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Last night.

Singer Sinéad O’Connor was on the Late Late Show last night and, during her appearance, she interviewed host Ryan Tubridy..

At one point she mentioned she saw a video of a woman being thrown on the streets by a guard, during an Irish Water protest.

Sinéad O’Connor: “How do you feel about the 1916 people being discredited lately by the State and do you think it’s because they don’t want us being inspired by 1916 to revolt?”

Ryan Tubridy: “Ok, well what I’d say to you is that I do have a role in this programme as what you’d call a moderator. So, in that sense, I have to kind of balance and even out debate. So, when I’m sitting where you’re sitting, I have to say, ‘OK what do you think? what do you think? what do you think’. Now if I was sat here, even in this interview that we’re doing, I didn’t know anything you were going to ask me, I didn’t know we were going to be talking about 1916 and water but here we are, and I don’t mind that by the way, that’s why we’re here, that’s what we’re doing, we’re just shooting the breeze. But, if I start getting into personal thoughts about these things, suddenly, I couldn’t moderate a debate anymore. So I’ve got to be, I’ve got to leave that stuff for the pub, Sinead..”

O’Connor: “Ok, so I’ve a minute left, the lady is saying to me in the earpiece…”

Tubridy: “…which I love going to and by the way I’ll have it out with you in the pub. I love the pub.”

O’Connor: “Ok, so one final question, I’ve only got a minute and, to me, this is my most important question…”

O’Connor: “…and I’m going to ask Ryan this but I’d really want the audience to think about, and the viewers, ok? It’s my belief that nothing born of the slightest violence can succeed spiritually and, consequently, it can’t succeed financially or any other way. It’s my belief that the first republic of Ireland failed because it was born of spiritual corruption and it’s remained corrupt. To what extent would you all, and would you, consider, supporting the idea of an absolutely non-violent revolution, in the form of peaceful, civil disobedience and the creation of a second republic of Ireland?”

Tubridy: “Oh, a brand new republic? Well, look, I think that the, it’s a conversation worth having.”

O’Connor: “I think, based on the fact that the cops are throwing women around the streets over the water charges? It’s time for a revolution, right?..”

Tubridy: “Well..”

O’Connor: “Non violent, civil disobedience…”

Tubridy: “I think the emphasis should be on non-violence, so you know…”

O’Connor: “Yeah, absolutely, so you can’t throw balloons, you can’t …”

Tubridy: “You can’t rock a car with a woman or man in it..”

O’Connor: “Absolutely not.”

Tubridy: “You can’t throw a woman onto the street. I would say, and I said this to somebody on the radio this week. Because somebody gave out to me for what I was saying. And I said, ‘look, the best people you can look to in the world, iconic people like John Hume and Martin Luther King..”

O’Connor: “Gandhi.”

Tubridy: “Gandhi, they were marked and defined by their dignity.”

O’Connor: “Yeah.”

Tubridy: “And I think that the water charges has been stripped down bait because…”

O’Connor: “Yes, but let’s not be afraid, Ryan, there has to be..”

Tubridy: “…because of the dignity of the people.”

O’Connor: “But we mustn’t be afraid of all the temptations not to revolt. There has to be absolutely non-violent, peaceful, civil disobedience. Non-violent means don’t throw the balloons, don’t throw anything at anyone. Sit down on the street and get shot if you have to get shot, silently sit there…”

Tubridy: “But non-violence is the key, yeah.”

O’Connor: “But we have to claim back our country. The spirit of 1916, they built a country out of rubble. We have more than they had at that time. And we don’t need to be violent or create rubble. But we need to get that spirit and resurrect it..”

Tubridy: “But didn’t they need violence to eh…”

O’Connor: “It’s deliberate that our state is trying to discredit the 1916 people.”

Cheers and applause from audience

Tubridy: “OK, but I’ll just say one thing..”

O’Connor: “One second, you can, the very fact is this discrediting of 1916 is being done on purpose so that we won’t revolt. We must understand we can revolt without violence. And study Gandhi. Everybody start watching Gandhi.”

PARKLIFE!

Watch back here in full

mcgurk

For the day that’s in it.

RTÉ’s promo ahead of Ireand versus Australia, the final game of the popular and often overpriced black stout series at Lansdowne Road Nua.

The rarest of creatures.

Tom McGurk’s inner monologue is unleashed:

Michael Cheika meets Joe Schmidt. It’s rugby’s rumble in the jungle, it’s fire against ice, it’s Cavaliers versus the Roundheads. Who will be Socrates and who will be Plato?

