David QuinnThere is an appalling double standard at work
I was flicking through the papers at the weekend and one story in particular caught my eye, namely the news that Environment Minister, Phil Hogan is suing TV3 for damages after he was allegedly defamed by Vincent Browne on Vincent Browne’s show.
The Irish Independent reported the matter as follows: “It is alleged Mr Browne described Mr Hogan as being ‘a bigoted racist’ arising out of representations made by Mr Hogan on behalf of a constituent over the suitability of a family, who are members of the Travelling community for a vacant property in Co. Kilkenny.
“Mr Hogan claims the remarks inferred he was prejudiced towards Travellers, sought to prevent the housing of members of the Travelling community, had breached the Incitement to Hatred Act and was not suitable for his role as minister or TD.
“He says the allegedly defamatory remarks have damaged his reputation and caused him extreme stress.”
The case is due to appear before the High Court.
No prizes for guessing why this story caught my eye. It is reminiscent of the recent battle between RTÉ on the one hand, and columnist John Waters and The Iona Institute (which I head) on the other.
On that occasion our reputations were badly impugned on the Saturday Night Show. RTÉ eventually apologised and paid a sum in damages. The reaction from most of the rest of the media to this, led by RTÉ, was instantaneous and volcanic. It was the greatest eruption of media rage we have seen in this country in a long time and it went on for several weeks.
Warped logic
Among other things, we were accused of trying to suppress a debate on homophobia.
Based on this warped logic, Phil Hogan is attempting to stop a debate on anti-Traveller prejudice (‘Traveller-phobia’?)
Granted the Hogan case has yet to be settled, but once it is, whatever way it goes, if RTÉ follow their own logic, they ought to fill the airwaves for days on end with Travellers speaking about their experience of anti-Traveller prejudice, which is very widespread in this country.
Mind you, I wonder what the public would think after several weeks of being subjected to a bombardment of voices on the airwaves complaining about being victims of prejudice. Would they be sick and tired of the whole thing?
Also, if the reaction to the Phil Hogan case followed the course of ‘Pantigate’ (named after Panti Bliss, who was interviewed on the Saturday Night Show on that fateful night), politicians would seek to outdo one another in their expressions of outrage at Phil Hogan’s supposed attempt to stop a debate on ‘Traveller-phobia’, whereas, by his own lights, he is simply trying to defend his good name.
Public debate
In addition, Pat Rabbitte would attack him for not simply taking his lumps where is what all figures who attempt to ‘intrude’ themselves into a public debate ought to do in his opinion.
This is what he told John Waters and The Iona Institute during Pantigate. Why hasn’t he said the same thing to Phil Hogan, and for that matter, why didn’t he say the same thing to his colleague, Prionsias de Rossa, when he successfully sued the Sunday Independent?
Why didn’t he say it to Mary Harney when she successfully sued Newstalk, or former RTÉ producer, Betty Purcell, when she successfully sued The Sunday Times? The list goes on.
What explains the lack of consistency is, of course, the appalling double standard of much of our media led by RTÉ.
The current great liberal cause du jour, along with abortion, is same-sex marriage. Nothing, but nothing must be allowed to stand in its way. Those opposed to it have no right to their good name and deserve whatever they get.
That is why there is only a periodic stirring of the blood about anti-Traveller prejudice. When Brenda Power wrote a column recently that was highly critical of aspects of Traveller life the angry reaction to it was a one-day- wonder.
It was quite unlike the time columnist Kevin Myers called children of single mothers ‘bastards’. He should never have written that of course but neither should RTÉ have led a two-week attack on him.
In a similar vein they led a days-long assault on columnist Mary-Ellen Synon after she severely criticised the Paralympics (that resulted in the loss of her column in the Sunday Independent).
Also similarly, Cardinal Desmond Connell was subjected to a sustained, days-long attack after he said that parents who use family planning may come to see their children as products, not gifts from God, and so love them less.
Distortion
What is going on here is that producers, presenters and journalists pick and choose what to be outraged about. They are outraged about the things that offend their sensibilities. They are never outraged about the things that outrage the sensibilities of others.
This is why, for example, they are never outraged at stories that highlight some of the horrors the abortion industry indulges in (leaving aside the intrinsic awfulness of abortion itself).
Therefore, there is no genuine outrage at the aborting of girls rather than boys (‘sex-selective’ abortions), or at very late term, partial birth abortions, or at the fact that women sometimes die, or come close to it, at the hands of abortionists who are essentially quacks.
The double standards of much of our media, with our national broadcaster RTÉ being a chief offender, is a problem of national proportions. It severely distorts debate in Ireland, not least debate about the social issues, about religion in general and about the Catholic Church in particular.
