‘Why Weren’t They Investigated By Irish Journalists?’

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From top: Intercom outside the offices of Pro 10 Sports Management in a building it shares with other companies on Main Street in Lucan, Dublin; Eamon Dunphy

Because junkets.

Earlier today.

Broadcaster Eamon Dunphy, Daniel McConnell, political editor of The Irish Examiner, and Catherine O’Halloran, political correspondent of the Irish Daily Star, spoke to Keelin Shanley during the Today with Sean O’Rourke’s Gathering slot.

During their discussion, they talked about the Rio tickets investigation.

Further to reports this week that Pro 10, which was formed in May of last year, was the only company to apply for the Olympic Council of Ireland contract for selling Rio Olympic tickets, and received it five months later…

And that the Brazilian authorities have issued arrest warrants for Pro 10’s three directors Michael Glynn, Eamonn Collins and Ken Murray…

And that the OCI has received €1.7million in public funds in the past four years…

Eamon Dunphy: “I think journalism here has a question to answer, Daniel: Why wasn’t Pro 10, for example, this shadow, apparently, the shadow company – whose directors are football agents, why weren’t they investigated by Irish journalists?”

Daniel McConnell: “Eamon, I’m a political reporter, so..”

Dunphy: “No, but…”

McConnell: “…When this, when this story broke… but I would agree with you. One question I think has to be answered is: How did they get the licence?”

Dunphy: “Yes. Did they get the licence before, did they get the licence from the Olympic Council of Ireland before the company was incorporated?”

McConnell: “Yeah.”

Keelin Shanley: “And was there an open tender process?…there’s a lot in that..”

Listen back in full here

Previously: Calling It

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61 thoughts on “‘Why Weren’t They Investigated By Irish Journalists?’”

    1. Sheik Yahbouti

      Yeah. Yawn, yawn, yawn – “why was “X” not investigated by Irish Journalists (and made public)”? We’ll give you a few good guesses.

    2. Louis Lefronde

      Maybe because, Irish journalists are too lazy to investigate. What Ireland needs are old school Pulitzer journalists who are fearless in chasing down white collar crime and corruption…. Relentlessly exposing them and following up when they’re not prosecuted.

      1. lolly

        maybe if people bought more newspapers they would have the resources to do more investigative work. saying Irish journalists are lazy is exactly the kind of thing someone who has no knowledge of the industry would say. most are worked to the bone for significantly less money than they were paid 15 years ago and with zero job security. (yes I’m one of them so I might be biased)

        1. Barticus

          Ah now Lolly, sure thats what the internet is for. so we don’t have to sully our hands with ink.
          Ps; I enjoyed your books on the Tans! keep it up

        2. Jesus Wept

          So you want more money first then you’ll do some investigating.Sounds about right or maybe you wouldn’t be very good at it.

        3. Mé Féin

          Irish journos were never good at investigating. They are also lazy and prone to group think. I should know…

    1. Brother Barnabas

      Yeah, high-earning millionaire gives support to political party with policy to cut taxes on high-earning millionaires….what a fool he is.

      1. Cot

        That’d be fine. But then he REPENTED about giving them money, because they only looked after corporate Ireland (which he app. did not know about).

    2. cluster

      Much worse than that was his chumminess with Bertie & FF.

      The PDs are finished now but were a positive force when they arrived on the scene. A lot of what they espoused was worth discussing at least. in the febrile atmosphere of the day.

      Part of the reason they are criticised so harshly is beacuse FF took some of their ideas & ran with it in a thoughtless, reckless fashion.

      1. The Real Jane

        Really? Some old blokes sell some tickets to an event marked by cheating and dubious politicking that’s beyond the means for most people, thereby diverting profits from one corrupt source to another.

        I mean, it’s probably worthy of passing comment, but unlike other scandals, nobody who wasn’t going to spend 800 big ones on a ticket for a dull event in forrin is really affected.

        1. MoyestWithExcitement

          Functional societies are based on fairness. Working class people, who can go to prison over an unpaid bill, need to see corruption in the upper echelons get punished as well, especially when it concerns an organisation funded by the taxpayer.

          1. The Real Jane

            Yeah, but it’s hardly deserving of the breathless blanket coverage it’s been getting on RTE. I’m not for one second saying that it shouldn’t be investigated and, if appropriate, prosecuted, just that while they’re devoting countless hours to Pat Hickey’s Bathrobe and whether Brazilian justice is familiar or different to Irish justice, the net effect is that issues that really should be investigated are pushed aside as always.

          2. MoyestWithExcitement

            Well I hardly ever watch rte news so I’ll take your word for it on that but it definitely deserves a significant, professional, amount for the reasons I gave.

            Your bathrobe comment suggests a tabloidy feel and that’s because the Olympics are pretty topical in fairness plus our little islander mentality is probably seduced by the international flavour of it and the movie like scenes of him getting arrested.

