The man reading the Nuacht on Radio 1

Colours

This guy sounds like he can't read properly or else he's lost his glasses or something. He keeps saying "eh...ehm....eh..eh..ehm"; there's at least one "eh-ehm" in every other sentence, no exaggeration; it's painful to listen to. I don't listen out for the news in Irish but it was so noticeable while I had Radio 1 on last week that I felt like turning the radio off while it was on. I thought that maybe this guy was standing in for the regular reader during the Easter break but have just heard him on again reading the news as Gaeilge at 10pm tonight.

I cannot understand how he was not taken off air after the first time he "read" the news like this. Or has he always read it like this? Is it the style maybe for the reader to read the news in Irish like he's only read it for the first time and he's left his glasses behind? I just think it's extremely unprofessional to deliver such a poor performance, considering this is the person's job and I don't understand why RTE doesn't replace him with someone else who can actually read and speak in Irish clearly and smoothly without struggling as I've no doubt there are hundreds of people who could fit the bill.

Has anyone else noticed this?

ofcork

Think this was mentioned in another thread here.

Colours

Is that so ofcork? I'd be interested to read it but nothing similar came up when I did a search on boards under "nuacht" or "news in Irish". Perhaps you could send me a link to the relevant thread? Thanks.

Horsetiger

I think it was this thread.

Harry Angstrom

If it's the same guy who reads out the nuacht during the Mooney Show most of the time, I agree with you. Granted, I don't understand most of what he's saying because that Gaeltacht-Irish has always sounded like gibberish to me, even when I was doing the Leaving Cert, but he always seems to be stumbling over his words. Maybe he gets away with it because his bosses in RTE haven't a bull's notion about what he's saying either

JonathanAnon

He's all over the place again today..

Colours

Horsetiger wrote: »

I think it was this thread.

Thanks for sending on the link Horsetiger. Only just seen your post now.

JonathanAnon I heard him again the other day stumbling through the nuacht as gaeilge and listened out for his name this time and sure enough it was Seamas O'Scanlain. I wonder why the management hasn't told him to brush up his act if he wants to keep the gig? All he needs to do basically is read over the lines a few times and/or get his eyesight checked. If that doesn't correct it then maybe he has some kind of speech impediment. Either way he shouldn't be reading the news if he can't string a sentence together like that.

snubbleste

I heard him as well.
He can read and talk fine as he presents (or used to) the Nuacht on tv.

However, I'm pretty sure that he is reading something in English and saying it as Gaeilge on the radio. He is translating on the go so to speak.
That's what it sounds like to me as a bilingual speaker

And may I add that he is pretty good at doing that imo

Colours

snubbleste wrote: »

I heard him as well.
He can read and talk fine as he presents (or used to) the Nuacht on tv.

However, I'm pretty sure that he is reading something in English and saying it as Gaeilge on the radio. He is translating on the go so to speak.
That's what it sounds like to me as a bilingual speaker

And may I add that he is pretty good at doing that imo

So what you're saying is that Seamas is instantaneously translating the news that's been rather unhelpfully handed to him as Bearla into Gaeilge? A bit unlikely in my opinion but say it were the case, then given that he repeats the same news a few more times in the same day, don't you think he'd have jotted it down for himself in the meantime?

A news reader's job is to deliver the news clearly to the listener. How come the other newsreaders, both in English and Irish, are able to read the news clearly without stopping and starting and pausing and ehhm-ing and ehh-ing?

snubbleste

Other newsreaders have it translated for them I guess. Why don't you write to RTE and enquire ?
I think Seamus does a good job!

shockwave

Why cant he just type it out in irish instead of translating on the fly, would make it a lot easier for himself.

Colours

snubbleste wrote: »

Other newsreaders have it translated for them I guess. Why don't you write to RTE and enquire ?
I think Seamus does a good job!

Do you mean why don't I inquire from RTE about whether he has to translate the news at the same time as reading it? Because I am sure that he is not translating the news from English to Irish on the hoof on live radio.

Or do you mean why don't I write to RTE about why they don't replace him with a newsreader who can read the news clearly and smoothly? Because it doesn't annoy me sufficiently to do that. I don't wish to sound mean or over critical about him but I just think it is poor broadcasting.

craoltoir

The script he reads is as gaeilge. The fact that he does not have a good raido voice......sin scéal eile.