Were journalists targeted during the troubles?

William F

Does anyone know if journalists were targeted during the War of Independence or the Troubles?

Some conflicts consider journalists legitimate targets and I would like to know whether or not this view prevailed in Ireland during the twentieth century.

Thanks

Jawgap

A friend of mine works for the Beeb and he covered Belfast, Derry and other parts of NI and always said they had no trouble.

He did recall a couple of times when their van was being hijacked to be burnt out, him and his producer were given a few minutes to get the kit out before they lost possession of the vehicle.

tac foley

Remember that 'there is no such thing as bad publicity', which is why journalists/photographers with legitimate and visible identification were more or less let get on with it.

tac

riffmongous

Martin O' Hagan is the only murder of a journalist related to the Troubles I think

Jim Campbell was shot, both were targeted after writing about Loyalist Paramilitaries

http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/node/39466

Santa Cruz

Plenty Journalists were intimidated by the Provos for daring to condemn I.R.A. atrocities including John Healy, Con Houlihan etc.

Fratton Fred

Wasn't the Europa bombed regularly because it was where the journalists stayed.

Not to kill them as such, more as a way of grabbing the front page.

Tramps Like Us

Journalists loved it for the danger money

johnny_doyle

can't think of any journalists killed or wounded during the War of Independence. There are the 2 murdered by the British Army during the Easter Rising but that wasn't a case of them being targeted.

William F

Santa Cruz wrote: »

Plenty Journalists were intimidated by the Provos for daring to condemn I.R.A. atrocities including John Healy, Con Houlihan etc.

According to Adams, it turns out Collin's had the Indo dismantled after they called for the execution of 1916 leaders. I haven't been able to find a source for that though.

DarkyHughes

johnny_doyle wrote: »

can't think of any journalists killed or wounded during the War of Independence. There are the 2 murdered by the British Army during the Easter Rising but that wasn't a case of them being targeted.

No single journalists was targeted by the IRA during the WOI but the IRA destroyed the printing presses of the Irish Independent (And I think some Cork paper as well also had their printing presses sabotaged but that might happened during the Civil War) for the anti-Republican stuff coming out of it at the time & still pretty much today the Indo is a anti-Republican paper like most of the mainstream ones.

pedroeibar1

DarkyHughes wrote: »

No single journalists was targeted by the IRA during the WOI but the IRA destroyed the printing presses of the Irish Independent (And I think some Cork paper as well also had their printing presses sabotaged but that might happened during the Civil War) for the anti-Republican stuff coming out of it at the time & still pretty much today the Indo is a anti-Republican paper like most of the mainstream ones.

Why does a certain segment of the population think it has the sole right to determine what represents 'Republicanism'? Why is anyone who criticises a 'certain element' regarded as 'anti-Republican'? Smashing a printing press is thuggery and anti-democratic, regardless of who did it.
Sadly not enough people have moved on........

donaghs

DarkyHughes wrote: »

No single journalists was targeted by the IRA during the WOI but the IRA destroyed the printing presses of the Irish Independent (And I think some Cork paper as well also had their printing presses sabotaged but that might happened during the Civil War) for the anti-Republican stuff coming out of it at the time

"anti-Republican" is a bit of a misnomer. The Indo had been a conservative nationalist (anti-Parnelitte faction) paper. It condemned Connolly in 1916 as it didn't like his socialism, his alliance with Germany - what they saw as the enemy of proto-Home Rule Ireland, etc.

The WoI trouble was due to its condemnation of violence against Police (RIC/DMP) and civil servants.

The Indo then supported the Treaty and later Cumman na G, hence problems with Irregulars and other nationalists.

Interesting though how journalists by and large treated well, compared with current ISIS/ISIL conflicts.

pedroeibar1

donaghs wrote: »

"anti-Republican" is a bit of a misnomer. .....

Interesting though how journalists by and large treated well, compared with current ISIS/ISIL conflicts.

I wasn't going to go down the convoluted politics road of the Indo, but there was a very interesting piece by Felix Larkin on the Freeman's Journal & Indo a few years ago in I think History Ireland. Found it.

ISIS - there is a big difference between (a) terrorists (semi-educated or other) who have been exposed to media and(b) fundamentalists like ISIS. Remember even al Queda respected the media, and Bob Fisk successfully met and interviewed Osama bin Laden.

Arsemageddon

pedroeibar1 wrote: »

I wasn't going to go down the convoluted politics road of the Indo, but there was a very interesting piece by Felix Larkin on the Freeman's Journal & Indo a few years ago in I think History Ireland. Found it.

