June 14th, 2006
Rattlebag petition
Various people have been asking me if there is some way to air their views or vent spleen about the cancellation of Rattlebag. News reaches me via Stellanova that Kilkenny Labour Councillor Seán O hArgáin has started on online petition against the show being scrapped.
June 14th, 2006 at 2:22 pm
Thanks for the tip off, Sinead. I’d support a campaign to retain Rattlebag and Mystery Train. However, I’m not convinced that RTE would want to concede programming decisions to us mere listeners. I’d say a campaign that identified alternative good programmes on other stations might help listeners to find what they are looking for. A sudden loss of listeners might make RTE think. But of course, we’d all have to agree to limit our listening to Joe Duffy ‘cos that’s what has sent RTE the signal that they should “abort the arts” and give ‘talk radio’ the nod. We’ve only ourselves to blame for endless wittering by Ryan/Gerry/Joe/Pat.
June 14th, 2006 at 2:45 pm
There’s a decent amount of arts stuff on Lyric and Newstalk has a weekend Arts show. I think one point worth bearing in mind is that the National Broadcastor has an obligation to arts programming and relegating it to late at night, marginalises it further. It gets subsumed by current affairs and talk radio stuff.
There has been talk of retaining some sort of arts programming during the day, but what that is, remains to be seen.
June 14th, 2006 at 5:47 pm
hear hear - RTE cannot bleat on about numbers and also have the license fee, it’s not acceptable that they have it both ways. If they want to compete on numbers with text message radio then give the fee back
June 14th, 2006 at 6:26 pm
However, I’m not convinced that RTE would want to concede programming decisions to us mere listeners.
The fundemental flaw of state broadcasting.
June 15th, 2006 at 7:48 am
The fundemental flaw of state broadcasting.Huh?
No, Simon. This is what happens when a semistate enterprise is torn between its public service remit and its status as a commercial organisation. It’s a form of institutional schizophrenia and something has to give eventually. In this case, it meant RTÉ went for listeners and therefore advertising revenue rather than fulfil their public service remit to support the arts.
Remember that commercial broadcasters don’t listen to their viewers and listeners either: they listen to their advertisers and broadcast whatever gets them the most money. Private enterprise is a fine and laudable thing, but just as the economy exists to serve the people and not the reverse, private enterprise cannot be expected to serve every public need. There is room for things like public service broadcasters because they broadcast things that would not be sufficiently profitable for a private enterprise.
If RTÉ was funded solely by the Exchequer, we wouldn’t have this problem. If anything, this whole sorry incident only adds to the argument for privatising RTÉ 2 and 2FM because neither fulfil the company’s public service remit anymore. But this situation with both advertising and a licence fee exists because this is a small market, and RTÉ have an awful lot of stuff to do. God knows, they do a lot more in half a day’s broadcasting (Open House excepted
than TV3 does in a full day’s broadcasting. Their production values are better, they produce vastly more native programming, their news and current affairs output, though not to the level of the BBC, is superior, and they actually appear to give a damn about genuine creative endevours, such as the arts, occasionally.
Stop with the message and start with some sense.
June 15th, 2006 at 5:19 pm
Keith,
I like the sound of your argument. Isn’t the public service remit a complex business? Do you, or anyone else, know where the RTE public service remit is defined? What criteria are relevant? I suppose the remit only applies to a portion of its output. Must be the same for the BBC because I can’t see any public service function in Radio One.
June 16th, 2006 at 7:52 pm
Here’s the Public Service Broadcasting Charter for RTÉ (I made a PDF version as their PDF download doesn’t work) and RTÉ’s policies page, which includes their Guiding Principles document.
The BBC’s Royal Charter and so on are available here.
