Crooked Harp? Manchester University Press, 2012

This book, now on its third print run, maps the decline in standards since the inauguration of Irish independence in 1922, to the loss of Irish economic sovereignty in 2010. It argues that the definition of corruption is an evolving one. As the nature of the state changes, so too does the type of corruption.

New evidence is presented on the early institutional development of the state. Irish public life was motivated by an ethos which rejected patronage. Original research provides fresh insights into how the policies of economic protectionalism and discretionary decision-making led to eight Tribunal inquires.

The emergence of state capture within political decision-making is examined by analyzing political favoritism towards the beef industry. The degree to which unorthodox links between political donations impacted on policy choices which exacerbated the depth of Ireland’s economic collapse is considered. This book will appeal to members of the public and students interested in Irish history and politics, corruption theory, governance, public policy, and political financing.

She has done tremendous work in Ireland and we owe her a great debt of gratitude.

Xenophile

So it seems that Elaine Byrne's work on corruption is not worth a reply, or other journalists are afraid to put their heads above the parapet.

yosser hughes

Fianna Faíl are topping the opinion polls, nobody has been held accountable for the mess this country is in and it appears the electorate don't care.
I don't blame her for leaving and if I were her I'd forget about this kip.

heartseeker

Xenophile wrote: »

So it seems that Elaine Byrne's work on corruption is not worth a reply, or other journalists are afraid to put their heads above the parapet.

Could you tell us anymore about the knock-on effects of any of her work into political corruption in Ireland??

TJJP

A fine academic with a wonderful public service and engagement ethic, Australia's gain is Ireland's loss.

Cavehill Red

One presumes that this results from a certain legal action against her.
She is Ireland's loss. We need more like her.

Nonoperational

I might be in the minority, but I never had any time for her.

Best of luck to her anyway.

Xenophile

heartseeker wrote: »

Could you tell us anymore about the knock-on effects of any of her work into political corruption in Ireland??

I suppose the full fruits of her labour will not become visible for years to come. To get the tapes of the Michael Lowry and Kevin Phelan phone call, and to transcribe and publish them was an achievement.

BoredNaMoaner

Truly depressing news. Smart lady, not surprised she is out of this political kip. She was one of the few female talking heads on Vincent Browne worth listening to.

Xenophile

BoredNaMoaner wrote: »

Truly depressing news. Smart lady, not surprised she is out of this political kip. She was one of the few female talking heads on Vincent Browne worth listening to.

As she is quite young, the experience she will get from living and working in Australia will be very valuable and if she returns she will have the benefit of this experience.

I wish her a Bon voyage, and thank her for the contribution she has made to Irish life while she was here.

coylemj

The sad fact is that anything that she helped to expose resulted in a collective yawn from the electorate. Everyone knew that Charlie Haughey and Ray Burke were corrupt to the core but people still voted for them. Martin Ferris and Gerry Adams were cheerleaders for the criminals masquerading under the banner of freedom fighters who murdered Jerry McCabe but people still vote for them in their thousands.

It's said that people get the Government they deserve and nowhere is that more true than than in Ireland.

I've seen Elaine Byrne on TV shows and frankly I found her attitude pretty repulsive, anyone who didn't agree with her was treated with barely concealed contempt. 'Self-righteous' didn't come near describing her.

expectationlost

she seemed to have a contempt for Irish people, she prompted people to complain saying they hadn't before (when they had) this will only result in standards in public office reject 200 complaints rather then just a few. its not the public at large that's the problem, its the people in power.

Xenophile

coylemj wrote: »

I've seen Elaine Byrne on TV shows and frankly I found her attitude pretty repulsive, anyone who didn't agree with her was treated with barely concealed contempt. 'Self-righteous' didn't come near describing her.

I do not agree anytime I saw her on TV she was well focused, she treated all other panelists with courtesy and dignity, never interrupted anyone. Just because she in not a laugh a minute journalist and is not there to entertain may not suit everyone. She is who she is and most fair minded people will accept and appreciate her for who she is.

expectationlost

Xenophile wrote: »

I do not agree anytime I saw her on TV she was well focused, she treated all other panelists with courtesy and dignity, never interrupted anyone. Just because she in not a laugh a minute journalist and is not there to entertain may not suit everyone. She is who she is and most fair minded people will accept and appreciate her for who she is.

she was constantly interrupting conor ryan last week, she did it alot because she's more right then anyone else.

coylemj

Xenophile wrote: »

anytime I saw her on TV she was well focused, she treated all other panelists with courtesy and dignity

Apart from keeping your mouth shut while they are talking, how exactly does one panellist on a talk show treat the other panellists with 'courtesy and dignity'?

You sound like a one-man fan club.

Xenophile

coylemj wrote: »

Apart from keeping your mouth shut while they are talking, how exactly does one panellist on a talk show treat the other panellists with 'courtesy and dignity'?

You sound like a one-man fan club.

She is a dignified and courteous lady and a credit to her profession. Vincent Browne has just lost a regular excellent panelist.

Aidric

coylemj wrote: »

I've seen Elaine Byrne on TV shows and frankly I found her attitude pretty repulsive, anyone who didn't agree with her was treated with barely concealed contempt. 'Self-righteous' didn't come near describing her.

Fully agree. Much as she is to be commended for her work on corruption her holier than thou and contemptous attitude to others left a lot to be desired.

Cork boy 55

Why did she go?
What age is She?
Is she coming back?

uvox

I don't agree she made any major contribution. DId she inspire any legislation, provide leads for prosecution?

Unfortunately any of her media appearances I saw left me with the impression that she would be make more impact if she was less dispassionate about certain issues and two personalities in particular. Her book on corruption was based on her PhD. In academic terms, how often has she been cited?

Some of her public twitter spats were unedifying and the famous 'tape' turned out to be a total fiasco that raised nothing except the #vinb trend-o-meter. The tape was hawked out to RTE too who were unimpressed as were most of the Irish people.

Her writing for INM and for Rupert Murdoch's Sunday Times in Ireland was pretty what we have come to expect : Do as I say, not what I do. Perhaps Rupe has a job for her in Oz?

hadit2here

Cork boy 55 wrote: »

Why did she go?
What age is She?
Is she coming back?

I heard that a certain powerful person was ensuring that she wasnt getting much/any work from the national broadcaster and others.....

IRE60

As much as he/we think that that person has influence over the National Broadcaster, I doubt it's that far reaching.

Having said that (and a little aside) the coverage from the National broadcaster of the recent tapes from M.L. was amazing - in the fact that they literally ignored it! The only paper, bar the SI, to put the boot in was the Sunday Times and, more specifically, Justine McCarthy.

Rebelheart

Is that Elaine Byrne any relation to the Elaine Byrne who reckoned that Irish people who fought for the British Empire in World War I "died for European freedom"?


Having remembered that idiocy, it seems odd that somebody who has invested a lot of energy and personal reputation in putting herself in the public eye would ditch it all and leave Ireland. I would have thought she was high profile enough for TCD to want to keep her.

Xenophile

Rebelheart wrote: »

Is that Elaine Byrne any relation to the Elaine Byrne who reckoned that Irish people who fought for the British Empire in World War I "died for European freedom"?


Having remembered that idiocy, it seems odd that somebody who has invested a lot of energy and personal reputation in putting herself in the public eye would ditch it all and leave Ireland. I would have thought she was high profile enough for TCD to want to keep her.

I think it's a great experience to live away from the country of your birth origin and get a better global experience. " No matter how much Shamrock Rovers want to keep me I still want to play for Barcelona "