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RTE's masts at the television studio in Montrose. Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland

BAI upholds complaint about abortion coverage on RTÉ's Morning Edition

The upheld complaint alleged that the presenter did not adequately challenge remarks put forward by a contributor.

THE BROADCASTING AUTHORITY of Ireland has judged that a segment on RTÉ’s Morning Edition about the Protection of Life during Pregnancy Bill lacked the required fairness.

The decision relates to a complaint made about  the 12 June edition of the show which discussed an Irish Times poll on the bill.

The complainant, Anne Marie Stack, made a number of submissions about the show, including that criticisms of both the poll and the bill were not represented in studio.

The complainant alleged that, in their absence, the presenter of the show had a duty to “represent their arguments and to challenge the prevailing and uniform view that was emerging from the three contributors”.

The BAI upheld this portion of the complaint saying that:

While all current affairs programming must meet the statutory requirement for fairness, objectivity and impartiality, additional care is required on the part of broadcasters where the topic of discussion is a matter of current public debate and public controversy, including an issue such as abortion.

The discussion of the poll included an interview with Michael O’Regan from the Irish Times. During the course of this discussion, the presenter put to O’Regan that a representative of the pro-life campaign had suggested that the questions in the poll were “leading”.

This viewpoint was then dismissed by O’Regan as ‘nonsense’, ‘absurd’ and ‘regrettable’. The BAI felt that not enough was done thereafter by the presenter to ensure that there was an adequate alternate viewpoint to the one being put forward.

Other complaints

A number of other complaints were made by Stack which were rejected. These complaints related to a subsequent discussion on the content of the day’s newspapers when it was alleged that the tone, language and demeanour of the presenter had given the impression that she supported the legislation being debated.

It was also claimed that the presenter used the sentence “we must get this through” in reference to the bill.

These complaints were rejected with the BAI stating that they found “no evidence” that the contribution of the presenter or panelists lacked fairness.

In relation to the sentence complained about, the BAI took the the view that the presenter had misspoken and then corrected her comment, something that did not indicate bias.

The full BAI decision can be read here>

Read: BAI reject complaint by Direct Democracy Ireland alleging unfair treatment >

Read: ‘Racist and prejudicial’ comments went unchallenged on 4FM show – BAI >

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32 Comments
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    Mute Hakuin Murphy
    Favourite Hakuin Murphy
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    Oct 13th 2014, 12:56 PM

    Yeah but can he do it against Stoke on a wet Tuesday in February?

    325
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    Mute Philip Neasy
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    Oct 13th 2014, 2:41 PM

    Ha ha. Deadly.

    21
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    Mute Kane Abel
    Favourite Kane Abel
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    Oct 13th 2014, 10:41 PM

    I nearly won that Noble priz but i had problums fillin in da form

    #CheatedByScincetusts

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    Mute Stefan Epure
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    Oct 13th 2014, 10:45 PM

    Bring him in as a consultant for Irish Water……

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    Mute Shala
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    Oct 13th 2014, 12:49 PM

    Well I feel like an underachiever!

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    Mute Moccy Fondoo
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    Oct 13th 2014, 3:15 PM

    With his brains, he could’ve been a World class musician, a brilliant artist, or perhaps, a poet, – but, lousy money, – what a waste …

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    Mute John Collins
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    Oct 13th 2014, 4:07 PM

    Moccy fondoo

    You need talent for those things, not brains. Speaking of wastes, poetry is much more pointless than economics.

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    Mute Moccy Fondoo
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    Oct 13th 2014, 4:29 PM

    I’m sure that’s true if you have no soul, I wouldn’t know.

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    Mute John Collins
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    Oct 13th 2014, 7:01 PM

    I’m an atheist, i don’t need you to tell me i have no soul.

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    Mute Sergé
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    Oct 13th 2014, 11:02 PM

    Economics is not about money, but about organising the society’s resources in such a way that they will bring the most benefit. Regulation and competition policy exists to protect consumers and nurture competition.

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    Mute Grot Master
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    Oct 13th 2014, 3:00 PM

    Economics: The science of explaining tomorrow why yesterday’s predictions didn’t occur.

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    Mute sid
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    Oct 13th 2014, 2:22 PM

    If he was over here they’d stick him on jobs bridge doing ecdl

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    Mute Ken Mitchell
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    Oct 13th 2014, 4:58 PM

    Yeay and he only went to an institute of technology and didn’t get a 1.1 from trinity so he doesn’t make the cut

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    Mute Dee4
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    Oct 13th 2014, 12:53 PM

    they gave one of those to Krugman who proposed that the US inflate the housing market after the 2000 downturn. How did that one work out? Economics is as much a moral “science” as anything else and the excessive modelling that has taken hold of economics just gives it the veneer of respectability.

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    Mute Trudy Taaffe
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    Oct 13th 2014, 1:47 PM

    But is he happy?

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    Mute Ray rogers
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    Oct 13th 2014, 3:00 PM

    No, he’s miserable. Happy?

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    Mute jack frost
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    Oct 13th 2014, 2:08 PM

    Lot on his mind I’d say…. Thank f..k mine is free !

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    Mute Dsl
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    Oct 13th 2014, 3:16 PM

    No sports or social mentions ..

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    Mute Éamonn Tiernan
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    Oct 13th 2014, 5:59 PM

    But did he get a B2 in honours Leaving Cert construction studies?

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    Mute Cian Byrne
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    Oct 13th 2014, 8:07 PM

    He should be our taoiseach, pitty, he wouldn’t earn as much as he would deserve!!

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