            These stories are a minority but human nature is going to see them seep through sometimes and always will. Not that long since Russel Brand prank calling some lad’s voicemail was literally headline news on all UK channels for at least 5 days in a row and I think more.

          3. cluster

            Well said, Moyest.

            Also, the OCI receives substantial public funding. They should be held accountable & not be used as a piggybank. The fact that Hickey has been able to remain in place for so long, thumbing his nose at any sort of real accountability, despite not actually doing a good job (we win less medals per capita than other developed nations despite the fact that we are sports-mad) points to the sorts of state/journalistic weakness which we need to improve.

            The idea, the Real Jane, that ‘shure, its not a big deal anyway’ is something we should completely root out. Hickey has made an embarrassment of us this week, and has held back the careers of other younger sports administrators who could have improved sports admin in Ireland in all sorts of ways. This problem of the well-got but ineffective CEO is not limited to the OCI. You can either just accept whatever is handed to you or you can take incremental steps to battle the problems which afflict you. Hickey

          4. some old queen

            @ The Real Jane

            If RTE had been doing their job in the first place, questions would have been asked long before now. So instead they now blanket cover the story. Cover being the operative word because it shouldn’t have taken much investigative journalism to ascertain what was really going on, especially after concerns were raised in Rio.

          6. rotide

            Why are you making it sound like no one has ever asked questions about him before when we saw on these very pages 2 days ago an article from 1996 written by David Walsh?

            Clearly questions have been asked and investigations done, but nothing has come of it.

            I’m not 100% sure how National Olympic Councils work but the way FIFA get around blatant corruption is that they have a rule that national governments may not get involved in FIFA business. So if you discover that your FA’s CEO is corrupt as hell and taking bribes and you fire him and start investigating, FIFA scream ‘political interferance’ and suspend the country from competition. This little trick has been abused repeatadly in Africa and the Carribean.

            I don’t know, but I’d imagine its similar with NOCs

  6. Tish Mahorey

    And RTE still using their business correspondent to report on the Pat Hickey arrest instead of their crime correspondent Paul Reynolds.

    It’s not a crime if it’s a professional person you see. It’s just a mistake. And the mistake is getting caught.

    1. Rugbyfan

      apparently there are 75 RTE holidaymakers out there. Paul should be flown out to add to the mix!

      2. cluster

        How many would be the appropriate number for the Olympic Games, especially given the significance of some of the Irish stories – Hickey, Billy Walsh, corruption in the IABA?

  7. Fully Keen

    Don’t make waves in the gravy boat. Please!! Settle and we can all get some.

    Mind your job, mind your pension and keep your head down. Are people new to this island still not sure about the rules here?

    I have leaflets in my car, wait here.

      2. rotide

        He really was.

        He wrote some of the best sports articles this island has ever seen.

        Of course that doesn’t negate the crimes he committed just as his crimes don’t negate his writing talent.

    2. Andrew

      Has he been brought to trial? Or is that being covered up as well?
      Irish journalism has a lot to be embarrassed about. This Olympic scandal is the least of it.

  9. Jake38

    Irish journalism 101

    1) Check AP for story. Copy.
    2) Send out a few FOI requests. Select bits.
    3) Write about someones salary, a source of endless fascination to you as a journalist ever since your job stopped paying money.
    4) Rinse. Repeat.

  10. some old queen

    It is quite extraordinary that this setup was being raised as a matter of concern by Brazilian politicians and yet, not one journalist here seen fit to investigate it.

    1. Daisy Chainsaw

      Why would they? They mightn’t get a press pass for the next big gig if they start digging into issues and then where would they be? A journalist investigating stuff gets them fired for asking the wrong people the right questions. Better to keep copy/pasting press releases.

      1. Louis Lefronde

        I’d rather be fired for asking the wrong questions from ‘the right people’ then sit idle like a toad copying other people’s endeavours as passing myself off as a journalist… Which is fairly much what is happening at Irish news ‘outlets’ these days….”

    1. Jake38

      Hilarious. Only 5 years later. The Irish judicial system really is the laughing stock of Europe.

  14. steve white

    after revealing name of boxer who failed drug test Daniel McConnell insists he’s a political reporter

  16. Fully Keen

    Sharing a cell…

    Equal time in the sun…

    Treated like all other inmates.

    Brazil ya legends.

    Obviously making an example of him and I’m sure Brazil’s white collars aren’t normally treated like Hickey but it’s great to watch.

  18. Votey McVolteface

    Doesnt Tom Humphries write Donal Óg Cusacks column? How much is he paid for this and by whom? Is he still on the payroll or medical benefits of the Irish Times or had he been dismissed? Was he ever brought to trial? Why have the parents of the child concerned not taken a civil action against him? Over to you Eamon and Emmett

  19. Bill

    Don’t be lazy and blame Irish jounalists for this one. You should be calling for Olympic Council of Ireland to be scrapped and replaced with an entirely new ofganization with modern checks and balances for curruption.

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