Part 2 of interview with Frank Connolly

national | arts and media | other press

Friday November 16, 2007 10:56

by Miriam Cotton & David Manning

editors at mediabite dot org

FC discusses the way the media works - the pros and cons and acknowledges some of the contraints on journalists when they are trying to do seriously challenging investigative work.

Part 1 of the interview is here:

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/85060

Part 2:

http://www.mediabite.org/article_Confronting-Power---Pa....html

Excerpt:

MB: There was one thing that we didn’t agree with that Fintan O’Toole said when we spoke to him. He said:

“This isn't some sort of conspiracy; you will have people going from one week as a senior journalist to the next week representing a major company back to other journalists. There are built in advantages in the way that operates. It's parallel to the reason why big business hires tax inspectors.” [6]

Do you agree that there are built in advantages to that? We would see this as being a very unhealthy thing – that there is this crossover.

FC: There are a number of consultants who work for several government departments while they also work as paid consultants for Fianna Fail and even for individual ministers. The same people write columns for various newspapers a position they use to promote people who include the clients that pay them. That’s a complete conflict of interest. There is also a conflict where people are going from positions in journalism to high-powered PR positions. That’s a trend anyway because they have communications skills and they bring a certain amount of insight into the media to their new positions but I think there is a danger there just as civil servants moving from very sensitive government positions to private companies without any lapse or break period has a huge potential for conflict of interest and has had in practical cases in this country. I think the same thing applies to journalism because it muddies that area between so called objective journalism, if there is such a thing, and public relations which is to promote particular business interests.

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Comments (5 of 5)

This is not about Columbia, false passports or any of that

by Miriam

Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:15

Progressive Democrats are doing their best to keep all that alive:

http://www.politics.ie/viewtopic.php?t=28534

it is about abuse of office by Mc Dowell

by yes it is

Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:31

that means its about abuse of passports and Columbia. Language can be twisted to suit agenda
maybe the level of interview confrontation 'skirted' the issue.

No it isn't

Fri Nov 16, 2007 12:22

McDowell's abuse of office is another, separate point. Connolly has reported hugely important facts about Corrib gas and abuses by property developers among other things. Those reports and their significance to the Irish people have been buried because the government arranged the agenda so that instead of talking about those things we ended up listening to alot of stuff about Connolly himself.

Don't fall for it. Don't do it.

Connolly was abused by the Office of the minister for Justice and deserves Redress

by Yes it is

Fri Nov 16, 2007 12:26

As FC has said himself

Fri Nov 16, 2007 13:10

If or when the government ever decide to bring a case against Connolly he will deal with the matter then and there - in the proper forum an not in a trial by media. In his interview he repeatedly said that the government tactic is always to attack the messenger and never to deal with the issues and facts that he and other journalists have raised.

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Part 2 of interview with Frank Connolly

Comments (5 of 5)