Needs more Honey Badger in fairness.

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Newstalk presenter Chris Donoghue

On June 27, 2014, Newstalk presenter Chris Donoghue – during a feature on the Gay Pride Parade in Dublin – said, in a referendum on same-sex marriages, he would vote in favour of changing Ireland’s legislation to allow for same-sex marriages.

This prompted a listener, Ray McIntyre, to complain to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI).

According to the BAI, Mr McIntyre, “…states that there are also those who take a different view, emphasising the importance of marriage as a social institution designed to provide children with a mother and a father. The complainant states that it is not Newstalk’s role as a broadcaster, to act as a cheerleader for one side or the other in a matter of current public debate. He believes that this kind of conduct, if continued, threatens to make next year’s referendum a farce of epic proportions.”

The BAI upheld Mr McIntyre’s complaint in part, specifically concluding that, ‘It was the opinion of the Committee that the statement by one of the presenters that he would vote in favour of any forthcoming referendum on marriage equality and his stated impatience with not being able to vote immediately constitutes the statement of a partisan position by a news and current affairs presenter on a matter of current public debate, contrary to Rule 4.22 of the BAI Code of Fairness, Objectivity and Impartiality in News and Current Affairs.’

Rule 4.22 is as follows…

“It is an important part of the role of a presenter of a current affairs programme to ensure that the audience has access to a wide variety of views on the subject of the programme or item; to facilitate the expression of contributors’ opinions – sometimes by forceful questioning; and to reflect the views of those who cannot, or choose not to, participate in content. This being so, a presenter and/or a reporter on a current affairs programme shall
not express his or her own views on matters that are either of public controversy or the subject of current public debate such that a partisan position is advocated.”

Further to this, Senator Katherine Zappone writes:

“The decision of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland is concerning for a number of reasons, not least the imposition of election campaign rules at a time when there is no campaign. As it stands no referendum has been called, a referendum commission has not been established and no date has been set.

Secondly the decision came on the day when an authority member was in the national newspapers saying that a quorum could not be met for meetings of the BAI as the Government has failed to make appointments.

This raises serious governance issues which must be clarified, we need to establish who is calling the shots at the BAI and is behind these rulings.

Requiring balance on every issue on the airwaves is simply unworkable – for example must a discussion on racism now require input from racists or must a discussion on murder and violent crimes require someone speaking up for thugs?

Open debate and commentary on the issues of the day has always been a hallmark of Irish democracy, the stifling of views is something we normally associate in closed countries where there is no free press.

I will be raising this issue in the Seanad and support the efforts of media organisations and journalists in seeking further information on how the BAI is interpreting current broadcast legislation.”

Newstalk presenter Chris Donoghue criticises BAI decision as “daft and depressing” (Newstalk)

Broadcasting Complaint Decisions (BAI)

Katherine Zappone (Facebook)

Previously: The Loony Mooney Ruling

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Whose free time is it anyway?

A host of names undergo a crash course in improv in front of a life audience.

Blue nosed social media networker  Darragh Doyle writes:

“Improv Fest Ireland’s Finale Event in aid of Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital Crumlin returns again this year on Sunday, November 23 at the Twisted Pepper on Middle Abbey Street, Dublin. Tickets are only €15 and all proceeds go to the charity.”

Buy tickets here

The Celebrity Comedy Improv

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With her pointy shoes.

And swimming trunks.

Style geek Alexa Chung in Brown Thomas, Grafton Street, Dublin this afternoon  [wearing a frock from Irish designer Simone Rocha] unveiling her collection for Nails Inc which “comprise six fabric inspired nail polishes in Leather, Lace, Silk, Cashmere, Sequins and Camo”.

*bites stubborn hangnail*

(Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland)

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Twenty per cent.

Twenty

UPDATE:

Kitty Holland, in the Irish Times, reports:

“The figures have risen steadily since 2009, to 70 in 2010, 87 in 2011 and 87 in winter 2012 (when one area was not counted). The figures for winter 2007 and 2008 were 104 and 101 respectively.”

“The largest proportion whose age could be confirmed – 40 in total – were aged between 31 and 40 years of age; 36 were aged between 18 and 30; 17 were aged 41 to 50; 10 were between the ages of 51 and 60; three were over 61 years; and 62 people were unknown.”

Numbers sleeping rough in Dublin highest since records began (Kitty Holland, Irish Times)

Previously: While You Were Sleeping

Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland

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