June 17th, 2006 at 10:45 pm
Thanks for all the positive comments on the petition and please spread the word. Delighted that some of my heroes like Donal Lunny, Ferdia MacAnna, Seamus Deane and Hughie ‘O Donoghue have signed up. Let’s push it up over the thousand mark this weekend,
Beir Bua,
Seán
June 20th, 2006 at 10:13 am
I cant stand Rattlebag but we definitely need an Arts and Culture shake up on RTE radio. If anything, revamp and reschedule it, it alienates listeners from the arts in it’s current format and slot. C’mon, it’s on after Joe ‘lowest common denominator’ Duffy then goes off esoteric tangents. Scrap Dungan and give it John Kelly
June 20th, 2006 at 9:42 pm
Thanks Keith.
Very useful to have that. I can see many angles from which to criticise the marginalisation of Radio Arts Review.
Bob,
I’m sorry to hear that Rattlebag alienates listeners from the arts. Is there evidence to support this view? It never strikes me as “esoteric”, but that doesn’t mean much. To me, it has sometimes seemed a bit slow, when I’d have like a bit more energy in its presentation. But that’s not a substantial criticism.
I don’t really mind who presents it, so long as it keeps up a standard. John Kelly I only know as a DJ. Does he have a wide appreciation of writing, painting, sculpture, dance, film and the artistic process?
Sean,
I’m delighted to see the signatures grow. I wonder whether there is an precedent for consumer comment leading to a change in RTE plans?
June 22nd, 2006 at 4:03 am
Well, he does present The View, which, at least in my opinion, is better paced than Rattlebag.
June 23rd, 2006 at 8:38 am
The Arts Council have published a statment on there meeting with RTE regarding rattlebag (see the full version at http://www.artscouncil.ie)
“RTÉ reiterated its absolute and ongoing commitment to the arts across all its broadcasting services and affirmed that the arts will remain a key priority. RTÉ said the Radio 1 autumn schedule was being finalised. RTÉ is confident that its service to the arts in that schedule will address the concerns expressed by the Arts Council. RTÉ also said the appointment of an arts correspondent was a high priority.”
Right so all talk and no action then.
July 3rd, 2006 at 1:21 pm
I wish to express my utter disdain for the cavalier decision to cancel Rattlebag. The dumbing down of broadcast radio is one of the darkest signals from our fluxing culture. Rattlebag’s discernment is unique in Irish broadcasting. Though its goals are cerebral and high, I am entranced by its reach. It is held in the highest regard by the artists and directors I know and work with, but it is also extraordinarily influential among younger listeners. As the father of young teens, I am deeply gratified by their fascination with an ambitious arts show. Rattlebag represents the finest educational programming, presented with daring by some of RTE’s most gifted and visionary individuals.
July 3rd, 2006 at 1:33 pm
Hello moderator: Just so as you know, the earlier posting is the formal text I sent to radio’s new head hancho. I sent it, then thought, the problem with this square dance of formalities is it ruts inself in the institutional loop summed up by an earlier commentator: all talk and no action. I disagree that THE VIEW is better paced than RATTLEBAG: I have contributed to both, and they are different animals in every way - both smart, but different. The real risk is ubiquitous dumbing down. Did anyone see the radio review in yesterday’s Sunday Times. Summed it up for me. Ray Darcy sums it up. He’s fine, but he doesn’t seem to care that the inflow of “cultural comment” is idiotic mostly. And that’s the way it’s going, and apparently the way the new regime wants to take it. For god’s sake: Dave Fanning interpreting art? Hold the phone …
August 23rd, 2006 at 3:08 am
Very disheartened to hear about Rattlebag, Mystery Train, and of course John Creedon {graveyard shift for John i understand}. I can’t see this move paying off in any way for RTE, in fact i believe it’ll cause heads to roll at management level sooner rather than later. No disrespect to Derek Mooney, but i see him as cut from the same cloth as Pat Kenny. Dave Fanning simply has no taste in music in my opinion. I’m a full time musician/recording studio owner in my late 20’s now left with no option but to abandon RTE in favour of internet radio {good god why have you forsaken me?}
December 9th, 2006 at 2:15 pm
I think it’s extremely generous to say that Derek Mooney is of the same ilk as Pat Kenny. He’s not even 5% of what Pat Kenny is, and I’m no huge PK fan at all. Derek the voice of the nation? You must be joking.