Does the Irish Times have a future?

MrAbyss

Fair enough, it has always had something of a snobbish reputation, but at least in the past they had a decent level of journalism who often highlighted important issues.

At the moment, it basically echoes government policy and the usual MSM globalism mandates. They recently ran a series of opinion pieces on 'old white men who are scared of Greta Thunberg' style tripe and proceeded to elevated this annoying Verruca Salt to the level of a great statesPEOPLEKIND and the saviour of humanity. This is pretty much the kind of world the IT functions within these days. It's not even meaningful or vital journalism. They do features on sexual abuse of women and forget to mention that they had an insatiable pedophile employed on their Sports pages for years grooming young girls through his endless fawning over the Dublin camogie scene.

I look at The Guardian now - reduced to having a PayPal donations button to stay afloat as advertisers have long since abandoned it - and I wonder how soon before this is the fate of the Irish Times?

The Rape of Lucretia

MrAbyss wrote: »

At the moment, it basically echoes government policy

I think you are just looking at this the wrong way. If such a quality newspaper is so in sync with government policy, it a very strong indicator that the government is doing the right thing.

Church on Tuesday

It's relentless attacking of men is something to behold.

It can go do one.

Sunny Disposition

Think it is profitable again and has got a lot of digital subscribers now.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

It's circulation is holding better than most papers here.

I find the analysis comprehensive and relatively open minded on home and international issues.


Great crossword too.

jack presley

I’m a subscriber but don’t get their obsession with Irish people living abroad and foreign people living here.

Your Face

Well it always had a suspect history being the newspaper of record during the British administration.

Recently it's just the drizzling ****s. Just another rag pandering to the current whims.
Suppose that's how you make the moolah.

HorrorScope

Nope, Irish Times and The Guardian are going to
find out sooner rather than later that Get Woke = Go Broke

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

'Yes Minister'
Jim Hacker: Don't tell me about the press. I know exactly who reads the papers. The Daily Mirror is read by people who think they run the country; The Guardian is read by people who think they ought to run the country; The Times is read by the people who actually do run the country; the Daily Mail is read by the wives of the people who run the country; the Financial Times is read by people who own the country; the Morning Star is read by people who think the country ought to be run by another country, and the Daily Telegraph is read by people who think it is.

Sir Humphrey: Prime Minister, what about the people who read The Sun?

Bernard: Sun readers don't care who runs the country, as long as she's got big ****.

touts

I'd say it's the best positioned of the Irish papers to survive. It has the most affluent readership. Come the next recession the mindless tabloids will cease to exist as their readers will get the same gossip and soccer coverage online for free. The Independent is on life support and will go under once Redacted stops pumping money he doesn't have into them to support a reputation he equally doesn't have.

Upforthematch

I think the Irish Times has a future. There's a lot of potential there.

However, in more recent times it's gotten a lot 'lighter', less content and less substance.

Unless you're interested in feminist coverage... significant increase in feminist viewpoints in recent years.

Sky King

Loads more spelling and grammatical errors on their online version I've noticed. Simple stuff any editor should spot. Not sure why this is.

misterme123

Not as bad as the independent but still full of garbage. Una Mullally anyone?

Richard Hillman

The problem is when you go down the ultra woke approach, you are one article away losing a ****e load of readers and they'll keep on losing readers for every tiny faux-pas they commit against their precious readership.

It will be gone eventually.

sabat

The Irish Times is already busto; what you're reading is a front for the property/legal/academia/ngo establishment status quo funded by property advertising. Without myhome.ie they would have folded several years ago

branie2

I hope it does

Arghus

Still a pretty good paper in my view. I don't agree with every last little thing they put in it, but that's okay. Can be overly Dublin focused at Times. Can be a bit content to stick to the middle on issues, but I think, overall, it's one of the best news sources in the country.

I wonder how many of the people who love to slag it actually read any of it? People like to talk about Úna Mullally, but let's not forget the paper also gives coloumn inches to Breda O' Brien.

It's also one of the major media institutions in the country that isn't controlled by Denis O' Brien, people calling it a rag and all that nonsense, should consider the alternative of one very powerful individual having control of the Irish media and be thankful that there's still a few dissenting voices out there.

I'd imagine it'll keep trucking along for a while yet. I think it's done well with subscriber numbers.

