Colm O Gorman on South East Radio

jd · 08-12-2002 1:00pm #1

Hi
Did anybody hear the recent program on South East Radio. I hear that Colm was subjected to venomous,anonymous abuse again.

mike65 · 08-12-2002 1:28pm

I did'nt hear that, as I rarely listen to SE Radio, who is Colm O' Gorman and why was he being abused? You've got me intrigued!

Mike.

jd · 08-12-2002 1:48pm

Originally posted by mike65
I did'nt hear that, as I rarely listen to SE Radio, who is Colm O' Gorman and why was he being abused? You've got me intrigued!

Mike.

Colm O Gorman is one of the guys who was on the program Suing the Pope. Certain individuals have a problem with the fact that he went public on his abuse by Sean Fortune. It is not so long ago that powerful people in Wexford tried to organise a boycott of The Wexford People for publishing a photograph and article of a local priest convicted of child abuse. Colm is the founder of the charity www.oneinfour.org

mike65 · 08-12-2002 2:11pm

Thanks jd, now the name rings a bell!

The attitude of some behind the mask of radio phone-ins
is sadly predictable. Even now many would prefere the truth never came out.

I could be wrong but at times Co.Wexford stikes me a bit of a hotbed of Catholic fundementalism.

Mike.

jd · 09-12-2002 1:31am

maybe at times, but it only takes a few..

But how you can insult people who were kids when they were debased. I came across this on the site (it's a poem that pulls no punches)

http://www.oneinfour.org/archives/000221.html

jd · 09-12-2002 2:31pm

From thw Wexford People
"O'Gorman blasted by callers to radio show

Colm O'Gorman, whose televised revelations about the church's failure to deal with clerical sex abuse played a key role in the downfall of Bishop Brendan Comiskey, was subjected to a tirade of venom during a radio chat show last Friday.

Segments of the South East Radio interview, broadcast during its Regional Express programme, were filmed by the BBC and are likely to be included in a follow-up documentary to 'Suing the Pope' which is due to be broadcast early next year.

Mr. O'Gorman said he was accused by one caller of not being fit to wipe the shoes of good priests. One person said he was trying to bring down the church and another asked him how dare he show his face in Wexford?

'That caller said I should go back to pagan England,' said Mr. O'Gorman, in Wexford with BBC Television producer Sarah McDonald to film the follow-up to 'Suing the Pope,' which examined the activities of paedophile priest the late Fr. Sean Fortune and the church's handling of complaints against him.

'It's easy to portray the reaction as a huge attack, and as a backlash. I don't know if it was to be honest,' Mr. O'Gorman told this newspaper, saying that he received a lot of supportive calls as well as emotive, negative ones.

'It was basically a tirade on the basis of who am I to cast aspersions about anybody?'

Mr. O'Gorman restated his position that he never sought the downfall of the church or the resignation of the bishop, in fact he had argued for Bishop Comiskey to remain in office.

'I'm not any great moral crusader, but people seem to feel threatened by what's happening to the church and wanted somebody to blame,' he said.

'When I left the radio station, I wondered what reaction there would be in the town, but many people were and continue to be supportive. That kind of stuff is always going to happen and it will happen again.

'One person said during the programme that I wasn't welcome in Wexford, but Wexford is my home and it's my Diocese, and I have the same right to be here as everybody else,' said Mr. O'Gorman, who as a child was abused by Fr. Fortune.

Mr. O'Gorman said the BBC crew visited Wexford town and Fethard as part of a follow up programme interviewing some of the people who appeared during the airing of the documentary.

'They just wanted to make a follow up, talking about the whole issue in Ireland, to highlight how far Irish has society has moved, to see how things have moved for them, what the impact has been for them personally.'

'I think when there's an institution, that many people believe is at the centre of their lives, coming under attack, the reaction is understandable. Some people will feel very angry, so I'm not shocked and not surprised at the extreme views.'

"

Stephen · 10-12-2002 1:06pm

What a pack of fúcking ignorant muck-savage pricks. :mad:

Don1 · 13-12-2002 2:48pm

My sentiments exactly. Every last one of those sick S.O.B.s should be exposed and made pay for the horifc things they did. They'll all burn in hell for it and with a bit of luck the zombified mindless followers of the affore mentioned s.o.b.s will follow them down and burn too.

13-12-2002 3:01pm

I didn't hear the interview, but I'm not surprised , if thats the respnse Colm O'Gorman got on the Regional express programme.

Theres a very strong cohort who do not give a toss about any wrong doing by their priests in the Catholic church and many would be the the type of listener to that radio show.

OK there are many good God Serving priests,but the rotten apples sure are plentifull and those are the ones complained about.
The Blue rinse brigade just phone programmes like these just because they know their age group are in the majority of it's listeners and as such it's one of the few last bastions where they can dream that crimes like these are swept under the carpet.
mm
p.s Don I like your avatar

Don1 · 13-12-2002 3:38pm

I do! I have have a dog that looks like him. It's black, hasn't got a blue nose, it's eyes are a lot smaller and it has bigger ears, but appart from that, it's exactly the same!

Colm O Gorman on South East Radio

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