ISIS - there is a big difference between (a) terrorists (semi-educated or other) who have been exposed to media and(b) fundamentalists like ISIS. Remember even al Queda respected the media, and Bob Fisk successfully met and interviewed Osama bin Laden.

Good link PB1.

There's a great account in Fisk's 'The Great War for Civilization' about his journey to meet Bin Laden whereby he had to travel for many hours in a Toyota Hi-Lux with a fella who's only English phrase was "Mr Robert, Toyota is very good for jihad"

Back on topic, Kevin Myers' book 'Watching the Door' gives an excellent account of his time as a journalist in the north in the 70's. If I remember it correctly both Loyalist and Republican paramilitaries planned to shoot him at one time or another.

pedroeibar1

Arsemageddon wrote: »

Good link PB1.

There's a great account in Fisk's 'The Great War for Civilization' .....

That is a magisterial work, a tome, required reading for anyone who wants to get an idea of the ME. Heavy going at times, but very well worth the effort.:)

William F

pedroeibar1 wrote: »

Why does a certain segment of the population think it has the sole right to determine what represents 'Republicanism'? Why is anyone who criticises a 'certain element' regarded as 'anti-Republican'? Smashing a printing press is thuggery and anti-democratic, regardless of who did it.
Sadly not enough people have moved on........

Failure of the democratic process started the conflict, it's not the other way around!

pedroeibar1

William F wrote: »

Failure of the democratic process started the conflict, it's not the other way around!

Which adds nothing to the topic in your opening post.........
In any case it is a circular argument. It could equally be said that it was the ballot box and not the Armalite that restored democracy.

However, it should be clear that it does help if the democratic process is respected, rather than the antics of some who ignore a Ceann Comhairle and a Dail majority in an effort to obfuscate their past behaviour of protecting rapists and sending paedophiles to another jurisdiction. Of course they will say it's their democratic right and it's a protest about water.:rolleyes:

William F

pedroeibar1 wrote: »

Which adds nothing to the topic in your opening post.........
In any case it is a circular argument. It could equally be said that it was the ballot box and not the Armalite that restored democracy.

However, it should be clear that it does help if the democratic process is respected, rather than the antics of some who ignore a Ceann Comhairle and a Dail majority in an effort to obfuscate their past behaviour of protecting rapists and sending paedophiles to another jurisdiction. Of course they will say it's their democratic right and it's a protest about water.:rolleyes:

Its the job of the police to investigate 'allegations'. Its not for the media or the government to make a political circus out of them.

DarkyHughes

donaghs wrote: »

"anti-Republican" is a bit of a misnomer. The Indo had been a conservative nationalist (anti-Parnelitte faction) paper. It condemned Connolly in 1916 as it didn't like his socialism, his alliance with Germany - what they saw as the enemy of proto-Home Rule Ireland, etc.

The WoI trouble was due to its condemnation of violence against Police (RIC/DMP) and civil servants.

The Indo then supported the Treaty and later Cumman na G, hence problems with Irregulars and other nationalists.

Interesting though how journalists by and large treated well, compared with current ISIS/ISIL conflicts.

It also condemned the workers who were just trying to get basic working rights during the lockout.

If the Indo was in Italy in 1920 it would have supported the fascists.

BlatentCheek

Arsemageddon wrote: »

Back on topic, Kevin Myers' book 'Watching the Door' gives an excellent account of his time as a journalist in the north in the 70's. If I remember it correctly both Loyalist and Republican paramilitaries planned to shoot him at one time or another.

I would take his claim on that score with a tremendous dose of salt.

Arsemageddon

BlatentCheek wrote: »

I would take his claim on that score with a tremendous dose of salt.

These days Myers is just a reactionary loon with a vastly inflated ego, but back in the early 70's he was a highly respected journalist. When the book first came many of his contemporaries were willing to vouch that Myers was prepared to put himself in very dangerous situations in order to get a story. That's pretty much the reason I bought the book in the first place.

By the by Peter Taylor's 'Talking to Terrorists' is well worth reading for anyone interested in how journalists operated in the north.

donaghs

Meyers was also a left-wing student radical in UCD. He finished there in 1969, and not long after was reporting on NI troubles. His transformation to right-wing reactionary was still some time away.

Tramps Like Us

The workers party planned to kill Vincent Browne because he was the only journalist who sought to expose the actions of group B.... one to ask Gilmore and co about