Accepting Cookies

Richard Hillman wrote: »

The problem is when you go down the ultra woke approach, you are one article away losing a ****e load of readers and they'll keep on losing readers for every tiny faux-pas they commit against their precious readership.

It will be gone eventually.

Can I ask what is wrong being woke, especially super woke? I think what you're getting at is that they're doing it wrong somehow... could you clarify your point?

(Woke: alert to injustice in society, especially racism)

JohnnyFlash

touts wrote: »

I'd say it's the best positioned of the Irish papers to survive. It has the most affluent readership. Come the next recession the mindless tabloids will cease to exist as their readers will get the same gossip and soccer coverage online for free. The Independent is on life support and will go under once Redacted stops pumping money he doesn't have into them to support a reputation he equally doesn't have.

You on about Denis O’B, mate? He doesn’t own Independent News and Media anymore. Owned by a Belgian/Dutch firm called Mediahuis.

meeeeh

It has better chance than a lot of other traditional media publications. Guardian doesn't want to go behind the paywall like Telegraph or The Times in UK or IT in Ireland but I think they actually posted a small profit last year. The so called woke readers probably have a bit more buying power.

ELM327

Upforthematch wrote: »

I think the Irish Times has a future. There's a lot of potential there.

However, in more recent times it's gotten a lot 'lighter', less content and less substance.

Unless you're interested in feminist coverage... significant increase in feminist viewpoints in recent years.

I think unfortunately this is the way certain waves of society are going
I didnt think the IT would be affected.



You'd start to think they envision a world where being a straight white male is a criminal offence. Almost a reverse dystopian universe from the handmaid's tale.

nthclare

The Irish Time's haven't much of a grasp of the past and present, so I don't think there's much hope for the future...

Chris_Heilong

When any media starts starts using post modernism theory in its articles you know it is time to stop reading it, I blame twitter for breeding these stupid ideas and you will find most journalists are avid twitter fans.

mariaalice

How come poster only see the woke stuff, it's got good business, political, sports reporting even the property analysis is good.

I like Dermot Ferriter and Frank McNally.

The Saturday magazine is gone off bit alright too many food-related items.

Sunny Disposition

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/media-and-marketing/the-irish-times-reports-5-2-rise-in-operating-profit-1.3964020
I'd say this is the most secure media outlet of all in Ireland. The paying digital subscribers means its future is not in doubt. There is probably not another newspaper in Ireland that this is true of.

topper75

jack presley wrote: »

I’m a subscriber but don’t get their obsession with Irish people living abroad and foreign people living here.

And those foreign people living here aren't the ordinary decent mind-their-own-businesss Joes that I end up working with. It is always axe-grinding aspiring 'victim olympics' types.

Accepting Cookies wrote: »

Can I ask what is wrong being woke, especially super woke? I think what you're getting at is that they're doing it wrong somehow... could you clarify your point?

(Woke: alert to injustice in society, especially racism)

Because it fails to focus on the real Irish issues of the day. No reading interest for the average man in the street.

mariaalice

topper75 wrote: »

And those foreign people living here aren't the ordinary decent mind-their-own-businesss Joes that I end up working with. It is always axe-grinding aspiring 'victim olympics' types.



Because it fails to focus on the real Irish issues of the day. No reading interest for the average man in the street.

Even the sport, political or bussines reporting?.

Showing my age here but to me, there is nothing better than whileing away an hour in a cafe with a coffee and the paper.

Accepting Cookies

topper75 wrote: »

And those foreign people living here aren't the ordinary decent mind-their-own-businesss Joes that I end up working with. It is always axe-grinding aspiring 'victim olympics' types.



Because it fails to focus on the real Irish issues of the day. No reading interest for the average man in the street.

Sorry but, who says what is interesting reading for the 'average' man or woman in the street, you?

whisky_galore

Rarely bought newspapers and don't buy them at all now.
Huge chunks I have zero interest in and not going to read, seems a waste of money to me.

the beer revolu

topper75 wrote: »

Because it fails to focus on the real Irish issues of the day. No reading interest for the average man in the street.

There's the Irish Mail for you.

JohnnyFlash

I like it and buy it a few times a week. I’m so privileged though that I can just ignore the work of columnists I don’t like - Una Mullally, Sean Moncrieff etc. Find not reading their columns a really effective way of not getting annoyed by their opinions.